Serendipity Nursery

Serendipity Nursery The Kaleidoscope Children's Centre, 27 Riverview Court, Vange, Basildon, Essex, SS16 4NF

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 19/08/2014 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

 The staff are well qualified and have a good understanding of how to promote children's learning and development. As a result, children are engaged in their learning and enjoy their time at the nursery.  The leaders and managers are committed to developing a good quality nursery. All areas of practice are monitored carefully, which promotes good learning outcomes for children.  The staff have a very good awareness of safeguarding procedures. Regular training and reviews of the policies ensure that staff are fully aware of how to keep children safe and protected from harm.  The staff work well with parents and share information regularly. Parents are kept fully informed about their children's progress, which promotes children's learning and development and maintains their welfare effectively.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Occasionally, staff in the baby room do not fully embrace every opportunity for extending young children's communication skills.  Staff do not maximise opportunities for children to discover and explore open-ended and natural materials when they play and learn outdoors.

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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 compulsory part 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 three playrooms and outside.  The inspector conducted a joint observation with the manager.  The inspector held meetings with the leaders and managers of the nursery.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's assessment records and the planning documentation.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked evidence of the suitability and qualifications of staff working with the children.  The inspector viewed the provider's self-evaluation form and improvement plan.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of the views of the parents and carers spoken to on the day.

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Information about the setting

Serendipity Nursery re-registered in 2014 and is on the Early Years Register and compulsory part of the Childcare Register. It is one of three settings run and managed by Serendipity Nursery Limited. It operates from Kaleidoscope Children's Centre in Basildon, Essex. The nursery serves the local area and is accessible to all children. The nursery employs 15 members of childcare staff. All of them hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 2 or level 3. The nursery opens Monday to Friday all year round, with the exception of a week at Christmas and bank holidays. Sessions are from 7am until 7pm and children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 123 children attending who are in the early years age group. The nursery provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children. It supports a number of children who speak English as an additional language and children with special educational needs and/or

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

 extend even further the already good communication and language skills of children in the baby room, for example, by using every opportunity to model words during children's self-chosen play

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

 enhance children's imagination and interest in the world around them in the outdoor area, for example, by providing children with opportunities to discover and explore open-ended and natural materials.

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who attend

Children are engaged and happy in this vibrant and appealing nursery. They are comfortable and eager to explore their surroundings and this supports them to be active learners. There is a good balance between activities children choose for themselves and those which are adult-led. In the baby room, there is a wide selection of resources for the babies to choose, which supports their independent play. They enjoy looking at the brightly coloured ceiling hangings and vibrant wall displays. The babies enjoy the music playing gently in the background and sway to the music during their play. This engages their senses as they explore different types of media. Babies investigate the small cars and discover different textures as they play in the sand. However, the staff do not always maximise these opportunities to develop their communication skills. For example, when the babies play with the sand and let the sand fall between their hands, the staff miss

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who attend

some opportunities to model new vocabulary. In the toddler room, children play together well and when it is a child's birthday they are encouraged to sing 'happy birthday'. This supports their personal, social and emotional development as they learn to play alongside their peers. Older children have many opportunities to develop their communication and language skills during outdoor play. They talk with the staff and each other as they pretend they are in a shop. Their imaginative play is supported by the staff as they model being a shopper. Children are developing well across the prime areas of learning. As a result, they are acquiring the skills they need to be ready for the next stage of their learning and for school.

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who attend

The staff have a very good understanding of how to observe and assess children's progress. They are able to clearly identify the next stage in children's learning and plan appropriate activities. For example, the staff plan for different types of physical play to support individual children in the next stage of their learning. Therefore, babies practise climbing up a step, which supports their physical development. The quality of teaching is good and the staff are enthusiastic in their roles. Children develop their literacy and communication skills as the staff encourage them to sing along with nursery rhymes. They extend children's learning during children's self-chosen play as they talk with the children about the different colours of blocks. In the pre-school room, the teaching is very good. During outdoor play, children become engrossed in imaginative play as they join the staff in acting out favourite stories. The children join in with well-known phrases and are

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who attend

delighted when a member of staff pretends to be a big bear. During group activities children learn about different letters and sounds. For example, a box is passed around the group and children choose different items that relate to a letter sound. This supports children's understanding of letters and promotes early reading skills. The children take part in small group activities with their key-person each day. This enables the key-person to promote children's next stage of learning in more focused learning groups. This learning is more structured and prepares them well for school. Consequently, children are supported to develop their learning across the seven areas and are making good progress.

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who attend

Children that speak English as an additional language are making good progress. This is because the key-person works very closely with the parents. When children first start at the nursery, the key-person collects details about the children's home language. Information about children's all-round development is also thoroughly discussed. This provides a very good indication of how to support individual children as soon as they start. Words that children speak in their home language are incorporated into the nursery activities. This supports children's English language acquisition and their sense of belonging. Children that have special educational needs are also making good progress. Good partnership working with parents enables information on children's learning to be shared. As a result, children have continuity in their learning, which promotes good learning outcomes. Parents are fully involved in their children's learning. The staff

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who attend

complete detailed and informative learning records, which are regularly shared with parents. These are supplemented with regular progress reviews as well as the progress check completed between the ages of two-and-three years. Parents also have the opportunity to share with the nursery their children's achievements and learning from home. For example, they are able to talk with the staff each day as well as having the opportunity to write in a book that passes between home and nursery. Regular newsletters and information boards fully notify parents of planned learning and promote good partnership working with them. Consequently, children are fully supported in their learning and development.

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

The children show a good level of self-confidence and motivation. The nursery is safe, stimulating and well-resourced, which encourages children to investigate. For example, children have easy access to the outdoor learning environment. This is well equipped with a variety of engaging resources, such as large and small slides, play houses and areas for the children to sit quietly. The children enjoy their time at the nursery and demonstrate their development of physical skills as they use the equipment. However, staff have not fully equipped the garden with a variety of open-ended and natural resources so it is not as stimulating as it could be and they do not always use resources well to promote children's learning. For example, there are patches of garden for hunting bugs and growing fruit, vegetables and herbs. These areas are not fully used in order to extend children's understanding of the natural world. Children develop their independence skills

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

and are sensitively encouraged to carry out small and developmentally appropriate tasks. The children help to prepare snack and serve themselves food at lunchtime. Children are also supported to develop good hygiene practices. They attend to their toileting needs and wash their hands independently. The staff support them and provide help where it is needed. As a result, children are independent and motivated learners who are emotionally well prepared for the next stage of their learning.

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

The nursery has a well established key-person system which fully supports children to make secure attachments. Children and parents are invited in to attend induction sessions before they formally start. At these induction sessions, a key-person is allocated. This enables the key-person to discuss children's care needs and to begin to form positive attachments. Consequently, when children start their emotional well-being is effectively supported which helps them to settle well. The staff support children's move into different rooms in a variety of ways and according to individual needs. For example, children visit with their key-person and parents are also invited in to meet with the new key-person. To help children that find this process more difficult, the staff create small picture booklets about the new room. Children take these home to look through with their parents. Therefore, the staff are very thoughtful about managing changes in children's lives, which

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

effectively promotes children's well-being. The staff in the baby room demonstrate very warm and loving interactions with the babies. For example, the staff talk with them during nappy changing times. The staff are aware of individual children's needs and children with particular health needs are fully included in the daily routine. They are looked after well in a calm and loving environment and the children show they feel safe and secure. The staff are good role models and clearly explain their expectations of behaviour. This means that children are very well behaved and cooperative. For example, at lunchtime the older children sit patiently and wait their turn to serve their meals. In the toddler room, staff know the children very well and calmly explain behavioural boundaries. As a result, younger children develop an understanding of how to play cooperatively. Children learn about different cultures and develop an understanding of similarities and differences. A

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

variety of flags are displayed, which the children have painted. This introduces children to ideas about different countries and cultures. They also learn about different customs during festivals, such as Chinese New Year and Diwali.

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

Children learn how to be healthy. The meals are healthy and nutritious and the staff explain to the children that they need to eat their food in order to be 'big and strong'. Consequently, children are motivated to eat healthily. All of the children have opportunities for outdoor play. Babies enjoy playing in the fresh air. They are able to develop their muscles as they more around freely and attempt to climb small and manageable climbing equipment. Children learn how to take safe and manageable risks. For example, staff help young children to use child-safe knives to cut up bananas and older children are able to use scissors. Children take part in regular road safety activities and trips outside the nursery, to extend and strengthen children's understanding of how to keep safe by the road. Visits to the nursery by the police and from nursing staff create further learning opportunities. The staff conduct regular fire drills to support children's

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

understanding of safety practices. As a result, children are developing a strong understanding of how to keep themselves safe.

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provision

The leaders and managers demonstrate a good understanding of their responsibilities in meeting the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. There are robust and safe recruitment practices, which ensure that only people who have had their suitability checked are employed to work with children. This includes an interview, references and a Disclosure and Barring Service check being obtained. The staff are fully aware of child protection procedures and the course of action to be taken if they are concerned about a child. The safeguarding policy is updated regularly and details of the procedures to follow if an allegation is made against a member of staff. It also explains the policy for mobile phones and cameras, so that these are used safely and do not put children at risk of harm. Consequently, all staff have a thorough understanding of how to keep children safe. The majority of the staff have undertaken paediatric first-aid training. This enables them

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provision

to administer first-aid if it is required and supports children's health and well-being. Risk assessments are carried out on a daily basis. This supports the staff to minimise risks and any potential hazards so that the premises are safe.

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provision

The leaders and managers effectively monitor the learning and development requirements. For example, the planning is reviewed to ensure it covers the seven areas of learning and that it meets individual children's needs. Children's assessments are also regularly reviewed to make sure that they are making good progress. Therefore, the manager is able to identify any children that may be falling behind so that appropriate interventions are put into place where needed.

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provision

The leaders and managers regularly monitor staff teaching practices. This highlights areas for staff to improve and is discussed at regular supervision meetings and annual appraisals. At these performance management meetings, training is identified to support the staff to develop their skills. Training courses attended cover subjects such as working with children with disabilities and assessment processes. The staff are well qualified and this has a positive impact on the teaching of young children. There is a system in place for undertaking peer observations, which further supports staff to understand areas of good practice. The leaders and managers are extremely committed to developing the nursery. They are reflective and have identified areas for improvement, such as updating some outdoor equipment. The parents and children are also involved in this process and are regularly asked for their views. Consequently, the leaders and managers have an accurate

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provision

understanding of their strengths and weaknesses in order to promote good outcomes for children.

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provision

Partnerships with outside agencies are well established and regular contact is maintained with the area special educational needs co-ordinator and health professionals. This promotes the learning and development of children identified with additional needs. The nursery has good relationships with the local primary schools and teachers are invited in to visit the nursery prior to children moving to school. When teachers visit, the staff take photographs of the teachers, which are displayed in the pre-school room. This supports children's move to school as they remember the visit and talk about going to school. When children attend other settings alongside the nursery, the staff liaise with the other providers. This supports children's well-being and provides continuity in their learning. There are good and effective interactions with parents. Parents spoken to on the day of the inspection explained that their children have made very good progress since they

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provision

started. Other parents explained that the communication between the home and nursery is very good. The managers and staff are proactive at developing good relationships between the nursery and parents. For example, they have created events, such as a teddy bear's picnic, for the grandparents to come in and attend. They have also created messy mornings to involve dads. As a result, partnerships are strong and this supports very good learning outcomes for children.

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The Childcare Register

The requirements for the compulsory 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 EY469364 Local authority Essex Inspection number 956897 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 50 Number of children on roll 123 Name of provider Serendipity Nursery Ltd Date of previous inspection not applicable Telephone number 01268559633

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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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