Little Scribblers Day Nursery

Little Scribblers LTD 21st Bath Scout Site, Charlcombe Lane, Bath, BA1 6NS

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 14/08/2014 19/10/2010

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early years provision

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

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This provision requires improvement

 Children enjoy a suitable range of activities and experiences within a warm and welcoming environment.  Staff develop positive partnerships with parents, which contribute to the meeting of children's individual needs.  Staff work well together and provide a positive role model to the children and each other.  Children are happy and share close relationships with staff which supports their physical and emotional well-being.

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It is not yet good because

 Staff do not use observation and assessment effectively to teach and challenge children's learning by planning activities based on their individual needs or interests.  Children do not make good progress in their literacy skills because they do not have enough opportunities to link sounds with letters.  Staff do not consistently support children in learning how to manage their behaviour.  Systems are not fully developed to encourage parents to share what they know about their child, to assist with planning for children's individual needs right from the start.

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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 both inside and outdoors.  The inspector had discussions with the managers, staff, children and parents.  The inspector invited a manager to complete a joint observation.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector sampled a range of documentation, including children's records and planning.

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Information about the setting

Little Scribblers Ltd registered in 2006 and is located in a Scout hut within the city of Bath. Children have access to a playroom, a fully enclosed outside play area, and use of a large hall. The nursery is open on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday from 7.45am until 5.30pm. It is open on Thursdays from 7.45am until 4.30pm all year round.

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Information about the setting

The nursery also offers after-school and holiday care for children up to the age of eight years. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and on the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It is in receipt of funding for the provision of free early education for children aged two, three and four. The nursery supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who speak English as an additional language. There are six members of staff. One member of staff has Qualified Teacher Status and Early Years Professional Status. Two members of staff are qualified at level 5, two are qualified at level 3 and one is qualified at level 2.

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must:

 strengthen the quality of teaching by developing the way information is gained from observation and assessment, and use this to plan learning opportunities that are more accurately tailored to children's individual needs and interests to support them to make good progress in their learning and development

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must:

 improve the educational programme for literacy by providing more opportunities for children to link sounds to letters.

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

 help children to manage their own behaviour by setting and maintaining clear expectations so that children can feel safe and secure in their play and other activities

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

 develop the systems used to encourage parents to share information about their children's starting points on entry to support each child's next steps for learning more effectively.

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who attend

Children enjoy a range of activities and experiences; most of which engage them effectively and support them to make steady progress in their learning and development. During a child-initiated activity children used a construction set to build towers and used words such as 'big' and 'small' to describe the size of each tower. Staff extended children's learning by introducing words such as 'taller' and 'tallest' as the children compared the sizes of their constructions. They then used the towers to help them find out which one of them was the tallest. This supports children's mathematical development appropriately. Children of all ages play alongside one another well. They moved toy cars and play figures around on the road mat, using their voices effectively to imitate the sound that they make. This shows they used their imaginations well.

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who attend

There is some good quality teaching and some staff interact, teach and engage children well. However, this is not consistent across the whole staff team. Weaknesses in the use of observation, assessment and planning mean that the delivery of some activities does not extend children's knowledge and understanding effectively. For example, although the youngest children are happy, activities are less well planned for this age. As a result, some children spend their time occupied by older children and wander from one activity to another with little purpose. This means some activities do not support children to acquire the skills they need to move on to the next stage in their development. In addition, staff do not consistently base activities on children's particular interests. For example, children taking part in a painting activity were provided with small pieces of paper, paintbrushes, and rollers which did not fit into the trays of paint. Consequently children only used the

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who attend

brushes and quickly lost interest in the activity. At other times children were very engaged in creative activities as they made a stage from a cardboard box or used recycled materials to make a dinosaur, expressing their ideas well.

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who attend

Parents provide some information about their child's starting capabilities on entry. However staff do not always gather detailed enough information about each child's specific stage of development and interests to assist them with planning appropriate activities right from the start.

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who attend

Children enjoyed listening to stories in a group and sharing books with their friends. Staff asked open questions to gauge children's understanding of the story and to develop their communication and language skills. Children joined in with familiar phrases and used rhyming words to end sentences correctly. However, there are too few good opportunities for children to link sounds to letters. For example, children are not encouraged to label their artwork for themselves and staff do not name or sound the letters as they do it for them. Consequently, children's literacy skills are not developing strongly in preparation for school.

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

Children are happy and share positive relationships with the staff, who get to know them well. Staff share warm interactions with the children and are kind and gentle in their approach which effectively supports each child's emotional and physical well-being. Staff regularly praise the children for their efforts and achievements which boosts their self- esteem and promotes their confidence. Overall, children behave well. Staff act as appropriate role models so that children learn good manners and understand the need to take turns and share. However some older children do not always behave in ways that keep themselves and other safe. For example, staff asked an older child who picked up a younger one to put them down. However, the member of staff did not take this opportunity to talk to the children about why they should not have done this or explain why this is not appropriate. This hinders children's opportunities to learn how to play

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

There is a suitable range of resources and equipment to support children's learning overall in both the indoor and outdoor play environments. Children learn about healthy lifestyles through discussion and the nutritious snacks and meals provided. They extend their learning by taking part in a variety of outdoor play sessions, which promote their physical development well. Children take part in Forest School type activities as they explore and learn to move in different ways and have daily opportunities to practise their physical skills and benefit from fresh air and exercise. Children confidently move around the nursery. Children learn about some aspects of their own safety. For example, they take part in regular fire drills which means they learn how to get out of the building quickly and safety in an emergency.

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provision

Staff understand their responsibility to meet the safeguarding and welfare requirements. Thorough safeguarding procedures are in place to promote the safety and welfare of the children in the nursery. In addition, robust recruitment, vetting, induction and appraisals help to ensure the ongoing suitability of staff to work with children. Staff have a good understanding of child protection issues and the correct procedures to follow if they have concerns for a child in their care, to help to keep them safe. Staff carry out thorough risk assessments and daily checks which help to make certain that all areas of the nursery are safe and secure.

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provision

The staff have a secure understanding of the learning and development requirements and the quality of their teaching is sound. There are systems in place to monitor the educational programmes. However, these are not robust enough to ensure that every area of learning is fully covered and that activities are planned to support fully individual children's specific needs. Overall, the staff provide a range of experiences which help children to make progress, although some activities and experiences lack challenge which hinder learning opportunities for children.

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provision

The management meet to reflect on their practice and discuss areas for further development. These include developing the outside area to include a mud kitchen to enhance children's learning through sensory play. The managers have completed an Ofsted self-evaluation form; however this has not been updated for some time. As a result, the managers have not identified all weaknesses or areas for further development in the provision, which has an impact on children's learning outcomes.

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provision

Parents spoken to during the inspection were complimentary about the nursery. They commented on the friendliness of the staff, they said that their children are happy and settled and they are pleased with the progress they are making. Staff are aware of their responsibility to share information with other early years settings when children's care and learning are shared, and there are appropriate systems in place in order for them to do so. This helps to promote consistency for each child.

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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. We re-inspect nurseries and pre-schools judged as requires improvement within 12 months of the date of 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

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Grade Judgement Description

is not meeting the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. It will be monitored and inspected again within six months of the date of this inspection. Met There were no children present at the time of the inspection. The inspection judgement is that the provider continues to meet the requirements for registration. Not met There were no children present at the time of the inspection. 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 EY332969 Local authority Bath & NE Somerset Inspection number 828211 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 15 Number of children on roll 24 Name of provider Little Scribblers Ltd Date of previous inspection 19/10/2010 Telephone number 07747 081626

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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

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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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