Brough Pre-School Nursery

Brough Pre-School Nursery Brough Primary School, Church Brough, Kirkby Stephen, CUMBRIA, CA17 4EW

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 18/06/2014 14/05/2009

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early years provision

This inspection: 1 Previous inspection: 2 How well the early years provision meets the needs of the range of children who attend The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children 1 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 1

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This provision is outstanding

 The quality of teaching is outstanding. Staff have an exceptional knowledge of the Early Years Foundation Stage and how children learn. Therefore, they plan highly innovative experiences across all seven areas of learning and as a result, children make excellent progress in their learning.  The whole staff team are extremely skilled in using a wide range of different learning strategies to promote children's development and learning. As a result, children acquire the skills, attitudes and dispositions they need to be ready for school.  Children are happy and contented. They settle in to the nursery routines with ease due to the tailored settling-in process implemented by their key person. As a result, children's needs and interests are met and they form excellent relationships with the staff.  Children's behaviour is exemplary due to the staffs high expectations for all the children in their care. Staff include children in all that they do so they play and explore, are

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This provision is outstanding

active learners and become critical thinkers confidently making their own choices and decisions throughout the day.  Partnerships with parents are highly effective. Staff ensure that parents are actively involved in their children's learning and they constantly seek parents' views about the running of the nursery and children's achievements to contribute towards the identification of the next steps in their learning.  Staff safeguard children through their robust knowledge of the signs of abuse and their awareness of their responsibilities to protect children. Therefore, children's care, welfare and emotional well-being is fostered and children feel safe and secure.

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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 in the two interconnecting playrooms and the outdoor play areas.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector held discussions with the manager, the staff and the children throughout the inspection.  The inspector held meetings with the manager and the deputy manager.  The inspector conducted a joint observation with the manager.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of the views of parents of the early years children attending the nursery who were spoken to on the day of the inspection and from information included in the nursery's own parent survey.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's assessment records, the planning documentation and the systems for the monitoring of children's progress.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked evidence of suitability and qualifications of staff working with children, the policies and procedures for the nursery and the documented self- evaluation systems that support the service.

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Information about the setting

Brough Pre-School Nursery opened in 1998 and is managed by a management committee. It operates from a single storey prefabricated building to the rear of Brough County Primary School in Church Brough, Cumbria. The nursery serves the immediate locality and also the surrounding rural areas. The nursery opens five days a week from 9am to 3pm, term time only. Children attend for a variety of sessions. Children are cared for in two connecting play rooms with a designated partitioned kitchen area. All children have access to an outdoor play area and the school playground. There are currently 34 children in the early years age range on roll. The nursery receives funding for the provision of free early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children. There are currently four staff employed at the nursery who work directly with the children and all hold an appropriate early years qualification at levels 2 and 3. The manager holds a qualification at level 4.

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Information about the setting

The nursery is a member of the Pre-school Learning Alliance and receives support from the local authority. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. The nursery has been awarded with a re-accreditation award with the Pre-School Learning Alliance and the Kitemark Award for Excellence awarded by Cumbria Local Authority.

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

 continue to develop the already extensive selection of reading materials to further support children's emerging interests and literacy skills.

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who attend

The quality of teaching is outstanding. This is because the whole staff team have an exceptional knowledge and understanding of how children learn. They are extremely skilled in using a wide range of different learning strategies to effectively promote children's all round development. As a result, children acquire the skills, attitudes and dispositions they need to be ready for school. Staff promptly identify children's starting points at the point of registering. They plan challenging, exciting and stimulating experiences which meet children's interests and cover in depth all seven areas of learning. Children are highly motivated and fully engrossed in all that they do and as a result, make excellent progress in their learning. The learning environment is highly effective in stimulating, supporting and engaging children because they have independent access to an exceptional range of high quality resources, which meet their interests. As a result,

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who attend

staff are excellent at promoting children's learning through a wide range of inspirational learning experiences and activities. The nursery is staffed by a team of dedicated practitioners who ensure that resources and activities are age- and stage-appropriate for every child. Activities and daily routines are adapted accordingly to meet children's needs. They follow the same format so that they build on their independence, choice and decision making skills. Children are provided with the opportunity to move freely between the playrooms and the outdoor play areas. The enhanced play areas inside, truly inspire children to become highly motivated, independent and active learners. A wealth of displays, photographs and examples of children's work adorn the walls, which creates a truly warm and welcoming personal environment for the children and their families. All staff consistently support, challenge and inspire children to play and explore their

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who attend

environment, be keen and active learners and to think critically and problem solve for themselves. For example, children enjoy learning about mini-beasts. The children have a butterfly farm, tadpole tank and snail bowl, set out on the work top. The children excitedly look at the five butterflies in the special net container. They recall how the butterflies started out as five caterpillars and by eating so many leaves, they went to sleep in a special cocoon. They show their parents and tell them how the last one hatched out this morning into another beautiful butterfly. As a result, children learn to show care and concern for all living things. They know that when the butterflies are strong enough they will release them into the community garden 'just like the snails went into our bug hotel, outside'. Children's learning is further consolidated during activities. For example, children hunt for plastic bugs hidden under logs and in gravel filled trays. They match up the

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who attend

insects they find using the mini beast reference book and laminated sheet where they record each one that they find. Children continue their bug hunt outside. They collect the explorer kits and take them into the playhouse den. Using their binoculars and magnifying glasses they go on a bug hunt telling the staff that they are checking on the snails they released into the home made bug hotel the day before. As a result of staff's superb quality of teaching and planning, children are able to explore and investigate, are curious and interested, initiate their own activity and pursue their own learning, based on their own ideas. The whole staff team are extremely skilled in using a wide range of different learning strategies to promote children's development and learning. Staff constantly build on children's learning, getting them to contribute what they know and they fully extend children's learning through effective open-ended questioning techniques. For example, at

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who attend

circle time children listen to the story about a caterpillar. The children listen carefully to the story and then they are asked to re-tell the story using numbers and props. As a result, children's language and communication skills, personal, social and emotional and physical development are promoted and the other specific areas of learning are supported. Children take turns to tell the story by recalling what the caterpillar ate each day and they sequence it on the board. The children match the numerals and props and count out the pieces of fruit. The staff talk to the children about their butterflies and what they have been feeding them so they will grow strong enough to fly away. Children spontaneously respond by remembering what they have learned the day before, about 'nectar' and the 'symmetry' of butterflies wings. The children are confident as they speak and receive lots of positive praise from staff in everything they do. Staff record simple and more formal

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who attend

observations of the children. They use these to help them assess children's progress and plan activities to strengthen and deepen their current learning, as well as possible areas to extend their development towards the early learning goals. Children's next steps are clear and inform future planning. Their interests are recorded and planned for accordingly.

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who attend

Children are happy and contented. They have a wonderful time engaging in a range of interesting and exciting play experiences that support learning across all areas. Children thoroughly enjoy exploring a range materials that support their physical development and contribute to their emerging writing skills. For example, cobnuts are placed in counting trays with tongs in the mathematical area. Children use the tongs to carefully pick up the nuts and place them in corresponding number trays up to 10. This helps to support children's early mathematics and develop their physical skills for writing. Children are well prepared for starting school. They have many opportunities to practise their writing skills and early phonics letter recognition and sounds. For example, Children write their names on their completed art work and recognise their names during practical routines, such as self-registration and snack time. Children learn to problem solve, count, calculate and

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who attend

compare and explore other mathematical skills, such as capacity and weight. For example, they count the number of children that are registered on the board, they then collect their name cards and place them in the snack area. The staff ask how many children are attending and ask the children to compare the number of name cards and the number of children present. The staff talk about more or less, by introducing an extra name card so children begin to make comparisons and they have to check again who is attending the session. Children enjoy the experience and the one to one interaction they receive at this time. They extend their self-help skills and independence with the staff member who supports their learning very effectively and very simply. Children enjoy physical activities outdoors. They enjoy riding wheeled toys, pushing dolls prams and playing ball games with staff. Staff incorporate learning into all activities. For example, while playing with the

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who attend

small plastic balls they incorporate four different coloured trays into their play. The staff throw the balls onto the grass and the children have to quickly collect them and place them in the correct coloured tray. Children laugh and have lots of fun as they play.

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who attend

Partnerships with parents are excellent and highly effective in supporting children's learning both in the nursery and at home. There is a wealth of information available for parents. This includes detailed information about the staff, the Early Years Foundation Stage, what the children have been learning about, newsletters and photographs of the children enjoying different activities. Staff place a high priority on parents continuing with the children's learning at home. Parents are encouraged to share with staff what they know about their children and their changing interests. For example, 'star moments see your child shine comments' are parent observations that staff display and use to further inform the planning and strengthen the continuity of learning for children. An open-door policy ensures that parents feel welcome to communicate with the staff at any time. Parents regularly review children's assessments and development records with their child's

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who attend

key person. They contribute by carrying out observations of their children at home, complementing their next steps in their learning within the nursery. Regular parental discussions are recorded and followed up immediately. For example, staff understand the importance of continuity when teaching children how to use the toilet. The nursery has highly effective partnerships with the host school and the other feeder schools in the area. Therefore, children are exceptionally well prepared for the next stage in their learning. Progress and summary transition documents are completed by staff as children leave to go onto school. Staff make excellent use of the progress check for children between two and three years to plan for the next steps in their learning. In addition, staff invite the teaching staff into the nursery to meet the children and key persons. This provides a valuable opportunity to discuss children's individual needs and progress in more detail.

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who attend

The staff consult with other professionals to identify children's individual needs, such as the speech and language team and health visitors. Key persons work vigilantly to achieve a collaborative approach to support children who may need additional help and support.

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

Staff are extremely caring and dedicated early years professionals who make an outstanding contribution to the emotional well-being of all the children in their care. The well-established key-person system in place results in children developing in confidence and contributes to their feeling of safety and security. Children thrive on attention they receive and enjoy the nurturing attributes of the staff who cuddle and comfort them in a homely and attractive environment. The attentive staff place high emphasis on the importance of building a strong bond and secure attachment with the children from their very first visit to the nursery. They obtain a significant amount of information from parents about children's care, learning and development needs. By doing so this ensures a very smooth transition from home into the nursery. Transitions on to school are equally well managed. Children attend school events throughout the year and during the summer term

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

they go into the reception class each week for a visit. Key persons prepare children for school by making sure that children have all the skills necessary they require. They invite the teaching staff to meet their new children in the nursery. A summative report completed with parents and the children contains detailed information regarding all aspects of the children's care and development to ensure continuity. Parents comment that the nursery helps their children get ready for school. They comment on the brilliant social skills they develop while at the nursery, which ultimately help prepare them extremely well for this move. Children are exceptionally well behaved. They are aware of the high expectations staff have of them and respond very positively to the routine of the day. Visual routines and rules are displayed in the craft room so children know what is expected of them. Staff explain that on the rare occasions where they need to remind

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

children, they do so in a calm and quiet manner, at the children's level, with an explanation so that children understand the consequences of their behaviour.

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

Children develop outstanding self-care skills as they independently see to their own care and personal hygiene needs. For example, they understand how to use the toilet independently and know exactly when to wash and dry their hands. Staff effectively use daily routines to reinforce self-help skills and the growing independence of all children. For example, a helper is recruited from the children to prepare the snack area. They start by placing the name cards on the snack table and to make sure the correct number of utensils are available for the same number of children and place settings. The staff do this in a lovely supportive way, modelling language, by showing and guiding, by explaining and demonstrating, by encouraging and questioning and by facilitating and setting challenges. As a result, children's independence and learning during these times is exceedingly well met. All children follow the same routine. Once everything is ready the helper changes the

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

sign to 'open' and invites children in for their snack. Staff check children have washed their hands and then children serve themselves from an healthy selection of fresh fruit, dairy and bread snacks. Children pour their own drinks and use safety knives for spreading jam on their bread. Staff are on hand to support the younger two-year-old children during snack time allowing them to gain these skills also. Once they have finished all the children wash and dry their own dishes and put them away for next time. A menu is displayed in the reception area for parents to see what children have for snack. This was something that was requested by parents from a recent questionnaire issued to inform the review process initiated by the nursery. The whole of the nursery is exceptionally well resourced with low level storage contributing to children's choice and decision making. The book area contains a wide selection of reading books and reference books for children to help

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

themselves to. There is scope to consider adding even more reading materials to this already well-resourced book area to meet children's interests further, for example, by including more comics and magazines relating to children's interests.

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

Children have excellent opportunities to learn about safety and to manage risks. They thoroughly enjoy using the outdoor adventure playground facilities. This helps children learn to climb up steps, negotiate height and how to risk assess and ensure their own safety while using the slide. The outdoor areas include special raised beds for planting, areas for playing with toys in the mud kitchen and water and sand tray for sensory play and experiences. Children enjoy visits from the local fire brigade and police officers, which support their awareness of those important people who help us. Staff take every opportunity for children to learn from first hand experiences. Children go for walks into the town centre and view the different shops and houses along the street. Photographs are taken of the shops and buildings the children see and the children make their own stand up cardboard cut outs of the various buildings and use them with the roadway mat in the

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

playroom. As a result, they are familiar with the community and the local rural areas around them. The nursery celebrates festivals and events that represent the families and children that attend and introduces them to other cultures from around the world. Staff use this to teach children the importance of the acceptance of difference and diversity. Displays, resources and visual positive images throughout the nursery also contribute to children's awareness of themselves and others. Some children spend time in other settings so staff have introduced a communication book to link home and other key people to their provision to promote a seamless approach to delivering the framework.

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provision

Leadership is inspirational. The manager and staff team have an excellent understanding of their responsibility to ensure that the nursery meets the safeguarding and welfare and learning and development requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. The dedication and highly effective working relationships within the staff team, results in an outstanding nursery that is clearly aimed at supporting children to achieve their full potential. The manager and staff have a wealth of experience. All staff are proactive in ensuring children's safety and have an excellent awareness of safeguarding issues. They competently understand the procedures to follow and who to contact in the event of any concerns about the children or their colleagues. All staff have undertaken safeguarding training and follow strict procedures and policies to protect children at all times. For example, all visitors to the nursery are recorded and they are never left unsupervised in

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provision

the presence of children. All committee, staff, parents and children are provided with opportunities to be involved in evaluating the quality of the provision. The manager and staff team make excellent use of the different formats they have in place, such as, staff meetings, committee meetings and parental questionnaires, where they take full account of what staff and parents have to say. A robust action plan successfully targets areas they wish to improve and this has noticeably improved the quality of the provision. For example, all the previous recommendations have been implemented to successful improve record keeping and documentation for the nursery.

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provision

All policies and procedures are in place and all documentation related to the statutory requirements are completed to a meticulously high standard. This ensures the safe and smooth running of the nursery. Accident and incident records are maintained and used as a tool to monitor and address any potentially hazardous areas. Detailed risk assessments are maintained and daily safety checks are completed for all areas used by children. These are also completed for outings to ensure children's safety at all times. Robust recruitment and vetting systems ensure that all adults working with children are suitable to do so. The staff place a high priority on working together as a team and processes are in place to ensure their continuous professional development. For example, staff are assigned roles, such as 'communication champion'. They receive specific training to their role and cascade their knowledge to further support the staff team. This empowerment of staff creates a

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provision

team who are passionate, knowledgeable and highly driven. Staff training has a positive impact on children's well-being because staff implement what they learn with the children. For example, after attending the well-being and involvement training, staff introduced 'Ben' the empathy doll into the nursery. 'Ben' has been an inspiration to the children, helping them to get over their fear of swimming and having to wear glasses. The manager monitors staff practice through supervision meetings and appraisals. In addition, thorough tracking of children's progress helps to ensure that the manager and staff are fully aware of the progress children are making. Information collected is also used to identify any patterns in development across the nursery, for example, gaps in learning between groups of children. The manager moderates all the monitoring and assessment of children's progress. Through a stringent programme to maintain high standards of learning, she

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provision

ensures that all children make the best possible progress, across all areas of learning. This identifies children with particular strengths or challenges so they receive the additional support they need. This high quality and sharply focussed monitoring demonstrates the staff teams passion for high quality care and education for all the children who attend.

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provision

Partnership with parents is highly effective and is promoted extremely well. The staff engage with parents at every level to ensure children are happy, settled and continue to progress exceptionally well towards the early learning goals. Parents are kept fully informed of their children's learning and development through regular discussion, daily diaries and regular reviews of their children's development files. As a result, a shared approach to children's learning is fully embraced and effectively embedded. Extensive support and partnership working with a wide range of professionals enables staff to meet the needs of all children and support their development effectively. Interventions are sought at the early stages to identify any group falling behind their peers or below their expected achievements. This results in children's needs being met effectively and the relevant support services being involved. Highly effective partnerships between parents,

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provision

external agencies and other providers are evident and well established. These contribute to meeting children's individual needs effectively. There are excellent relationships with other providers and professionals. The centre works closely with other agencies to provide best outcomes for children. These include family support, local schools, speech therapists and health professionals. All agencies follow agreed working protocols. Effective communication systems ensure that parents are kept fully informed of their children's progress. Photographs and informative displays cover the walls. These illustrate the breadth of activities that children are actively involved in during their time at the nursery, accompanied by explanations relating to how they learn. Parents contribute extensively to the initial assessment of their children's starting points on entry. They are also provided with a variety of opportunities to support and share information about their children's

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provision

learning and development at home. Parents bring in pictures of family members, the family home, pets and other important people in their children's lives. These are created into 'all about me' picture books, which help children develop their speech and language skills because the pictures prompt discussion about what the children know and like. Children are extremely well prepared for their next stage in learning and well prepared for their transition to school. Targeted learning programmes and children's development is shared with other providers, if required. As a result, there is consistent, secure support for children with any additional needs and therefore, no child is disadvantaged.

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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 317367 Local authority Cumbria Inspection number 868425

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 18 Number of children on roll 34 Name of provider Brough Pre-School Nursery Committee Date of previous inspection 14/05/2009 Telephone number 07989234565

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Type of provision

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

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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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