Bloomers Day Nursery

Bloomers Day Nursery 130 Homerton High Street, London, E9 6JA

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 04/07/2014 28/11/2013

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early years provision

This inspection: 4 Previous inspection: 3 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 4 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 4

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This provision is inadequate

 Staff do not have a secure understanding of safeguarding procedures to effectively promote children's welfare.  Risk assessments are not robust enough to ensure the premises are secure at all times.  Visitors are able to gain access to the premises, which compromises children's safety.  The provider does not meet the required minimum ratios or ensure staff are deployed to supervise children effectively, in order to promote children's well-being at all times.  The provider does not use robust systems to monitor and evaluate practice, or the effectiveness of the educational programmes. As a result, weaknesses in safeguarding practice and in the programme for children's physical development are not identified.

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It has the following strengths

 Resources and toys are at children's level so they can make their own choices in their play.  Staff support children to develop their independence and self-care skills during meal times.

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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 children during play, indoors and outside, and observed the staff's interaction with the children.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector sampled some documents, including the policies and procedures for safeguarding, records of staff suitability, attendance registers for staff and children, and risk assessments.  The inspector interviewed the manager and had discussions with parents.  The inspector completed a joint observation with the manager.  The inspector reviewed the nursery's self-evaluation process.

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Information about the setting

Bloomers Day Nursery registered in 2011. It operates from a converted warehouse in Homerton in the London Borough of Hackney. There is an enclosed outdoor play area. The nursery is open each weekday from 7.30am to 6.30pm for 51 weeks of the year. There are currently 73 children on roll in the early years age group. The nursery provides funding for free early education for two-, three- and four-year olds. Staff support children who speak English as an additional language, and children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register. The nursery employs 18 members of staff working directly with children, of these 17 hold early years qualification to level 3. The manager is working towards an early years teaching qualification and the deputy manager is working towards a level 5 childcare qualification. The nursery receives support from the local authority early years consultant.

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enforcement action:

We will issue a welfare requirements notice that requires the provider to:

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enforcement action:

take all reasonable steps to prevent unauthorised persons from entering the premises, particularly with regard to monitoring the security of the external door

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enforcement action:

develop a secure knowledge of child protection procedures so that the lead person liaises with local statutory children's services agencies, and with the Local Safeguarding Children Board (LSCB) regarding any safeguarding issues as required.

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must:

 ensure children are adequately supervised and that staff are deployed effectively to ensure children's needs are met at all times

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must:

 ensure the educational programme for physical development, particularly for younger children in the outdoor environment, provides sufficient opportunities for children to move their bodies in a range of ways to support their learning and development effectively

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must:

 ensure that the staff: child ratios are met at all times.

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who attend

Children are not adequately supervised and safe at all times as required. This is because the manager does not make sure that sufficient staff are on the premises to manage the numbers of incoming children at the start of the day. This means the provider is breaching the ratio requirements. Additionally, the manager and staff have not considered the individual needs of the children who arrive early, particularly those children aged under two years. When further staff do arrive, the arrangements for deploying them are ineffective as they are often involved in routine tasks rather than supervising the children adequately to promote their learning. These weaknesses compromise children's safety and their welfare.

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who attend

Staff demonstrate an adequate understanding of the Early Years Foundation Stage to support children's learning and development, overall. Appropriate documentation is in place to enable staff to gather useful information about children's starting points and build on what the children already know. Staff undertake regular observations that inform planning so that children's individual needs and interests are supported. Staff support children's play appropriately and, as a result, they help children to spend time at their chosen activities.

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who attend

During the inspection, children enjoyed making a fruit salad together as a group as part of an adult-led activity. This followed on from reading a book linked to the activity. Staff plan a range of sensory experiences to support children's memory and enable them to recall skills and learning. For example, they showed children a range of musical instruments and then hid the resources from their sight. Staff ask children questions to encourage children to develop their thought processes and communication skills. Children benefit from acting out real-life situations. The home corner is equipped with a range of role-play toys and resources to promote children's learning appropriately. Staff spent time with the children, who were dressed as doctors and nurses, helping them to use a stethoscope to listen to the adult's heartbeat.

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who attend

Staff spend time reading stories to small groups of children while they play, indoors and outdoors. This helps children to gain an interest in reading. Younger children enjoy lying on cushions outdoors while they look at books with their friends, handling these correctly. Staff provide clipboards and writing tools next to most indoor activities to encourage children to practise their early writing skills. Staff encourage children to look at each other's writing creations and comment positively on their work. This helps children to develop confidence and self-esteem as staff value and praise their work. However, the outdoor learning environment is not used efficiently to promote all children's physical development. All children attending the nursery share this area. However, because resources for older children are not suitable for the younger ones, the babies are restricted to playing in a small section of the garden. This area is separated off from the

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who attend

main area by a makeshift barrier of large, empty plant pots. This reduced area does not provide the young children with the freedom to explore, or the space to develop their larger physical skills. When staff blew bubbles for the young children they were unable to follow these to develop their free movement as they were not allowed to use the cordoned-off area.

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who attend

Children make suitable progress in their learning and development overall. Staff generally know children's stage of development at the start of their placement because they obtain information from parents about their child's interests, favourite toys and social skills. Staff are able to talk about how they are moving children on in their learning and development. They set realistic targets to sufficiently challenge children in some areas of learning. This demonstrates that they have a suitable understanding of child development overall.

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

Staff take some positive steps to help promote children's well-being. However, the weaknesses identified in safeguarding children mean their well-being cannot be assured. Children attending the nursery come from a wide variety of backgrounds. Staff are aware of children's backgrounds and their home languages. They seek support from parents about children's home languages, such as obtaining key words to help communicate with children learning to speak English. This means that children have opportunities to hear their home language in the nursery, helping them to feel that their home language is important. Staff are sensitive to the needs of new children and allow them to settle at their own pace. Staff manage children's behaviour through distraction and simple explanations. Children respond appropriately to requests for good behaviour and generally behave well.

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

Children's independent skills are promoted at snack time because staff encourage them to choose what they would like to eat and serve themselves. Older children demonstrate that they are able to manage their own hygiene and personal needs. For example, they use the toilet independently and wash their hands afterwards. Staff monitor young children washing their hands and provide support for them to develop independence in their personal care. Children enjoy having fresh fruit at snack time, enabling them to gain an understanding of foods that are good for them. Staff use snack time as an opportunity to help to extend children's learning. For example, staff talk to children about oranges containing vitamin C which helps their body fight illness, such as a runny nose. Furthermore, children freely move from one activity to the next as they develop their self- confidence and awareness of their own interests. Staff use everyday routines as an

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

opportunity to praise children. For example, they praised children for waiting nicely while taking turns to play with the water slide. This helps children to develop a secure understanding of sharing and taking turns to support their future learning.

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

Children generally enjoy daily outdoor play that contributes to their good health. They use and play with a range of resources to promote their learning and physical skills. Older children learn to play together as they practise throwing and catching balls, and they are able to negotiate space while playing on wheeled toys. Staff guide the children to use the slide correctly so that they do not hurt themselves. This enables the children to learn to take considered risks and to understand the consequences of their actions. However, the weakness identified in the outdoor learning environment does not ensure each child's physical development is promoted effectively, particularly for the youngest children.

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provision

This inspection took place following a notification to Ofsted of a significant event where an allegation was made against a member of staff that they inappropriately handled a child during sleep times. This raised concerns relating to the safeguarding and welfare requirements, particularly regarding the safeguarding policy and practice. These include the procedure following an allegation, and the suitability of staff working at the nursery. Evidence gathered at the inspection confirmed that the incident did happen. Although staff demonstrate a suitable understanding of child protection policy and procedures overall, the lead person for safeguarding did not follow the appropriate guidance. This is because the lead person carried out their own investigation prior to liaising with local statutory children's services agencies regarding this incident, as required. This was a breach of the safeguarding and welfare requirements and compromised children's safety. Following the

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provision

incident, the manager has updated the nursery's safeguarding policy and attended training so the procedure following an allegation about a member of staff is clearer. As a result of this incident, the procedures for sleep times and routines have also been reviewed. There are now procedures for two members of staff to be with the children at sleep times, and to let children decide whether they wish to sleep. In addition, all staff are trained in handling children appropriately. The provider has also taken steps to work with the local authority early years consultant and additional safeguarding training has been provided to the staff and management at the nursery.

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provision

Staffing arrangements for safeguarding children are inadequate. This is because there are times when children are not sufficiently supervised. Staff deployment is inconsistent during parts of the day. It does not ensure children's safety, particularly during the mornings, and the required ratios of adults to children are not met. There are regularly only three or four members of staff on duty at the beginning of the day, often caring for up to 20 children. These children include six to nine babies and up to eight toddlers, plus up to five pre- school age children. Evidence confirms that this situation occurred on three of the previous four consecutive days. In addition, during the inspection, four members of staff were on the premises to care for 15 children, of which eight were babies and four children were under two years. However, the deployment of these staff during this time was inadequate as some of the staff were involved in routine tasks. One member of staff was

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provision

occupied in the garden setting up the provision, while another was feeding a small baby their breakfast. This left two staff members responsible for all the children, including the young babies. These are breaches of requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage, which result in children's needs not being adequately met.

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provision

Furthermore, the premises are not secure as the front door does not shut properly. The manager is aware of this problem. The manager has attempted to implement a policy where staff follow parents as they exit and ensure the door is shut behind them. However, this is not a robust system. For example, during the mornings, the staff are involved in settling the arriving children and routine tasks so they are not able to monitor the door security at the same time. In addition, on arrival, the inspector was able to enter the premises unchallenged. This demonstrates that these procedures are not working to keep children safe. Furthermore, not all staff ensure the door is secure at other times. For example, on returning from their lunch, staff were observed not shutting the door behind themselves, leaving it open until the manager reminded them to shut it. This demonstrates that, although risk assessments were carried out and a procedure was put

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provision

in place, it lacks rigour. Consequently, visitors are able to enter the premises, or children could leave unsupervised.

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provision

Management follows appropriate procedures to ensure children are cared for by suitable adults. For example, new members of staff do not have sole care of children until their suitability checks are completed. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are generally well supported to promote their learning and development. Staff have made links with outside agencies involved in children's care so that they are supported in everyday activities.

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provision

Staff receive ongoing support from the local authority for their professional development. Additionally, management undertakes staff supervision and appraise the staff's development, identifying training needs. This helps to promote some positive outcomes for children. Management undertakes observations of staff to reflect on the quality of teaching and learning. There are some processes in place for self-evaluation. However, these processes do not identify key weaknesses in practice or the effect of these on children's safety, welfare, and well-being.

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provision

The provider has adequately addressed recommendations made at the last inspection. Staff and management have undertaken training so all staff support children using appropriate behaviour management strategies. The management has also organised the nursery environment so children play in smaller groups in separate rooms. This helps adult-led teaching during circle times to be more focused on a specific set of children. It also helps to ensure that the environment is calm so children can listen and enjoy these group times together to support their learning. The management also monitors the provision so staff know that music is only played when children are actively listening to it as part of a singing or dancing activity, and not played in the background.

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provision

Staff work closely with parents to support children's continuity of care. Parents attended the Fathers' Day events, and have been approached to undertake activities in the nursery. Staff have developed generally positive relationships with parents. Staff plan meetings to discuss and share children's developmental records. Overall, parents speak positively about the care and service the nursery provides. Parents are kept informed about their child's next steps in learning. This means they are able to contribute to their child's learning and development.

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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 EY421466 Local authority Hackney Inspection number 962177 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 5 Total number of places 52 Number of children on roll 80 Name of provider Bloomers Day Nursery Limited Date of previous inspection 28/11/2013 Telephone number 02085335656

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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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