Busy Bees Day Nursery at Basingstoke Hospital

Just Learning Nursery The Crescent, Aldermaston Road, Basingstoke, Hampshire, RG24 9NJ

p.1

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 03/03/2014 09/04/2013

p.1

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

p.1

This provision requires improvement

 Uniform systems for observations, planning and targeting children's progress help most children to make good progress towards their early learning goals.  Moves between classes and on to school are well managed.  Children learn the importance of a healthy diet and physical exercise.  Child-accessible resources promote learning and stimulate children inside and outside.

p.1

It is not yet good because

 Noise levels in some of the teaching areas are excessive and not well managed and this limits children's ability to listen and respond.  The key person system is not always effective at tailoring care to meet the individual needs of children learning English as an additional language who are still becoming familiar with the nursery.  Staff supervision does not always reflect individual learning styles and do not follow up attendance at training to ensure maximum impact in raising standards for all children.  Systems to support children learning English as an additional language are not fully embedded in daily practice.

p.1

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

p.2

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.

p.2

Information about this inspection

The provision is also registered on the compulsory part of the Childcare Register. This report includes a judgment about compliance with the requirements of that register.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector observed a wide range of activities across all areas of the nursery and talked with staff and children about what they were doing.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector reviewed documents and procedures relating to safeguarding, staffing, supervision, risk assessment and health and safety, and checked a selection of other policies.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector sampled a range of children's records, the nursery's systems for planning, evaluation and exchanging information with parents and external professionals.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of the views of parents spoken to on the day and reviewed written responses from parents.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector met with the leadership team and followed through key observations with the respective room managers.

p.2

Information about the setting

Just Learning Nursery registered in 1999. It is registered on the Early Years Register and also the compulsory part of the Childcare Register. The nursery is part of a chain of nurseries that has been taken over by Busy Bees. It operates from six rooms in purpose- built premises in the grounds of Basingstoke Hospital. There is access to secure gardens for outside play. The nursery serves a large area of the community.

p.3

Information about the setting

The nursery opens five days a week all year round, from 7am to 6pm. There are currently 134 children on roll, all of whom are within the early years age range. Children attend on a full time or part time basis and there is flexibility with the hours offered within each day. The nursery is in receipt of funding for the provision of free early education for three- and four-year-olds. The nursery supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who speak English as an additional language.

p.3

Information about the setting

The nursery employs 36 members of staff including an administrator, cooks and bank staff. Of the 19 permanent staff who work directly with the children, ten have early years qualifications at level 3 or above, three of whom hold degrees in early years education.

p.3

must:

 improve the educational programme for communication and language by improving noise levels to enable children to listen and respond; ensure that all staff are clear on the pronunciation of key words in children's home languages and use an effective range of strategies to support key word teaching when children are beginning to learn English as an additional language.

p.3

must:

 improve the key person system to help ensure that care is tailored to meet the individual needs of every child, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who are learning English as an additional language.

p.3

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

 improve the impact of existing and future staff training through more individualised supervisions.

p.3

who attend

Children are making good levels of progress in many areas of their learning in this lively and well-resourced nursery. When children join the nursery, staff assess children's accomplishments across all areas of learning and development. This provides a base from which to plan activities that interest and challenge children. Parents work with their child's key person to prepare a progress check for two-year-old children, and again when preparing children to move on to school. More frequent reviews ensure that any gaps or delays in children's progress are identified promptly so that intervention programmes can be put in place. Generally, this process is effective and children make good progress towards their early learning goals. However, on occasion, the benefits of early identification are weak because intervention plans to support children with specific needs are neither proactive nor dynamic enough. In these cases children are not so well

p.4

who attend

prepared for school and opportunities to help them have been missed.

p.4

who attend

Babies explore a series of themed areas spanning bright stimulating colourful toys to varied natural textures. They have plenty of space and equipment to promote their physical development. Small group play, around sand and water trays, and meal times fosters social interaction. Attentive staff are quick to recognise babies' early attempts to vocalize and communicate. They provide a warm, safe and caring team, sensitively nurturing and encouraging the youngest children to learn new skills and discover new opportunities. Babies are happy and content in their play and care routines.

p.4

who attend

Staff across all areas of the nursery routinely observe children's activities, note their achievements and think of ways to facilitate their progress. Detailed learning journals are gradually compiled for each child by their key person. These include photographs and art work, short and long observations, developmental summaries and assessments. Parents comment that they enjoy looking through these to see their child's progress and also contribute updates on significant events at home. This supports the continuity of children's learning between home and the nursery. A wide range of initiatives inform and engage parents in their children's activities at the nursery. Parents soon understand the procedures in place to ensure their children make progress and are ready for their next stages of learning.

p.4

who attend

Routine observations also help staff evaluate how children like to learn and how involved children are in the activities that are planned to help them learn. Staff identify next steps in children's learning and include these in their planning of activities within their room teams. In most areas the planning and delivery of some good quality education programmes is well-documented. As a result, nearly all children are working within the typical range of development expected for their age, given their starting points. However, some aspects of learning, such as listening and attention and developing children's understanding of language are not always effective. At times, background noise levels within the nursery are such that children are not able to listen well, hear the comments of those around them and join in activities together. Again this has an impact on the progress children make. For much of the time, staff do plan and deliver effective learning experiences for children.

p.4

who attend

Imaginations are well fostered as role play in different scenarios unfolds. Some children dress up as doctors, bandaging up a patient member of staff as they learn the names of unusual instruments in a toy first aid box. Other children, find construction helmets and tools, build walls with foam bricks and write instructions on their clip boards. A new programme called 'shake and write' helps children develop gross motor movements to a range of lively songs the children remember well and enjoy. Having learnt the large body movements, these are transferred to similar more finely controlled movements to support pre-literacy skills. Children who might not otherwise choose to pick up a crayon or pencil happily develop the foundation skills needed for writing without a second thought. Staff use a wide range of creative art experiences to foster experimentation with different media and materials. These frequently form the basis of practising social skills as children

p.5

who attend

negotiate and share their ideas and their feelings.

p.5

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

Each child has a key person who helps tailor learning and care to meet the individual needs of the children and their families. Systems are in place to find out about children's needs, preferences and care routines before they start at the nursery. For most children this system works very well. However, for some children with additional needs, the system is not so successful.

p.5

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

Overall, children's behaviour illustrates how safe, secure and happy they feel in the presence of their key person and room staff. Parents also comment they feel reassured by their exchange of information with staff and by the graded settling in process designed around their children's needs. Where children have medical needs, allergies and/or dietary needs and preferences, systems are effective and smooth. The nursery chef welcomes further discussions with parents to plan and reassure them that a balanced, nutritious diet is prepared to meet all children's needs. Rigorous systems are in place to ensure that children do eat their specially prepared meal and do not dip in to their neighbours bowl for any reason. All meals are freshly cooked on the premises and menus are routinely available for parents to see and comment upon. A recently established parent committee provides an invaluable focus for parent input into developing nursery practices. In most

p.5

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

areas of welfare children's needs are well met.

p.5

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

The nursery has also worked effectively with children who are bilingual. When children who are learning English as an additional language join the nursery, parents are asked to supply a list of key words in their native language. Systems to support children as they learn English are also in place across the nursery. Visual timetables are used, along with emotion icons and words to help children express how they feel. Photographs of routine activities and resources support children as they search to express their needs and interests. These systems have worked well with children who have some knowledge of English. English speaking children also benefit from seeing and learning some first words in other languages. Children become more aware of the rich diversity of different cultures and begin to understand, respect and tolerate different ways of expressing them. However, the system becomes less effective when staff do not secure or practice the

p.5

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

pronunciation of key words before children start at the nursery. In such cases it becomes very difficult to reassure and settle children when there are no shared first words or visual symbols to help toddlers understand or communicate their needs. Some children therefore require considerably more individual attention to settle into the different world of nursery life and language.

p.6

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

Children move from one room, key person and care team to another every six to twelve months. Good systems are in place to help those moves go smoothly for the children, their parents and any wider professional support team they take with them. As children move through the nursery, they are encouraged to become more independent in managing their personal needs. For example, at nap time toddlers are encouraged to put their shoes in their own little basket and their carers sooth them to sleep. Older toddlers look for their photograph on their mattresses and happily settle themselves down. Staff support children's growing independence in locating and wearing aprons for craft and dressing appropriately for outdoor play. The older children add their name to the outdoor notice board when they would like to go out to play. Daily programmes of physical exercise are greatly enjoyed by all ages of children. Staff have made celebrating time together a

p.6

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

priority when sharing meals and to use this opportunity to talk with children about healthy lifestyles. Children begin to learn the value of exercise and a healthy diet from an early age. Staff also include children in learning to be safe indoors and outside as they risk assess the areas together. This helps children learn to keep themselves and their friends safe as they tuck wires behind the computer, push chairs back under tables and check for fallen branches in the garden.

p.6

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

Each room has an outside door to a secure play area. The outdoor baby area is recently refurbished and provides a welcoming and stimulating series of areas for babies to discover and enjoy. The younger toddlers use their own section of the large back garden as they dig, play with balls and use push along toys. More boisterous activities are encouraged in the older children's play area where there is plenty of room for tricycles and scooters, digging and planting, parachute games and climbing equipment. Children of all ages constantly find new challenges, encouraging them to spend long periods in the fresh air. Free use of the outdoor area for the older pre-school class is currently restricted as plans for a new play area are just beginning to be put into action. This cohort will soon be moving on to school, so staff have a keen focus on preparing the way. Gradually, children are introduced to concepts such as packed lunches, playground games and rules,

p.6

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

changing for physical education and school uniforms. Their new teachers are invited into the nursery and the children's comprehensive learning journeys are shared with the new teams getting to know the children. The pre-school class are emotionally well prepared for their next steps at school and elsewhere.

p.6

provision

Management understand their responsibility to meet the safeguarding and welfare requirements. The inspection took place after a notification from the provider that a small group of children were left unsupervised in the milk kitchen for a short period of time. The notification means that the provider met their legal responsibility as set out in the Early Years Foundation Stage welfare requirements to notify Ofsted of a significant event. The inspection found that the provider took swift and effective action to ensure this does not happen again. An action plan was written and implemented within 48 hours. A sign on the door reminds all staff to keep the door closed at all times and a high level bolt has been fitted. Policies and procedures on the supervision of children, safeguarding and child protection were reissued to all staff. Supervision of children at the inspection was good.

p.6

provision

Education programmes cover a range of interesting experiences that are targeted to meet the individual needs of most children. Systems for observing, recording and targeting children's achievements across all areas of learning and development are well established and effective. Managers moderate planning and assessment across all members of staff and support staff as they work to raise standards further. Managers also evaluate the impact of teaching in all areas of the nursery. This helps them to identify areas of strength and weakness so they may target further improvements to support the achievement of all the children in their care. Some practices are not fully embedded in daily practice, but individual supervisions with room leaders, local and regional managers support such improvements. However, some supervisions are not adapted to meet individual staff's learning styles or follow up on training they have attended. Plans to meet previous

p.7

provision

recommendations to encourage children's growing independence and improve the pre- school learning environment are well-documented. Some improvements have clearly been made. However, management and staff have not thought through or evaluated the impact of raised noise levels on children's listening, understanding, speech and phonics which was a recommendation at the last inspection.

p.7

provision

Clear procedures are in place to check the suitability of those who work at the nursery. Induction programmes, training, appraisals and frequent supervisions help to ensure that staff remain fit to do so. Safeguarding children is a topic on every staff meeting agenda and management place a high priority on measures to keep children safe. Security around the premises is tight, and management are quick to implement improvements, where necessary. Risk assessments throughout the nursery are comprehensive, routinely acted upon and frequently updated. Standards have also been raised across this area in the last year. Children's safety is the highest priority at the nursery and managers are constantly evaluating their services and implementing improvements.

p.7

provision

All mandatory documentation for the safe management of the nursery is in place. For example, daily registers and records of accidents or injuries and first aid treatment are maintained effectively. Staff in every room team are trained in paediatric first aid, so children can be treated in the event of an accident.

p.7

provision

Parents acknowledge the quality of education and care delivered to their children on a daily basis. Staff keep parents well informed of their children's progress. Staff have access to a wide range of external support agencies, should individual children ever require specific or specialist help.

p.7

The Childcare Register

The requirements for the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are Met

p.8

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

p.9

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.

p.9

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.

p.10

Setting details

Unique reference number 110039 Local authority Hampshire Inspection number 956343 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 100 Number of children on roll 135 Name of provider Just Learning Ltd Date of previous inspection 09/04/2013 Telephone number 01256 474442

p.10

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.

p.10

Type of provision

For the purposes of this inspection the following definitions apply:

p.10

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.

p.10

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.

p.10

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.

p.11

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,

p.11

Type of provision

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk. You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way. To receive regular email alerts about new publications, including survey reports and school inspection reports, please visit our website and go to ‘Subscribe’.

p.12

Type of provision

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

p.12