Woodlands Early Learning

Woodlands 108 Barnes Lane, Sarisbury Green, Southampton, Hampshire, SO31 7BJ

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 08/01/2014 09/09/2008

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early years provision

This inspection: 1 Previous inspection: 1 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 1 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 1

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This provision is outstanding

 All staff have a substantial understanding of how children learn and successfully teach children through their play.  The activities and resources available for children are exciting and effectively used to enable children to make outstanding progress in their learning.  The key person system works highly effectively to help children to flourish, as they feel extremely secure.  The staff throughout the nursery work exceptionally well as a team and children's well being is a high priority.  Staff have an accurate understanding of each child's learning and care needs and promote their learning and development impressively.

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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 talked to the parents, children, staff and management.  The inspector observed the interaction between the staff and children.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector sampled documents kept on the children, including records of their progress.  The inspector undertook a joint observation with the manager of the nursery.  The inspector spent time observing in each of the rooms and gardens.

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Information about the setting

Woodlands Early Learning Nursery is privately owned and opened in 2004. It operates from converted premises in Sarisbury Green, Hampshire. There is a large enclosed garden for outside play. The nursery serves the local and wider area. The premises are generally accessible to all. However, some provision is on the first floor. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. There are currently 277 children on roll aged from three months to under eight years. This includes 230 children in the early years age range. Children attend for a variety of sessions. The nursery welcomes and supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who are learning English as an additional language. The setting opens each week day all year round. The nursery is open from 7.30am until 6pm. Out Of School care is offered from 7.30am to 8.50am and from 3.15pm to 6pm during

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Information about the setting

term time and from 7.30am until 6pm in the school holidays. The setting employs 57 staff in total, including 40 regular members of staff, auxiliary staff and bank staff; of these 35 hold appropriate early years qualifications. The setting receives support from the local authority and provides funded early years education for children aged two, three and four years.

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

 offer children visual aids to help them learn to take turns when using, for example, the computer.

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who attend

Children of all ages and abilities thrive in the nursery due to the comprehensive knowledge staff have of each child. Their purposeful interaction results in children being confident to join in activities and learn through their play. Children are offered inspiring and imaginative activities throughout the day. The comprehensive assessment of each child's progress enables every staff member to extend or consolidate children's learning through incidental play and focused activities. Children's next steps are shared amongst the staff team which enables all staff to engage with the children in a meaningful way. They use open questions to allow children to think for themselves and contribute their own knowledge. All of which supports children to make excellent progress in their learning. Children are introduced to mathematical ideas and language throughout the nursery in different and inspiring ways. Young children undertake simple counting with resources and

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who attend

sing number songs. Older children are given time and resources to problem-solve, for example, using bricks, together with their imagination to create models. Focused activities for older children enable them to have practical experiences with numbers as they link the written numerals. Some enthusiastically count glass counters onto the matching number cards, beaming as they are praised for getting it right. More able children learn how to add, divide and subtract using buttons, again showing real pleasure when they get it right, building on their self-esteem.

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who attend

Older children are taught how to write letters correctly, resulting in many children knowing how to write their names. Staff have innovative ways of encouraging children to listen and learn about different sounds. During a focused music session, children listen carefully to the different sounds of instruments they cannot see and their task is to identify if the sound matches the instrument they are holding. The children are motivated by the activity and listen carefully as they learn about the different sounds. This helps children with their listening skills which will help them learn about the different sounds of letters.

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who attend

Children's communication and language skills throughout the nursery are extensively promoted. Staff consistently talk to the children. They model and repeat the babble and words young children say. Staff engage in meaningful conversations with the children during all activities. They create additional opportunities to talk with children in groups, for example looking at their 'home link' books. Staff encourage children to talk about events that have happened at home and have been recorded by the parents in their 'home link' books. This group time is valuable in teaching children to take turns and to listen to each other. They think about and contribute their own experiences to the group as they learn to converse in a meaningful way.

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who attend

All of these activities and the comprehensive knowledge and skills of the staff help children to be extremely well prepared for their next stage in learning. Children develop a wide range of skills and have positive attitudes to learning.

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who attend

Comprehensive information is exchanged with parents, which results in parents being fully aware of their children's experiences at the nursery and how to extend their learning at home. Parents are involved with the progress check undertaken when children are about two years old. This results in staff and parents having a comprehensive understanding of the child's learning and care needs and successfully supports the child's further development.

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

The key person system is exceptionally well embedded and has a significant impact on children's well-being and development. The key person is usually present at the beginning and end of each day, if they are not then there is a buddy in place. Key persons undertake the observations and assessments resulting in them having a significant understanding of each child's needs. This helps children have secure attachments, building on their confidence and self-esteem, resulting in them being emotionally prepared for their next stage of learning and development.

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

There are successful systems in place to help staff support children who are ready for their next move. This may be to school or in the nursery. Children moving on in the nursery have visits to their new group room with their key person and extensive information is given to their new key person. This ensures they are fully aware of the child's development and care needs. Those that are moving on to school are supported to be independent and confident so they will have the confidence in their new setting. Key staff from the nursery also attend some of the children's school visits. This means children are more confident because they have someone with them that knows them well.

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

The highly stimulating environment, both indoors and outside, promotes children's development across all areas of learning. There are base rooms for each age group and children are also encouraged to explore and use the resources in the other base rooms for their age group. This results in children having access to an extremely wide range of quality resources and activities. Dual language resources are used well to support children who are learning English as an additional language. Specialist resources are used highly effectively to ensure that every child is able to participate in activities and is fully included. Each age group has their own garden with exciting and stimulating resources. This is in addition to the large shared garden which has a wealth of resources and activities for the children to enjoy. Children are extremely confident in the setting. They select what they wish to play with. Babies and young children are also able to help themselves to resources

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

because they are stored on the floor, so they can reach them easily. The interaction of the staff enhances children's play choices and experiences as the adults sit and purposefully engage with the children. Babies and toddlers can crawl or walk from one area to another and staff ensure that the non-walkers have access to all the rooms and resources. This results in babies being encouraged to investigate and explore.

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

The soft play room offers the children of all ages different challenges. Babies develop their crawling and climbing skills as they clamber on the equipment. Toddlers become more confident as they climb the steps and take themselves down the slide. The pre-school and after-school children are very competent and confidently chase each other around, dodging each other knowing that they are safe.

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

Pre-school children help risk assess their play rooms and garden each day, recording when it is safe or telephoning the manager to report any problems. This encourages children to think about safety and builds on their own knowledge of how to stay safe and identify potential dangers. Toddlers learn about staying safe as they carefully negotiate the stairs which take them into the shared garden and they learn to negotiate space around them.

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

Children's behaviour is excellent. All children clearly know the rules and routines of the day. Children play many games together throughout the nursery which supports their understanding of turn taking and co-operation. However, at times with particular pieces of equipment, older children find sharing difficult as they have a problem waiting for their turn. Older children confidently remind their friends of the rules such as 'not to shout at them'.

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

Children are offered freshly made healthy meals and snacks each day. Excellent regard is given to children who may have allergies or food intolerance by the nursery chef and clear systems are in place so that children are prevented from accessing foods they should not have. Older children help themselves to their meals learning about portion control. Younger children are given support where needed to develop skills which will enable them to be independent and learn self care skills. Children and staff sit together to enjoy meals. Mealtimes are social occasions and staff skilfully use the opportunity to model how to use cutlery properly and promote healthy eating.

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provision

The leadership and management of the nursery are inspirational. The senior management team work exceptionally hard to oversee, encourage and develop the service they provide. All the staff and the senior management team are passionate and knowledgeable about their work. They are constantly looking at how and what they can do to improve the outcomes for children. They have additional staff, that are permanent members of the team, to help provide extra cover at lunch times, cover absences and keep the premises in excellent condition. This results in room staff spending all of their shift with the children, without having to undertake house-keeping type activities.

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provision

All the staff have an accurate and significant understanding of their responsibilities to ensure that children are safeguarded. All staff undertake safeguarding training on a regular basis. This, together with their understanding of the policies, ensures they would know what to do if they had a concern over the welfare of a child.

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provision

The management have high expectations of their staff and highly effective systems are implemented to support the staff whether they are in training or are fully qualified. Staff are encouraged to undertake regular training including qualifications to develop their skills and knowledge further. Staff practice is evaluated regularly by the room leaders and senior management to ensure the highest standards are adhered to.

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provision

The management team have an accurate and significant understanding of their responsibilities to ensure that all aspects of the Early Years Foundation Stage are being met exceptionally well. They are very clear about information that needs to be reported to Ofsted and make sure that all staff closely follow procedures to safeguard children's health and well-being. This includes checking that any accidents are handled appropriately. Robust recruitment procedures are implemented to ensure only suitable staff are appointed. References are followed up to make sure they have all the relevant information they need to make a decision about someone's suitability. Management have extensive and precise knowledge of the learning programmes that the staff plan for the children and the abilities of each child. This enables them to effectively monitor the educational programmes and highlight any gaps in children's learning or

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provision

Staff, parents and children contribute to the nursery's self evaluation. Management use this information, as well as their own monitoring, to analyse and create action plans. They are continually looking at their practice and the service they offer to families and make many improvements throughout the year. Staff in each room also undertake evaluations on their practice and delivery of education. From this they create action plans and make changes that improve the outcomes for children. For example, in the baby unit, staff are creating a black and white room which will particularly benefit the young children.

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provision

Partnership with parents and others is exceptional. Extensive ongoing information is exchanged between the nursery and parents, promoting continuity of care and learning. Daily discussions take place between the child's key person and parents, sharing worthwhile information between the nursery and home. Children of all ages have 'home link' books that are used as points of discussion for the older children and give staff useful information about children's experiences. Parents are extremely happy with the nursery and state that their children love coming here. They are fully aware of their children's development and state the staff are excellent. The nursery has effective communications with other agencies involved with the children and access help and support for those children with any additional needs. They work extremely hard at following other agencies' individual learning plans for any child to support the child's learning and care.

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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 EY273149 Local authority Hampshire Inspection number 918094 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 132 Number of children on roll 277 Name of provider Woodlands Early Learning Ltd Date of previous inspection 09/09/2008 Telephone number 01489 605495

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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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