Busy Bees Day Nursery at London Excel

Busy Bees Day Nursery at London Excel Royal Victoria Docks, London, E16 1XL

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 20/02/2014 20/06/2012

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 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 2 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 2

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This provision is good

 Staff provide good support to develop children's language and communication to aid their confidence in speaking.  There are good staffing levels and staff are deployed well to ensure children are supervised.  Managers demonstrate a strong commitment to improving the quality of care and teaching by reflecting on their practice and implementing action plans.  There are many opportunities for parents to become involved in their children's learning and staff use a variety of methods to communicate ideas for home activities.  The staff use observations of children well to plan what needs to be learnt next. This helps children make good progress in all areas.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Older children do not have sufficient challenges when playing outside, especially for climbing and balancing.

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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 observed activities involving children and staff.  The inspector carried out a joint observation with the manager.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at documentation relating to safeguarding and risk assessments.  The inspector looked at children's progress records.  The inspector took account of the views of parents spoken to during the inspection.

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Information about the setting

Busy Bees Day Nursery at London Excel registered in 2002 and is part of a nursery chain run by Busy Bees Day Nurseries (Trading) Ltd. It is a purpose-built nursery situated in the surrounding area of the Excel exhibition centre in the London borough of Newham. It operates from four separate children's areas and each age group has its own enclosed outdoor play area.

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Information about the setting

The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register. A maximum of 107 children may attend the nursery at any one time. The nursery is open each weekday from 8am to 6pm all year round. There are currently 119 children on roll aged from birth to the end of the early years age range. The nursery is in receipt of funding to provide free early education to children aged three and four years. It currently supports children who are learning English as an additional language and children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. The nursery employs 28 staff, most of whom have appropriate early years qualifications.

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

 develop the outdoor learning provision to provide more challenges for older children to develop their physical skills in particular, for example, through climbing and balancing.

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who attend

Children are making good progress in this well-resourced and inspiring provision. Staff are skilled at observing what children can do and plan activities to interest them. They use information from parents to plan care and learning needs and to incorporate children's interests in activities. Babies and younger children are cared for in their own age groups and this helps them build good relationships with the staff who care for them. This means that they become emotionally secure and confident to explore their surroundings. For example, babies enjoy exploring a range of natural materials as well as music and physical activity in the garden. Older babies explore the space and resources in their group room; for example, toy 'mini bugs' and sand are a source of fascination. Staff allow toddlers to decide whether to play indoors or outside moving freely between their group room to the garden. Staff plan the garden area to support children's all-round development, which

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who attend

helps those children who prefer to be outdoors. Staff undertake regular assessments of children's progress to check that any gaps in achievement are identified and additional support is put into place should children require it. There is good teaching support for children's speech and language through small group activities based on a programme to enrich their communication. For example, staff build on children's individual ideas using 'chatterboxes' to store children's individual items for discussions at 'circle times' when children gather together in a group. Children enjoy sharing pictures, such as where they have been on holiday and telling everyone what they know about other countries. Staff demonstrate good teaching skills by asking them questions about their own toys, books and photographs to get them to think about what they want to say next. Such activities help children expand their vocabularies and gain

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who attend

confidence in speaking in front of others.

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who attend

Staff plan specific activities to foster literacy development, such as helping children to learn the sounds that letters make. Staff sit on the carpet with the children at their level making good eye contact in order to engage children. Children who speak languages other than English are supported because staff learn basic words in the child's home language when they start. Staff also use signs and picture cards to help communication with all children. This means that every child knows how sessions run, so helping them feel secure.

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who attend

Staff provide an interesting range of activities to fire children's imaginations. Their planning for children's learning includes times together where planned activities motivate learning well. For example, staff plan interesting opportunities to excite children's creative play, such as in the 'bear cave'. Staff develop themes based around children's interests. For example, there is a Bollywood dance group which is very popular with the children. Children join in with planned music and dance groups, learning to express their thoughts as they wish.

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who attend

Staff help children gain useful skills for their eventual move to school. They help children create their own books about animals, teaching understanding of mathematical ideas when comparing the size of elephants and lizards. Staff have designed the outdoor areas to promote learning and here children enjoy using letters and numbers as well as making their own marks. All children progress in developing their hand skills in readiness for school. However, there are few challenges for older children to enjoy physical challenges in their garden area to develop their skills, for example in climbing and balancing.

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who attend

Parents are actively involved in their children's learning because staff encourage them to join in with activities and to help their children learn through play at home. The strong partnership between staff and parents contributes to the good progress children are making.

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

Staff organise the nursery well to meet the needs of individual children, which supports their well-being. Babies settle quickly because staff provide support to help them separate from their adults using a gradual settling in process. The staff operate an effective 'key person' system, whereby staff take special responsibility for a particular group of children. The key persons know their children well and develop positive relationships with these children's parents. These relationships help babies to settle in so they confidently explore their environment while enjoying the company of kind and caring staff. Staff support individual children as they progress from one room to another through the nursery. They help children to settle and become absorbed in their play.

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

Staff have high expectations for children's behaviour. They teach children safety rules and to be kind to each other through providing clear explanations. Children behave well in response to this teaching and because they are constantly occupied in activities of their choosing. Staff provide resources that are well-organised to enable children to make independent choices. These are presented invitingly with lots of toys and equipment in baskets which are clearly labelled and stored on low shelving. This arrangement allows children to choose what they wish to play with so they are motivated to learn and become independent in their learning. There is a good range of play materials for babies and younger children including textured objects and materials to help them explore using their senses. Older children have access to technology, including interactive whiteboards and computers to find out what they need to know in relation to topics, for example.

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

Staff teach children to keep themselves safe and healthy, including through a clear daily routine for play and mealtimes. Staff provide healthy snacks that children enjoy. Children sit in small groups for meals which fosters their social skills. At the same time, staff make good use of meal times to teach children to become independent. For example, staff encourage children to serve themselves, so children gain suitable skills for the next stage of learning The nappy changing and toileting facilities in each of the rooms means that children's physical needs are well provided for and older children can use the toilet independently. This demonstrates their growing personal independence.

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

Staff arrange the children's day to meet their needs. They provide children with enjoyable quiet times for rest; those who need to may sleep and each room has soothing music. This arrangement enables children to rest and prepare for further activities. Staff encourage all children to play outdoors so they gain a positive attitude to being outside in the fresh air. During these times staff are constantly engaged with the children as they keep to their designated areas to provide support for children's interests. The good staffing levels and effective organisation of where staff are working means that children are supervised and safe.

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

Staff prepare older children for their coming move to school through using stories and home-made photo books. They talk to children about school and encourage them to practice personal independence skills. For example, towards the end of their time in the pre-school, staff teach the children how to use a lunch box and other useful skills such as opening their own yoghurt pots and putting straws into drink cartons. These skills are useful in developing children's independence and helping them to be ready for the changes to come.

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provision

The leadership and management of the nursery are strong. The daily manager is supported by an area management team from the parent company that helps inspire the growth and development of the nursery. The managers have full understanding of their legal responsibility to meet the safeguarding and welfare requirements. Safeguarding children's well-being is given a high priority. All staff have training in safeguarding and know what to do if they suspect that a child may be at risk from harm. The safeguarding policy is shared with staff and parents so they may understand the staff team's responsibilities in regard to children. The policy also helps managers to be clear about what to do in the event of an allegation against a member of staff.

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provision

This inspection was brought forward owing to a notification made to Ofsted in regard to an incident where a child was left outside in a secure garden area unsupervised for approximately five minutes. The nursery management has taken swift and appropriate action following this incident to ensure it does not reoccur. The risk assessments used to identify any risks to children remain thorough. The garden area has CCTV that shows when children are outside. Nevertheless, the management has acted swiftly reviewing risk assessments in response to the incident and have implemented changes as a result to further strengthen practice. For example, additional procedures have been added to the risk assessment for the garden and the management of children when staff supervise children's move from the garden to the indoor area. This thoroughness, combined with good staffing levels and effective staff deployment, helps staff keep children are safe.

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provision

There are robust systems to check that adults working with children are suitable, including a record of disclosure checks for all staff.

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provision

The provider's management of individual staff is effective and this has a positive impact on the quality of experiences for the children. Each room has an appointed room leader and their expertise is used to contribute to monitoring the quality of the teaching in that room. Regular room meetings, staff meetings, supervisions and appraisals are used to help staff develop their skills. The provision has access to the company's national training team as well as local training for inset days and training courses, although no staff member in the nursery is qualified above level 3. There is an area co-ordinator who visits regularly in order to help raise the quality of the care and education. This means that there is a culture of mutual support and training to support staff practice and children's achievements. Furthermore, the nursery manager uses a tracking programme to monitor the progress of groups of children. This means that any gaps in achievement are identified

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provision

and appropriate action taken. This means that all children get the help and support their need to prepare them for school.

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provision

There are good partnerships with other professionals such as speech and language therapists and local schools. Parents spoken to during the inspection were impressed with the different methods the staff use to communicate with them, such as newsletters, e- mails and text messages, as well as daily discussions and parents' evenings. They feel well-informed about their children's progress and comfortable to discuss any issues they may have.

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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 EY222547 Local authority Newham Inspection number 955210 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 5 Total number of places 107 Number of children on roll 119 Name of provider Busy Bees Day Nurseries (Trading) Limited Date of previous inspection 20/06/2012 Telephone number 0207 474 7487

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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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