Little Scholars Nursery

Little Scholars Nursery Madina Academy, 1 Swindon Road, DEWSBURY, West Yorkshire, WF13 2PA

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 21/07/2014 Not Applicable

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 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 2 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 2

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This provision is good

 Children are enthusiastic learners because they have good opportunities to make their own choices in their play. Key persons know the children well through their effective observations and assessments.  Children have good relationships and secure attachments with practitioners and this means children feel safe, secure and settled in their care. Practitioners support children in having a good understanding of leading a healthy lifestyle through everyday routines.  Practitioners supervise children well as they carry out regular risk assessments and understand their responsibilities for dealing with child protection issues. This safeguards and keeps children safe.  Managers and practitioners are continually exploring ways they can improve the service and children's learning through their ongoing evaluation and reflective practice. Comments from parents are very positive about the service, care and learning in place

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Practitioners' interactions and support for children during some large group activities is not always of a consistently very high standard to ensure all children's experiences are rich, varied and exciting.  Parents' involvement in their child's initial assessments are not yet highly successful.

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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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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed activities in playroom and the outside learning environment.  The inspector conducted a joint observation and held meetings with the manager.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's assessment records, planning documentation and a range of policies and procedures.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked evidence of suitability and qualifications of practitioners working with children, the provider's self-evaluation form and improvement plans.  The inspector took account of the views of parents and carers spoken to on the day.

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Information about the setting

Little Scholars Nursery opened in 2014 and is managed by Madina Academy Trust. It operates from the Madina Academy, a converted church close to Dewsbury town centre. The nursery serves the local and wider community and is accessible to all children. The nursery opens Monday to Friday from 8.45am to 3.15pm term time only. Children attend a variety of sessions. Children are cared for in one room and they have access to an enclosed outdoor play area. There are currently 14 children in the early years ages range on roll. The nursery receives funding for the provision of free early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children. The nursery supports a number of children who speak English as an additional language. There are currently four practitioners working directly with the children, three of whom have an appropriate early years qualification at level 3 or above. The nursery receives support from the local authority. The nursery is registered on

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Information about the setting

the Early Years Register. The nursery incorporates some basic Islamic learning into the curriculum.

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

 review the organisation and planning of large group activities so that the quality of teaching is consistently of a very high standard and all children experience rich and varied learning at all times

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

 expand the highly successful partnerships with parents further by promoting a more effective and common approach to supporting children in making the maximum progress they can, for example, by seeking more detailed and comprehensive information from parents about children's starting points during initial assessments.

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who attend

Practitioners have a secure understanding of how young children learn and develop and overall, the quality of teaching is good. Practitioners regularly observe children and they use their observations to track and monitor children's progress effectively across all areas of learning. This means key persons know children well and they have a good understanding of children's individual next steps. As a result, they plan activities to support children in making good progress in their learning and readiness for school. Practitioners are actively involved in children's play and their interactions with them are positive. For example, when children are playing in the water, they make good use of open-ended questions to challenge and support children's learning. They talk to children about the empty and full containers and through questioning; they encourage children to work out how they can use the equipment in different ways. This supports children in

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who attend

being active learners who are willing and eager to try new things and persevere at tasks. However, during some large group activities, the use of open-ended questions and support for children is not always of a consistently high standard. For example, during a card making activity involving a large group of children, practitioners provide more of a supervisory role, rather than using their usual good teaching methods to support individual children's learning. As a result, some children soon become distracted because the activity is not always challenging them or meeting their individual needs.

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who attend

Children have access to a good range of activities across all areas of learning. Practitioners effectively organise the resources around the room so that children make safe and independent choices in their play. This free choice contributes to children being enthusiastic learners because they engage in activities they enjoy. All children enjoy looking at books and through a variety of mark-making activities; they have good opportunities to develop their pre-writing skills. Older children make marks and patterns in the shaving foam. They enjoy making lists during their role play and are eager to find their name for the self-registration tree. These activities effectively promote children's development in early literacy. Children make good progress in their mathematical development. Younger children count in everyday situations, for example, when singing. During snack, older children talk about the different shapes they can see, such as their

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who attend

Most children at nursery speak English as an additional language and practitioners work hard to ensure children receive the support needed to promote their communication and language skills. They work closely with parents to establish children's level of understanding and communication skills in all languages children speak. This supports them in planning activities to support individual children's needs. Through their positive interactions and making use of practitioners' dual language skills, they encourage children to take part in conversations. They provide a narrative, when engaging with younger children, and repeat words in English to encourage children to build up their vocabulary. As a result, children make good progress in their communication and language, given their starting points. Practitioners promote children's development in understanding the world. Children engage in planting and growing activities. They go on outings in the community

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who attend

and these activities provide good opportunities for children to explore the natural environment and nature.

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who attend

Children have access to a good selection of resources that support them in learning about simple information and communication technology and how this works. For example, younger children explore resources that teach them to twist, turn and press buttons to make things work. Older children use telephones and other everyday equipment during their role-play activities. Children make good progress in their development in expressive arts and design. All children enjoy such activities, expressing their own ideas as they explore different media and textures, such as, paint, glue, dough, sand, water and straw. Children enjoy role play, such as playing in the home corner and dressing up and this ignites children's imagination and creativity. In addition to planning activities around the areas of learning, the nursery also supports children's Islamic learning through everyday routines. For example, before eating, children wash their hands in line with their cultural

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who attend

beliefs and customs. In addition, the curriculum includes learning about the Arabic alphabet and other Islamic traditions.

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who attend

Practitioners have good relationships with parents. Through letters, noticeboards, discussions, policies and procedures, parents receive some good information about the service and children's learning. However, the information they gather from parents is more around children's care, personal, social and emotional development and less around their progress, skills and abilities in other areas. Therefore, information about children's starting points is not always comprehensive enough to ensure initial assessments are precise and accurate to fully support children in making the maximum progress they can. There are some good strategies in place to involve parents in their child's ongoing learning once children have settled into nursery. Practitioners regularly share with parents the children's next steps and assessment records with parents. In addition, through regular meetings they discuss children progress and agree targets to support children's progression.

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who attend

Practitioners work closely with parents when completing the progress check for children between the ages of two and three years. This includes agreeing any intervention needed to ensure they work together to meet children's learning needs.

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

Practitioners have good relationships with children and their transition arrangements support children in settling quickly into nursery. When children first start at the nursery, their key person spends time settling the children so that they build up secure bonds and attachments with them. Practitioners use an all about me form and registration documents to gather some relevant information about children's needs. This promotes continuity in children's care. Overall, the positive relationships between the children and practitioners and transition arrangements contribute to children feeling safe and emotionally secure. This means children are happy. This effectively promotes children's personal, social and emotional development. Practitioners talk to children about what to expect when starting school. They support children in becoming confident and independent learners and this helps children to positively embrace their future learning and change. This contributes to

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

promoting a smooth transition for children as they move on to school or nursery.

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

The learning environment is safe, clean and welcoming. Practitioners value and display children's work around the nursery and this provides a sense of belonging for children. They manage children's behaviour well, as they are calm when engaging with them and provide consistent routines and boundaries. This supports children in understanding what practitioners except of them and results in children behaving well. Practitioners praise children's achievements and this contributes to them having high self-esteem and confidence. Children learn about being kind, sharing and taking turns through everyday routines and play. As a result, children have positive and harmonious relationships with others. The children have a good understanding of safe boundaries and risk. They take part in routine fire evacuation practises and adhere to good road safety procedures on outings. Therefore, children learn about how to keep themselves safe.

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

Practitioners effectively promote children's health and well-being so that they understand the importance of leading a healthy lifestyle. Children benefit from eating a wide range of healthy snacks, which includes plenty of fresh fruit, carbohydrates and vegetables. Children enjoy activities, such as making fruit salads and playing with foods in the home corner, which provides good opportunities to discuss the importance of making healthy choices. Children have daily and independent access to an outdoor area. Therefore, children enjoy the health benefits of playing in the fresh air. In addition, they go on walks and make use of local parks to increase their outdoor learning experiences. This means children have good opportunities to engage in physical activities. For example, when playing outdoors, young children enjoy chasing the bubbles and older children skip and jump when playing hopscotch. These activities effectively promote children's physical

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

development. Children practise effective hygiene routines so that they develop good self- care skills and an understanding of their own personal health needs. This promotes children's health and well-being.

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provision

Practitioners have a good understanding of their responsibilities in meeting the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. All practitioners complete safeguarding training and this means they have a good understanding of the potential signs of abuse and neglect. In addition, their detailed safeguarding policy clearly outlines the procedures they follow when reporting and monitoring child protection concerns. This includes reporting any concerns they have relating to any adults working with the children. This contributes to protecting children from harm. Recruitment and vetting procedures are robust. Detailed records are in place to demonstrate the checks in place to assess the suitably of practitioners. In addition, induction programmes ensure all practitioners fully understand their roles and responsibilities in safeguarding children. Practitioners effectively deploy themselves around

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provision

the room to ensure they supervise children both indoors and outdoors. They maintain and implement a wide range of documentation, policies and procedures and this contributes to practitioners keeping children safe. For example, they carry out regular risk assessments and safety checks to ensure they minimise any potential hazards.

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provision

Managers and practitioners work well together to discuss the service and their practice so that they identify areas they can improve. For instance, through reflecting on their practice and observing how children access the resources, they change the layout of the room to provide more choice for children. This effective evaluation and reflective practice means that practitioners have clear goals and aspirations about what they want to develop in order to positively improve outcomes for children. Parents, children and all practitioners are actively involved in the improvement plans through the use of discussions, questionnaires and meetings. The programme of professional development and performance management is good. Practitioners have regular supervision meetings to discuss their performance and training needs. This contributes to improving their personal effectiveness and this supports promoting children's achievements over time through good

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provision

Practitioners work in partnership with parents and they have good relationships with each other. Parents' comments about the service are very positive. They say their children are happy, safe and well cared for. They say practitioners are friendly and that they regularly share with them their child's progress. In addition, parents comment on how pleased they are with the progress their children are making in the short time they have been attending the nursery. Practitioners understand the importance of working with other professionals, settings or external agencies involved in children's learning and care. This contributes to promoting continuity in children's care and learning. In addition, if they feel children need any additional help or support they seek any relevant early intervention to ensure they work with others to ensure they meet children's needs.

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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 EY471982 Local authority Kirklees Inspection number 953299 Type of provision Sessional provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 5 Total number of places 40 Number of children on roll 14 Name of provider Madina Academy Date of previous inspection not applicable Telephone number 01924 731007

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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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