Kids Planet Witney

Little Treasures Academy 13/14 Thorney Leys Park, Witney, Oxfordshire, OX28 4GE

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 24/03/2014 01/05/2013

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 Previous inspection: 4 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 respond well to advice from other professionals to bring about significant improvements that benefit children's care and education.  Staff are caring towards children and support the development of their language and communication effectively.  Staff keep parents well informed about children's development and parents speak highly of the standards of care their children receive.  Staff promote children's health successfully by following good hygiene routines and offering daily energetic play outdoors in the fresh air.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Staff do not always present materials to stimulate older children's creative ideas and imagination in the best possible way.  In the room where children over two years old play, the book corner is not an inviting area where children frequently choose to spend time independently enjoying early literacy.

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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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Information about this inspection

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

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Inspection activities

 The inspector had conversations with staff and children while observing activities in the indoor and outdoor areas.  The inspector held meetings with the manager and the owner of the nursery.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector sampled documents including children's records and safeguarding procedures.  The inspector held a joint observation and discussion with the manager.  The inspector took into account the views of parents.

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Information about the setting

Little Treasures Academy opened under the present owners, Living Waters UK Limited, in 2008. The nursery operates from premises in a small business park in Witney, Oxfordshire. The intake of children is from Witney and the surrounding villages. The accommodation consists of a series of rooms over two floors and access to the upper floor is via a flight of stairs. All children have access to an outside play area.

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Information about the setting

The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It opens on weekdays from 7.30am to 6pm throughout the year, expect on public holidays. There are currently 150 children on roll in the early years age range. There are also 49 older children on roll up to the age of 14 years who attend on a part-time basis. The nursery is in receipt of funding for the provision of free early education for children aged three and four years. Staff provide support to children who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. Staff also provide support to children who are learning English as an additional language. The nursery employs 17 staff who hold a suitable range of qualifications.

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

 provide children with a rich stimulating range of materials they can use to make pictures and models while following their own ideas and imagination

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

 support children's enjoyment in early literacy more effectively by creating an area that tempts them to look at books more often.

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who attend

Staff have a good understanding of the children in their key group. They are monitoring each child's development regularly and using the information to help children move onto the next stage. Staff keep records up-to-date and are consistently good in their ability to talk about children's individual needs. When staff note any potential gaps in children's achievements they work closely with other professionals. They complete focused progress checks for two-year-olds to share with parents. Children's developmental records of their time in nursery show that they are making good progress. Their folders are on view, labelled with their photographs and names, so that they can look at their achievement records too. Children also see many examples of their artwork on display including paintings of their families and self-portraits. Staff are working effectively to boost children's self-esteem and confidence. Children show a lively interest in nursery activities.

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who attend

They can make their own decisions and develop a good attitude to learning in readiness for school.

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who attend

Children develop good social skills as they play imaginative games with friends. Staff provide props such as dressing up clothes and old desk diaries which children use to make up stories and use early writing. Children show their imagination when they use bricks to build houses and staff intervene effectively with questions to encourage children to express their ideas. Babies are curious when staff hide objects under stacking cups and they like it when staff repeat activities. Children learn about the natural world as they play with sand and water. They explore shape and capacity as they fill and empty containers with soil in the raised flower and vegetable beds. Children show control as they explore mark making with crayons or paintbrushes and staff praise them for their efforts. Materials for older children to make collages and models are available but not attractively presented to stimulate interest.

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who attend

Babies enjoy exploring their room where they receive frequent attention from staff. They use their senses as they run flour through their fingers or use scoops to fill containers. Staff engagement in the activities helps to make learning fun. There is good support for developing language when staff ask questions to encourage thinking or counting. Children of all ages know a wide range of songs and they take part in frequent musical activities. Songs often include counting down to work out simple problems like how many are left. Older children listen attentively to stories that staff read and are able to finish the ends of sentences by thinking of rhyming words. They learn that literacy can be rewarding, although the way the book corner is set out is not very inviting to tempt children to visit it frequently during the day.

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who attend

Staff extend activities by encouraging children to recall stories and express their ideas in paint. Children receive effective attention from staff in these small group activities that enables them to progress well with speech and their ability to concentrate. Children are gaining skills useful for when they make the move to full-time education. Staff show a good understanding of the needs of the different ages and abilities of children in their rooms.

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

Staff are caring towards the children and take many positive steps to help them feel safe and secure. The key person system is well embedded into daily practice so that parents know the particular member of staff who is focusing in on their child's needs. Staff spend time with new families completing a detailed 'All About Me' form that provides helpful details about the children's routines and starting points. Children receive the individual care they require to help them settle and make progress. Staff know the babies in their care and ensure they receive comfort and opportunities to rest and play. Staff monitor sleeping children effectively since a member of staff remains in the area where children rest at all times. Children behave well and staff intervene in a timely way to help promote fairness and good social skills. As children's understanding develops, they take a more active role in deciding on sensible guidelines for good behaviour. Children attending the after school

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

club write their own rules stating, for example, to 'treat everyone how you would like to be treated'. Children gain an understanding about the diversity of the world through planned activities to introduce food, clothes and music from cultures different to their own. Staff take active steps to help children who are learning English as an additional language by using key words in home languages. New projects such as making photograph albums of children's families help all to feel welcome and respected at nursery. Staff handle changes in children's lives with sensitivity. School staff visit the nursery to meet children when it is time to move on with their education. Good links are in place with local pre-school staff when children attend more than one setting. Staff exchange information about aspects of development to ensure parents and adults work together to provide a consistent approach.

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

Children are eager to play outdoors, making the most of new resources in the garden areas. The outdoor play areas are under development with staff adding new ideas to widen the range of activities. Children who are two-years-old are particularly benefitting from the new arrangements that mean they can access outdoor play throughout the day. Staff help children to make good progress in developing a range of physical skills. Consequently children are confident at using balls for catching and throwing with some accuracy into a net. Younger children receive encouragement from staff as they learn to negotiate the steps on a climbing frame or steer a tricycle. Children eat a good range of nutritious snacks and meals. Staff are attentive to their needs and sit with them when they are eating to create a sociable routine. Staff follow effective hygiene routines in all areas. Furnishings and toys are in good condition and staff conduct regular cleaning to

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

keep things fresh. Children learn how to take care of their own needs when they fetch tissues or wash their hands. They learn useful independent skills for their later school life.

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provision

Staff demonstrate a good understanding of the safeguarding and welfare requirements. They show a competent awareness of the policies that underpin the day-to-day running of the nursery. Staff receive updates when amendments to procedures take place. There is a rolling programme in place so that staff attend regular safeguarding training. They are confident in their knowledge of how to address issues that cause them concern for a child's welfare. Managers use each staff meeting to renew awareness of safeguarding. There are robust procedures in place to check the suitability of adults working with the children. Staff closely monitor visitors and students in the nursery. They work well together to keep children healthy and safe. Staff conduct effective risk assessments of all area of the nursery to identify and minimise hazards. Staff take careful steps to safeguard children's health. They are aware of individual dietary requirements and follow good

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provision

hygiene standards when caring for children.

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provision

Parents express their satisfaction with the standards of care and education. They are keen to explain how well staff support children, particularly when children have special educational needs and disabilities. Staff present a wide range of colourful displays to share information about children's learning. They provide good feedback to parents about children's development and encourage shared learning at home. For example, parents receive weekly information of the latest number and book of the week. Staff regularly seek the views of parents and children. They act on suggestions expressed in questionnaires, for example providing clearer information about staffing.

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provision

Staff have made very good progress in addressing the actions and recommendation raised at the last inspection. A successful programme of improvement is bringing positive benefits to the children's care and early education. Staff welcome support from other professionals and they respond positively to guidance. A training programme, for example for the baby room staff is resulting in much better understanding of how to meet children's needs. Visits to other nurseries help to give staff confidence in making significant changes to the organisation of rooms within the nursery. As a result, babies have better sleep areas and toddlers receive a more stimulating environment. Staff deployment in the new areas means they are more easily able to supervise the children effectively. Rooms in the nursery are bright, clean and welcoming.

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provision

Staff are confident in using self-evaluation to reflect on their work and to monitor the progress of action plans. The manager and the owner of the nursery work well together to offer staff support and access to training. Regular one-to-one meetings take place to identify areas for professional development. Training from a speech therapist, for example on how to babies communicate, means staff are supporting the younger children more effectively. Staff are collecting and analysing information about how well children are progressing across the nursery. Overall, they demonstrate a good understanding of the learning and development requirements.

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The Childcare Register

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

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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 EY387298 Local authority Oxfordshire Inspection number 921210 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 14 Total number of places 96 Number of children on roll 150 Name of provider Living Waters UK Limited Date of previous inspection 01/05/2013 Telephone number 01993700123

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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

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’.

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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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