German Kindergarten Herne Hill

German Kindergarten London 213a Railton Road, London, SE24 0LX

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 11/02/2014 Not Applicable

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early years provision

This inspection: 3 Previous inspection: Not Applicable How well the early years provision meets the needs of the range of children who attend The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children 3 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 3

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This provision requires improvement

 Overall, children make good progress in all areas of learning and development, which prepares them well for their future learning in school.  Children are happy and confident and enjoy spending time with familiar and trusted staff.  Relationships with parents are open and friendly and staff provide them with daily verbal feedback about their children's progress and welfare.

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It is not yet good because

 Although the management team complete suitability checks for all staff they do not ensure that staff are fully informed about their responsibility to disclose any changes that may affect their suitability to work with children.  Staff do not ensure that beds and bedding are clean before children use them to sleep and therefore compromise their health and well-being.  There is scope for staff to further enhance children's progress by focusing more on children's individual next steps within the delivery of planned activities and events.  The systems for self-evaluation are not yet fully robust to ensure all required areas for improvement are identified, prioritised and planned for.

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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 observed activities throughout the provision in both the indoor and outdoor space.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with the provider, manager and staff at appropriate times throughout the day.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at documentation including children's records, learning and development information, staff records and a selection of policies and procedures.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took into account the views of parents through discussion and questionnaires.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed staff interaction with children during various activities and while children were having their lunch.

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Information about the setting

German Kindergarten London registered in 2013. The nursery has been established since 2008 and moved to the current premises in 2013 and changed their name from German Kindergarten ltd to German Kindergarten London. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. The nursery operates from 8.30am to 3.30pm on Monday to Friday and offers an extended day service on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 3.30pm to 5.30pm. The nursery is located on the first floor of converted church premises. It has sole use of this floor that includes the main nursery hall, a small group room, kitchen area, office, and toilet facilities. There is an enclosed outside play area. There are 31 children on roll, all of whom are in the early years age range. A team of five staff work with the children, two staff hold degrees in early years and all other staff hold NVQ qualifications at levels 2, 3, 4

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must:

 improve sleeping arrangements for children by ensuring all necessary care is taken to prevent cross infection, for example cleaning beds after each use and having individual sheets and blankets for the children

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must:

 ensure staff are aware of their responsibility to disclose any convictions, cautions, court orders, reprimands and warnings received before or during their time at the setting which may affect their suitability to work with children.

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

 improve consistency in the way assessments of children are carried out to ensure staff use the learning potential of activities to focus on children's identified next steps

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

 further develop the self-evaluation process to clearly include feedback from parents and show identified priorities and plans for improvement.

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who attend

Children are generally making good progress in all areas of learning and development which prepares them well for their future learning in school. Overall, the quality of staff teaching is good. Staff make good use of their regular observations of children to assess the progress they are making. However, there are some minor variations between staff practice regarding consistency in when assessments are carried out and in ensuring they identify children's next steps in learning. As a result, these are not always considered within the well-planned activities that are provided. While children do make good progress overall, there is potential for their learning to be extended even further through greater focus and a more consistent approach amongst the staff team. Nevertheless, weekly planning covers the seven areas of learning well, with planned activities and play helping children move forward in their development. The children who attend are bilingual and the

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who attend

staff team speak the home language of the children. This ensures children's communication in their home language is well nurtured alongside their English skills. Children learning to communicate in English are making good progress and they confidently switch between languages. For example, during the 'what's in the box?' activity, children talk about the different items using both languages. This means that children receive good levels of support to extend their literacy, communication and language skills.

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who attend

The playroom is very well resourced, providing a range of sensory activities that encourage children to explore by touching and shaking. Children enjoy feeling the texture of the finger paint as they use their hand to scoop the paint and put it on the paper, rubbing it all over using both hands. In the outdoor environment, children become fascinated when walking in the mud and talking about the sounds it makes. Staff introduce new words to develop children's language, for example, when talking to them about the mud and what happens when you walk in it, they explain it goes 'squelch'. Children's language and communication is further enhanced as they sing familiar rhymes and songs in their home language. Toddlers enjoy using their imaginations in the role-play area. They have tea with staff and take the soft toys for a walk in the pram, while others dress up as pirates and princess. This develops their imagination and creative thinking

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who attend

The children are incredibly confident. For example, they actively make decisions about how they spend their time, engage in conversations with newly-introduced adults present, and confidently speak out in group discussions. They relish opportunities to play on the soft building stool as they develop physical skills and control. For example, they use the stools to build a platform of two levels which they climb onto and jump off onto soft mats. The outdoor play space is organised effectively by staff and actively used by children. Staff ensure children's learning is enhanced in this area. For example, children paint with mud and enjoy making marks, which in turn helps to promote their early writing skills.

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who attend

Children grow vegetables, such as beans, and they look at the different stages of how they grow. They place the beans in water, plant them and observe those that have started growing shoots. Children warmly welcome new children to join in with their play and openly talk to them, demonstrating their very good communication and language skills. Children are offered opportunities in their daily play to experience creating and making objects. For example, two children work together to put a floor puzzle together showing they are aware of how to share and take turns. During such times, they learn to think critically about how they can fit the pieces together. Staff encourage children's thinking and add to their experience by, for example, asking about the objects during a 'what's in the box?' activity.

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

Children's safety is generally well promoted through risk assessment arrangements. Resources are readily accessible to both children and staff to enable play to take place and extend their learning. Staff ask questions, implement suggestions and know when to let children take the lead in the activity, for example, as they become absorbed in their building and jumping off the platform which they said was a pirate ship. Staff supervise the children well and this allows children to explore their secure environment freely and with confidence. Children are conversant with agreed safety practices within the provision, such as walking indoors. In addition, they are helped to understand the actions to be taken in the event of an emergency evacuation. This helps them learn about risks and how to keep themselves and others safe.

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

Children demonstrate a clear understanding of the importance of washing their hands at appropriate times and have access to suitable hand-washing facilities. However, staff do not ensure beds are always cleaned before or after children's sleep time. Blankets are not washed daily after the use of each child. This poses a risk to effective hygiene and the children's health. This means that staff are not always following appropriate care and hygiene practices to appropriately promote children's health and well-being. Snacks and meals are always healthy and include plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables. Staff explain that they discuss this with parents during their home visit to ensure parents provide children with a healthy packed lunch. This develops children's awareness of a healthy lifestyle and healthy habits for the future. Throughout the provision, engagement in physical activity each day is well-resourced and children are often taken to the local park.

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

This provides them with opportunities to expend energy as they engage in physical play, while also helping them to develop an understanding of the effect exercise has on their bodies.

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

Children are happy and confident and they enjoy spending time with familiar and trusted staff. Staff conduct home visits to all new children before they start the nursery, which enables them to get to know staff in advance. This helps the children and parents settle quickly and feel secure because staff have the opportunity to meet them in their home environment. Staff are kind and caring and there is a welcoming atmosphere in the provision. The key-person system operates very well and this helps children to settle when they first start. These times of change are managed well, with children benefiting from a gradual introduction and transfer, while being well supported by their key person. Parents and key people exchange important information about children's experiences each day to ensure that all those involved in the care of the children are suitably informed. In turn, this ensures that children benefit from consistency between their time at home and when

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

at the nursery. Clear information is gathered from parents at the home visit. Managers and staff include this information in the planning and care routines for the children. Staff help make children's move on to school as easy as possible by developing links with local schools. Staff invite school teachers into the nursery from the children's new schools and exchange a range of information to aid children's transfer.

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

Children develop many of the skills that will support them in their future education. They form friendships with their friends and staff provide experiences that require children's cooperation and communication. Children become independent and confident in making decisions. For example, children confidently go to the toilet and wash their hands without being reminded. Staff promote children's freedom of choice by ensuring that there is a suitable selection of age-appropriate toys and equipment readily available to them. Children behave well. They display good manners and share and take turns. Staff manage any minor behavioural issues well. Children are motivated to learn and engage in the daily sessions because staff praise their positive behaviour and recognise their effort and achievements.

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provision

The management team demonstrate a sound understanding of their responsibilities with regard to the learning and development, and the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. They ensure that there is lead staff, responsible for safeguarding children, who have completed the required safeguarding training. The manager, deputy and staff have all completed safeguarding training. There is a comprehensive safeguarding policy and procedure in place ensuring children's safety is given high priority. All staff are aware of what to do if they have a concern about a child. As a result, children are appropriately safeguarded. A suitable risk assessment is conducted daily of all areas used by the children and, in addition, staff complete risk assessments for each outing they go on. These are reviewed as needed, and annually, to identify and minimise potential hazards. Staff check the identity of all visitors to the setting

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provision

and children are only released into the care of known individuals. Children are supervised at all times both in and outdoors.

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provision

A robust recruitment procedure is in place and implemented well. This ensures that all staff are checked with regard to their experience, qualifications and suitability to care for children. However, management are not aware of the need to ensure staff are told they are expected to disclose any changes that may affect their suitability to work with children. This is a breach of the requirements and an action has been set. Detailed safeguarding policies and procedures are in place and are fully understood by all staff working within the provision. They are also routinely available for parents and visitors to view. This means that everyone is aware of the action that would be taken in the event of a concern about a child attending.

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provision

Staff receive suitable support from managers, for example, through opportunities to engage in discussions during staff meetings and through supervision arrangements. This helps managers and staff to identify training needs and contributes towards their professional development. Management has introduced arrangements to include peer observations to help develop staff's knowledge, understanding and practice and support their ongoing professional development. There is an annual appraisal system and regular planning meetings take place between managers and staff to review the provision's practice, and to plan activities for the children. However, monitoring is not sufficiently robust to ensure staff use consistent assessments to plan an interesting and stimulating educational programme which maintains children's good progress. Parents and children are actively encouraged to implement their ideas and suggestions about the running of the

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provision

nursery. However, the systems for self-evaluation are not yet sufficiently robust to identify all the areas of weakness and how these will be addressed.

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provision

Managers and staff are well aware of the benefits of working in partnership with parents and other professionals. They recognise that these help to provide a quality service, support children's moves and promote consistency of care. Relationships with parents are open and friendly, and staff provide them with daily verbal feedback about their children's progress and welfare. The use of weekly newsletters by email ensures successful exchanges of information between parents and staff. Parents are invited into the provision to spend time with their children during workshops. Parent forum meetings encourage parental involvement in decision making about the provision. Twice yearly parents' evenings provide good, and more formal, opportunities for staff and parents to share information about children and the progress they are making. Observation and assessment records are available for parents to view at any time. Staff provide parents with plenty of

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provision

information about events and experiences provided and planned for their children. This means that parents are better placed to support their children's learning at home and also in the provision. Parents interviewed during the inspection express their satisfaction with the care their children receive, and children themselves are happy and content within the familiar environment.

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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 EY465654 Local authority Lambeth Inspection number 931286 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 2 - 8 Total number of places 40 Number of children on roll 31 Name of provider German Kindergarten London Ltd Date of previous inspection not applicable Telephone number 0207346869

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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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