Star Nursery

Star Playschool and Nursery Chiltern Primary School, Chiltern Way, Basingstoke, Hampshire, RG22 5BB

p.1

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 12/03/2014 09/04/2013

p.1

early years provision

This inspection: 3 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 3 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 3

p.1

This provision requires improvement

 Staff and children form positive relationships with each other that are warm and caring.  Children and parents benefit from a welcoming and inviting environment.  The management and staff team has made significant improvements since the last inspection. They demonstrate a strong commitment to sustaining and developing improvement further.

p.1

It is not yet good because

 Staff do not consistently implement procedures to gain children's starting points to enable them to measure the progress children make over time.  Observations and assessments do not consistently cover all areas of learning, therefore there is not always a broad picture of children's progress to enable staff to tailor children's learning across all seven areas of learning.  Staff do not always fully consider using resources to further support children's independence and future learning skills.

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

Inspection activities

 The inspector observed children's play, activities, and their interaction with staff both indoors and outside.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with staff and children at appropriate times throughout the inspection.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector gained feedback from parents through speaking to a number of parents at the inspection and viewing some parental questionnaires.  A meeting was held with the manager and chairperson of the committee.  A joint observation was completed with the manager.

p.2

Information about the setting

Star Playschool and Nursery registered in 2005. A committee oversees the operation of it. The nursery is situated in a single storey building in the grounds of Chiltern Primary School in Basingstoke, Hampshire. It has three main rooms to accommodate children in age related groups. There are three enclosed outdoor areas including a sensory garden area.

p.3

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 is open Monday to Friday from 8am to 6pm, for 51 weeks a year except for bank holidays. Children attend from the local area for a variety of sessions. There are currently 93 children on roll in the early years age group. The nursery is in receipt of free early years education funding for children aged two, three and four years old. It supports a number of children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who are learning English as an additional language.

p.3

Information about the setting

The nursery employs 15 staff to work with the children, of these 14 hold recognised early years qualifications, with the manager holding a level 4 qualification. The manager and deputy have completed leadership and management training, and currently two room leaders are undertaking this training. Several members of staff are working towards gaining or furthering qualifications, including working towards level 2, 3 and 5 qualifications, and a member of staff is working towards gaining Early Years Professional Status. An administrator and an accountant are also employed at the nursery.

p.3

must:

 ensure children's progress can be measured by gaining information about what they can do and already know when they first join the nursery

p.3

must:

 ensure observations and assessments cover all areas of learning so that you can accurately assess children's individual interests and provide resources, activities and play experiences that are tailored effectively to their needs.

p.3

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

 improve the range of modern technology toys and resources

p.3

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

 develop children's independence and skills for the future, for example, at snack time by providing cups and a selection of drinks for them to choose

p.3

who attend

Staff enjoy their work with the children and are involved and interested in children's play and learning. Most staff offer secure interactions with children, such as asking them suitable questions to support their thinking skills. However, the quality of teaching is not always consistent. For example, some staff do not encourage children to take dummies out of their mouths to talk, and at snack times children do not benefit from the same experiences, including incidental counting. However, the management team are supporting the development of consistency well. For instance, staff are attending a wide range of training and are teamed up with other staff to support them in developing their practice further.

p.4

who attend

Staff plan some interesting activities for the children, which cover all areas of learning and they take suitable account of the next steps in learning they have identified. For example, in the two to three year old room, children become engaged in using dough and dried pasta. They concentrate well and develop effective eye and hand coordination as they press in lengths of spaghetti and then thread tubes of pasta onto these. Babies enjoy sensory activities, such as blowing bubbles and water play. Staff spend time singing and talking with the babies to promote their developing language skills. Babies have resources to support their all round physical development. For example, there are black and white patterns to support younger babies eyes to focus, and resources for children to pull themselves up on and to take their first steps.

p.4

who attend

The pre-school children benefit from focused activities, such as key group times and 'language box' sessions to support their communication, listening and language skills. A self-registration system in the pre-school room encourages children to recognise and begin to write their names. This helps children prepare for starting school, for example, as they learn to understand routines. Staff promote children's personal, social and emotional development suitably. For example, while a group of children build together with large bricks and encourage the sharing of ideas. In addition, staff introduce mathematical language effectively during the activity. This enables children to learn through practical activities and to negotiate with each other when working together. Children demonstrate they recall stories and experiences securely. For instance, when observing the frog found in the nature pond, they ask someone to kiss it to see if it will turn into a prince. This

p.4

who attend

reflects their knowledge of popular children's books. Staff soundly support children with special educational needs and those who are learning English as an additional language. For instance, they work closely with outside agencies to support children's particular needs. Staff put in place individual educational plans and resources to support children, such as communication picture cards. Children's individual backgrounds are valued well with resources that reflect these, for example, dual language books.

p.4

who attend

There are some systems in place to gain children's starting points of development. The key person talks to parents during settling-in visits about their children. Staff ask parents to complete 'all about me' information about their children's individual needs. However, these procedures are not consistent resulting in some children having little or no information about their starting points. This means that information is not available to share with other staff in the absence of the key person and there is no clear system to measure children's progress from their starting points. Staff are not consistently observing and assessing children's progress in all areas of learning to ensure a broad base from which to accurately plan for individual children's progress. For instance, a child in the two to three year old room shows a strong interest in modern technology, however, staff are not fully aware of any relevant resources they may have in the room to support them in

p.4

who attend

this interest. As a result, staff are not giving equal importance to all the areas of learning. The management team are implementing a new computer system to monitor children's progress, although this has not yet had time to embed. Overall, children are making steady progress and are beginning to develop appropriate skills for their future learning.

p.5

who attend

Staff offer parent evenings to discuss children's progress in more detail with their parents. Parents are able to request their children's progress records at any time and have daily opportunities to talk to staff about their children. Staff encourage the involvement of parents in their children's learning soundly, for example, they ask them to bring in items. In the baby room there is information about the importance of 'tummy time' and 'dummies and talking', which provides sound guidance to parents. Parents report positively about the recently introduced home activity packs to use at home with their children. These positive steps promote parents secure involvement in their children's learning, and soundly encourage them to support their children's progress at home.

p.5

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

The key person gains some appropriate information from parents during settling-in visits, for example, babies' basic routines and information about comforters. Parents and children attend for flexible settling-in visits, which supports new children soundly in their first days at nursery. As children move rooms, they benefit from visits by their new key person and undertake visits to their new room. Staff talk to older children about starting school and the teachers from schools are invited in to visit and to discuss children's progress prior to them starting school. This supports children well and emotionally prepares them for times of change.

p.5

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

Children benefit from a happy atmosphere where they form positive relationships with staff, who are warm and caring in their approach. For example, babies cuddle into staff when they are tired, showing they feel safe and secure. Children's behaviour is generally good. Staff provide plenty of warm praise and encouragement, which helps children develop a sense of self-belief and confidence in their abilities. New initiatives with the older children are supporting children in managing their behaviour well. Staff report children are responding well to the recently implemented programme, and are able to negotiate with each other more calmly. As a result, children are developing tools to help them securely manage their own behaviour. Staff remind children about safe behaviours, such as sitting down to eat, which promotes their safety and well-being appropriately.

p.5

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

Staff provide a welcoming and inviting nursery, with children's photographs and artwork on display. The available resources are of a good quality, although staff do not always consider resources effectively for activities. For example, at snack time children have crackers and staff provide bowls, which does not enable children to independently or successfully spread butter on their crackers. Staff do not always offer children in the older two rooms cups to drink out of at snack and meal times unless they are drinking milk. This means that not all children develop skills to support them in the future as they drink out of their water bottles throughout the day and do not learn skills, such as pouring their own drinks. Staff do present resources attractively to children, however, at a low level, which promotes some independent play choices. However, there are currently few electronic and modern technology toys to promote children's further understanding of the world.

p.5

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

Improvements to the outdoor areas mean that children benefit from sensory experiences and babies can play safely outside on artificial grass. For instance, there are some interesting resources to stimulate children's imagination and ideas, such as a 'mud kitchen' with different tools to use and investigate. In addition, this benefits all children's good health as they benefit from fresh air and physical activity.

p.6

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

Children follow good hygiene routines as they wash their hands. In the older two age rooms there are 'snozzle stations' with mirrors and tissues to promote children's self-care skills securely. Children have access to water at all times. Staff regularly offer babies their cups of water and older children have direct access to named water bottles with their photographs, helping them to identify these easily. Staff take good hygiene measures, such as wearing disposable gloves and aprons when handling food. There are effective storage facilities for children's meals provided from home as there are fridges in each room. Staff use a food probe when re-heating food provided by parents to ensure it has reached a safe and sufficient temperature to eat. This promotes children's good health and well-being soundly.

p.6

provision

The inspection was brought forward due to concerns being raised about children's safety following two incidents. The first incident involved child leaving the premises unsupervised. After this incident an unannounced visit was undertaken by Ofsted to investigate this. As a result of this visit four actions were set in respect of risk assessments, the safety and security of the premises, staff's understanding of their roles and responsibilities including completing incident records and to ensure the person taking charge in the absence of the manager is capable and qualified to do so. In addition a notification was received from the provider regarding another incident where a child managed to get a short piece of string attached to an interactive sensory board around their neck.

p.6

provision

The inspection found that staff have a clear understanding of their responsibilities to complete incident forms and make logs of actions they have taken or identified through risk assessments. The formats for making records has been reviewed and updated and staff have been trained through supervision meetings in how to make these records. The management team have reviewed procedures for children's arrival and departure and completed new risk assessments. Staff have been trained in risk assessments and the new procedures to monitor children's arrival and departure times. These include staff stationed at internal and external doors to monitor children coming into and leaving the nursery premises. In addition, staff keep external doors locked and the gates in the outdoor areas padlocked to prevent children leaving unsupervised. The management are regularly reviewing these measures to ensure they are taking sufficient steps to manage children's

p.6

provision

safety. Staff are suitably deployed in the indoor and outdoor areas to supervise children, which promotes their safety appropriately. All resources, activities and equipment are risk assessed to promote children's safety. Any items posing a potential danger are immediately removed to safeguard children.

p.7

provision

Overall, the management team and staff demonstrate a sound understanding of their responsibilities to meet the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage. They have taken many positive steps to improve the quality of care and learning for children since the last inspection and have clear action plans in place to continue to work towards further improvements. The manager and committee demonstrate a secure understanding of their legal responsibilities to inform Ofsted of significant events and changes. Overall, the staff, manager and committee have met the actions and recommendations set at the last inspection. However, they are not fully meeting requirements in relation to learning and development. These are in respect of information to support children's learning on entry to the setting and completing observations and assessments that cover all areas of learning. As a result, staff are unable to accurately

p.7

provision

measure children's progress from their starting points and children's progress is not monitored consistently across the seven areas of learning. Staff and managers are maintaining required paperwork securely, such as daily attendance registers.

p.7

provision

Staff are being supported well overall, to develop their skills and abilities through supervision and staff meetings and they are actively encouraged to undertake further training. Staff have a secure understanding of their safeguarding responsibilities. For example, they complete risk assessments of the environment and they demonstrate a sound understanding of child protection procedures.

p.7

provision

Partnerships with parents and outside agencies are sound. Staff work closely with outside agencies to support children's individual needs and there are good relationships with the school and children's centre on the same site. They have a positive attitude to working with other settings and early years providers, such as childminder's. Parents have access to a good range of information including the nursery's improvement plans. They are able to offer their feedback, views and opinions about the nursery, which supports the staff and management team in their ongoing self-evaluation. Parents speak positively about the staff, manager and their children's time at the nursery. Children's ideas and interests are taken into account, for example, staff use these to plan topics and themes. The staff and management team demonstrate a strong commitment to continuing their improvements, and have a sound capacity to promote the continuous development of the care and

p.7

provision

learning experiences for children in the future.

p.7

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.8

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.8

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.9

Setting details

Unique reference number EY314841 Local authority Hampshire Inspection number 953769 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 69 Number of children on roll 93 Name of provider Star Playschool and Nursery Committee Date of previous inspection 09/04/2013 Telephone number 01256 473345

p.9

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.9

Type of provision

For the purposes of this inspection the following definitions apply:

p.9

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.9

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.9

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.10

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.10

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.11

Type of provision

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

p.11