The Gillingham Nursery

Happy Bunnies Unit 2, Conqueror Court, Campus Way, Gillingham Business Park, GILLINGHAM, Kent, ME8 0RR

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 13/02/2014 17/08/2011

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early years provision

This inspection: 3 Previous inspection: 2 How well the early years provision meets the needs of the range of children who attend The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children 3 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 3

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This provision requires improvement

 The indoor environment is set out with a variety of resources and exciting play experiences that hold children's interests.  Children have daily access to a well-resourced and stimulating outside area.  Staff use daily routines well to support and develop children's growing independence.  Parents are provided with a good range of information about the setting from the outset.

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It is not yet good because

 Systems to monitor practice and self-evaluate is not rigorous enough to ensure areas for improvement are identified.  The key person system is not effective in supporting the emotional well-being of all children.  Teaching is not always consistently good enough to encourage children to develop their thoughts, ideas and extend their language and thinking skills.  Staff do not provide enough resources to reflect the cultural background of the children attending the setting.

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Information about this inspection

Inspections of registered early years provision are:  scheduled at least once in every inspection cycle – the current cycle ends on 31 July

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Information about this inspection

 scheduled more frequently where Ofsted identifies a need to do so, for example where provision was previously judged inadequate  brought forward in the inspection cycle where Ofsted has received information that suggests the provision may not be meeting the legal requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage or where assessment of the provision identifies a need for early inspection  prioritised where we have received information that the provision is not meeting the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage and which suggests children may not be safe  scheduled at the completion of an investigation into failure to comply with the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector carried out a joint observation with the manager.  The inspector spoke to staff at appropriate times during the day.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector sampled a range of policies, procedures and checked suitability of the staff and their qualifications.  The inspector took account of discussions with parents to seek their views.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector sampled documents relating to the learning and development of the children.

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Information about the setting

Happy Bunnies Nursery registered in 2011. It operates from three rooms in a self- contained building that is purposely adapted for childcare in Gillingham Business Park, Gillingham, Kent. The nursery is open each weekday from 7am to 6pm all year except for bank holidays. All children share access to a secure enclosed outdoor play area. There are currently 119 children aged from birth to under five years on roll. The nursery is in receipt of free education places for children aged two, three and four years. This nursery is registered on the Early Years Register. Children come from a wide catchment area. The nursery currently supports a number of children with special educational needs, and also supports a number of children who speak English as an additional language. The nursery employs 20 staff. Of these twelve of the staff, including the manager hold appropriate early years qualifications. The nursery receives support from the Local Authority.

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must:

 improve the key person system by ensuring all children have a named key person when they start at the setting, and so that children's emotional well-being is promoted when their key person is not available.

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To further improve the quality of the early years provision the provider should:

 develop processes to monitor the consistency of staff practice and development records, and extend self-evaluation to ensure all areas for improvement are identified and addressed

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To further improve the quality of the early years provision the provider should:

 support staff to use effective strategies to extend children's language and thinking skills

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To further improve the quality of the early years provision the provider should:

 improve staff's knowledge and understanding of how to support all children to find out about their own as well others' culture.

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who attend

The nursery is bright and airy and staff welcome arriving children in the 'jungle room' where breakfast is served. Children then move to their main play rooms. Children move around freely within the room and into the corridor where there are a number of resources and exciting activities for children to choose. For example, they explore water mixed with flour or glitter. However, multicultural resources and displays are very limited. Consequently, children have fewer opportunities to learn about their own cultures and that of others. Staff support children with their chosen activities. For example, in the 'jungle room' children enjoy pretending to wash and set staff's hair with plastic shampoo bottles and rollers. Pre-school children have access to a computer daily and demonstrate they are skilled in using the mouse and operating programmes. This helps them to develop skills for the future. However, teaching methods do not always help children to develop their

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who attend

language skills or provide opportunities to think for themselves. For example, although staff make positive comments when children are painting, they do not use open questions. Therefore children are not always encouraged to explore further, develop their vocabulary or solve simple problems. Access to a large sandpit with a range of resources gives children the opportunity to play in a variety of ways such as digging and pouring. Furthermore the clever use of a small table and chair encourages children to be creative with their play such as making tea for each other.

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who attend

Staff set up the environment well to promote children's independence and they encourage children to make choices from low level labelled resources. Pre-school children's independence is further promoted as they develop self-care routines because they have direct access to child size toilets.

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who attend

Staff obtain initial information from parents to support knowledge of starting points and these are used to plan the educational programme. However, staff are not always sure about children's home cultures and home language. As a result, staff do not always enable children to use their home language to enhance the learning of English. A clear planning cycle in all areas of learning reveals how staff plan the environment and activities to support children in their learning. Summaries of children's progress are completed two or three times a year and shared with parents so they are kept fully informed of their children's progress. However, this is inconsistent. For example, in the baby room a child's assessment had not been completed since they started. As a result the key person is unaware of the child's progress. Staff complete the progress check for two-year-old children and share this with parents. This enables identification of any learning needs and

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who attend

allows parents to be involved in their child's development.

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who attend

Parents are happy with the care their children receive and are developing relationships with their key person. They have access to children's learning records regularly and are encouraged to contribute to their children's learning.

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The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children

The key person system has some weaknesses and as a result not all children's emotional needs are met. For example, not all children have a named key person when they start and little thought has been given to who will continue supporting the children in the absence of their key person. This results in some children being upset and displaying low well-being as they are passed between a number of different staff.

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The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children

Children have good opportunities to learn about the importance of a healthy lifestyle. They have fruit to choose from during snack time and pour their own milk or water to drink. Opportunities to play outside daily in a well-resourced area allow children to benefit from fresh air and exercise. Staff promote good hygiene procedures encouraging children to wash hands before they eat and use good hygiene routines when changing nappies

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The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children

Staff provide a welcoming environment for children and their families. Parents and carers are welcome at the nursery at any time. Children can see that their unique work is valued in the setting through the displays.

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The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children

Risk assessments are well used to identify hazards, such as securing the main door. As a result, the environment is safe for children. Resources are in good condition and generally reflect all areas of learning. They are suitable for the ages of children in each room and the child-sized furniture allows children to be independent and lead their own learning. As a result of the sound environment and agreed strategies of support, children's behaviour is good.

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provision

The designated member of staff with responsibility for safeguarding has up to date training and demonstrates a sound understanding of the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. There are suitable arrangements in place to safeguard children. Staff know the procedures to follow if they have any concerns about the welfare of a child. All required policies and procedures are in place, which contribute to the children's safety and welfare. Accident records are completed and logged and used to evaluate any hazards in the environment. There are effective recruitment systems in place, which include vetting and taking up references before staff start. All staff have undertaken the necessary checks to demonstrate their suitability to work with children.

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provision

Monthly supervisions take place for all staff as well as annual appraisals. Staff work well as a team and feel valued. Staff's training needs are identified and regular training is undertaken such as recruitment training. As a result, systems to check staff's continued suitability have been introduced. Management oversee the education programme. However, there are weaknesses in monitoring and self-evaluation. As a result, the manager has not identified the weakness in provision for children who speak English as an additional language and for provision to extend children communication and language. In addition, the manager has not identified inconsistency in assessment records and the weakness in the system to support children's emotional needs.

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provision

All staff use a tracking system to identify any gaps in children's learning and ensure they are making progress and identify if extra support is needed, although some are more complete than others. A system to monitor groups of children is developing. Some aspects of self-evaluation work well. For example, an annual audit by the Local Authority highlights strengths and areas for development for the year. All previous recommendations and actions have been successfully addressed.

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provision

The setting works in partnership with outside agencies and other care givers. Systems are in place to share information through the use of contact books; these have proved very effective when there are a number of caregivers as all parties can input and share information. There are close partnerships with outside agencies for the benefit of individual children, which help to secure appropriate interventions. Parents report they are happy with the setting. They are provided with a comprehensive range of information about the setting, including the policies and procedures. They have an opportunity to share their views by the use of questionnaires.

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Grade Judgement Description

Grade 1 Outstanding Outstanding provision is highly effective in meeting the needs of all children exceptionally well. This ensures that children are very well prepared for the next stage of their learning. Grade 2 Good Good provision is effective in delivering provision that meets the needs of all children well. This ensures children are ready for the next stage of their learning. Grade 3 Requires improvement The provision is not giving children a good standard of early years education and/or there are minor breaches of the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. It will be monitored and inspected within twelve months of the date of this inspection. Grade 4 Inadequate Provision that is inadequate requires significant improvement and/or enforcement action. The provision is failing to give children an acceptable standard of early years education and/or is not meeting the safeguarding and welfare requirements of

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Grade Judgement Description

the Early Years Foundation Stage. It will be monitored and inspected again within six months of the date of this inspection. Met The provision has no children on roll. The inspection judgement is that the provider continues to meet the requirements for registration. Not met The provision has no children on roll. The inspection judgement is that the provider does not meet the requirements for registration.

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Inspection

This inspection was carried out by Ofsted under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of provision that is registered on the Early Years Register. The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children’s learning, development and care, known as the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY421060 Local authority Medway Towns Inspection number 946294 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 4 Total number of places 67 Number of children on roll 119 Name of provider Ivata Limited Date of previous inspection 17/08/2011 Telephone number 07515 878736

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Setting details

set out in the guidance ‘Complaints procedure: raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted’, which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk.

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Type of provision

For the purposes of this inspection the following definitions apply:

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Type of provision

Full-time provision is that which operates for more than three hours. These are usually known as nurseries, nursery schools and pre-schools and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. They are registered on the Early Years Register and pay the higher fee for registration.

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Type of provision

Sessional provision operates for more than two hours but does not exceed three hours in any one day. These are usually known as pre-schools, kindergartens or nursery schools and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. They are registered on the Early Years Register and pay the lower fee for registration.

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Type of provision

Childminders care for one or more children where individual children attend for a period of more than two hours in any one day. They operate from domestic premises, which are usually the childminder’s own home. They are registered on the Early Years Register and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Type of provision

Out of school provision may be sessional or full-time provision and is delivered before or after school and/or in the summer holidays. They are registered on the Early Years Register and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. Where children receive their Early Years Foundation Stage in school these providers do not have to deliver the learning and development requirements in full but should complement the experiences children receive in school. achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work-based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children,

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Type of provision

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Type of provision

T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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