Gingerbread House Ltd

Gingerbread House Gingerbread House, 100 New Street, Southowram, HALIFAX, West Yorkshire, HX3 9SN

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 29/08/2014 07/07/2010

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early years provision

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

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This provision requires improvement

 There is a warm and welcoming atmosphere; children are happy and form strong bonds with staff. Consequently, children's emotional well-being is well supported.  Staff have a secure knowledge of how to promote learning and development because they are well qualified and have good access to continued professional development. As a result, children are keen to learn and make good progress.  Communication and language development is a consistently strong aspect of the nursery. This is because staff effectively engage children in stories and successfully implement initiatives, such as Every child a talker.  Staff have a clear understanding of the reporting procedures to be followed if they have concerns about a child in their care. This means that children are kept safe.

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It is not yet good because

 Priorities and plans for self-improvement are not fully developed or met. Consequently, the capacity to move on is reduced.  There are not enough natural resources and open-ended play opportunities to keep children motivated and engaged in the outdoor environment.  Staff deployment varies throughout the day and as a result the level of support provided for younger children to manage their care needs is inconsistent.  Required records and information about children is not readily available and accessible.

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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 play and learning activities and spoke to children and staff in the indoor and outdoor environments.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector conducted a joint observation with an advanced early years practitioner.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector held meetings with the deputy manager and the quality improvement support officer, and looked at and discussed a range of policies, procedures and documentation.  The inspector looked at children's assessment records and planning documentation.  The inspector took account of the views of parents and carers spoken to on the day.

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Information about the setting

Gingerbread House was registered in 2010 on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It is a small, family-run nursery, situated in the Southowram area of Halifax. It operates from four rooms divided over two floors and an outdoor learning environment. The first floor of the nursery is accessed by a staircase. The nursery has links with the local children's centre and works closely with the local authority early years quality improvement team. The nursery is open weekdays, from 7.30am to 6pm, 51 weeks of the year, closing only for bank holidays and one week at Christmas. There are currently 29 children on roll, ranging from babies to school-aged children. The nursery supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. The nursery receives funding for two-, three- and four-year-old children. There are currently seven members of staff. Of these five hold appropriate qualifications at level 3,

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Information about the setting

one member of staff has a higher qualification and the manager holds Early Years Professional status. The nursery offers a pick up and drop off service from home and the local primary school, and a before and after school club and a holiday club.

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must:

 ensure all records are fully maintained, available and easily accessible to all those who have responsibility for the setting

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must:

 record the name and address of every parent known to the provider and the names of all persons with parental responsibility

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must:

 improve staff deployment in order to provide consistent support for young children as they learn to manage their personal needs, ensuring that dignity is maintained at all times.

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

 develop self-evaluation and plans for improvement, taking in to account the views of staff, parents and children in order to prioritise areas for development and implement changes more effectively

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

 provide more natural resources and open-ended play experiences for children in the outdoor environment to ensure that learning and development is fully optimised.

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who attend

Staff deliver a range of activities that promote children's learning by taking account of their individual interests. Staff have a good understanding of the types of play children enjoy and organise and resource rooms in accordance to children's interests. For example, in the pre-school room, an exciting beach area is set up with a colourful and tactile seaside display, a tray of sand, natural resources to explore, such as shells and beach wood, and labelled pictures to complement the seaside theme. Children enjoy building in the sand, which supports their physical development. Focused activities and discussions prepare children for school. Staff support children to write their own names on their paintings and talk about making new friends. Children go for outings in the nursery mini bus to see their new school. This builds children's confidence during the lead up to school. Babies visit the toddler room and are supported in their play with the young children in the

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who attend

water. They laugh with delight as they pour water from containers. Consequently, babies become familiar with the surroundings of the toddler room, which enables them to make a smooth transition to their next stage of learning.

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who attend

Staff have discussions with parents when children first start at the nursery and obtain general information about routines, medical requirements and food allergies. During the settling-in phase, staff carry out observations of children and talk to parents to gain a clear understanding of children's character and interests. This means that they can plan with a focus on children's individual needs. Observations and assessments show that children are making good progress generally within the typical range and sometimes exceeding the range of development for their age. Gaps in learning are quickly identified and staff work in partnership with parents and when appropriate seek professional advice and training, such as Every child a talker, to ensure that children continue to develop. The progress checks for children between the ages of two and three years are accurate and shared with parents and health visitors. The nursery adopts a multi-agency approach to

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who attend

working with children with special educational needs and/or disabilities to ensure children receive specialist care and support.

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who attend

Daily activities, such as story time, are highly effective in developing children's skills in preparation for school. While reading, staff are animated and children are developing a love of language. Children eagerly join in well-known stories and staff skilfully ask open- ended questions to extend children's thinking. Consequently, some younger children's communication and language skills exceed stages typical of their age. Children select resources from the wide range available and this promotes their self-help skills. Children move around freely in rooms that are rich in print, numbers and colour. Resources are labelled in picture and written language and as a result, children learn that written language carries meaning. They develop characteristics of effective learning when they explore their surroundings. For example, children line up cars on a windowsill then go on to select a piece of wooden train track to make a ramp down to the table. Children roll the

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who attend

cars down the track and then line them up again. Children realise that bigger cars do not fit on the track and go in search of other resources to use as a ramp. This demonstrates being creative and thinking critically. Wall displays clearly reflect that learning has taken place. Themes, such as the World Cup, reveal children's growing understanding of the world.

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

Children are happy in the nursery, where they form strong bonds with staff who are generally responsive to their needs. They cuddle babies, and young children often go to their key person for support. Therefore, children demonstrate through their actions, that they feel emotionally secure. Generally, the continuity of care between the home and the nursery is appropriately maintained. However, arrangements for supporting young children who are learning to develop their personal needs when using the toilet are variable. This means at certain times of the day, for example mealtimes; when some staff are engaged in preparing food, children use the toilet without support and so their dignity and hygiene are occasionally compromised. At other times, support is highly effective and sticker charts are used in partnership with parents to help children develop their personal needs. Children understand how to stay healthy and they know when they should wash their

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

hands, for example, after blowing their nose. Children look forward to meal times and enjoy a varied, healthy menu. Children sit together as a whole nursery with a mixture of ages on each table. Older children are encouraged to serve themselves. This develops independence skills.

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

Parents comment that their children really enjoy their time at the nursery and are generally cared for very well. Parents also comment that the manager and key person have helped them through difficult times because of their understanding and support. This is because nursery practice and procedures help protect and generally support children. Staff understand the safeguarding policy and are confident in their understanding of what to do if they have a concern. Behaviour throughout the nursery is managed well. This is because staff show respect for children and model positive behaviour. For example, when children drop a paintbrush and staff pick it up, children say 'thank you' and staff reply with 'you are welcome'.

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

The indoor environment is safe, welcoming and well resourced. However, in the outdoor area, resources are limited and so good quality learning experiences are not fully maximised. As a result, not all children are motivated and engaged during outdoor play. Babies become fractious because the resources do not meet their stage of development. This is because there are no natural resources to explore or areas, which promote babies' physical development. Older children ask staff what to do; this is because there are not enough resources for open-ended play. Staff make creative use of limited resources to plan activities, such as painting with water to support older children's physical development.

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provision

Recruitment procedures ensure that staff have suitable qualifications and experience to work with children, and regular supervision sessions provide opportunities for staff to enhance their skills. However, during the inspection, in the absence of the manager, records were not easily accessible to the inspector. Evidence of vetting procedures are in place but some are held electronically and are password protected and other records such as telephone interviews are not always recorded in staff files. Accessing the current system of record keeping is difficult and time consuming. Records of children are easily accessible but do not fully meet the welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. The address of every parent and/or carer who is known to the provider is not included. In addition, parental responsibility is not always fully completed, often only including the person who brings the child to nursery. Nevertheless, information is recorded

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provision

about the home address and both parents' work address and telephone number. Therefore, persons are contactable in an emergency.

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provision

The manager understands the learning and development requirements. Monitoring has improved since the last inspection and planning, assessment and staff practice are now regularly reviewed. The professional development of staff is evolving as they undertake training to enhance their skills. For instance, in addition to professional qualifications, staff are supported to develop their literacy skills. This improves staff confidence and the quality of written observations. However, staff are not yet fully involved in the self- assessment process and in identifying priorities for making the nursery even better. The manager has support from the quality improvement support officer to evaluate the effectiveness of the provision but identified areas for improvement are not fully developed or met. Overall, there is a strong partnership with parents and the provider ensures that parents receive daily information about their child's time at nursery using diaries and

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provision

conversations at pick up. The provider includes parents who are hard to reach by communicating through email and telephone. Parents are encouraged to contribute towards their children's learning records by adding experiences from home. Information about the Early Years Foundation Stage is displayed throughout the nursery with ideas about how to support learning in different areas of play. As a result, parents are involved in their children's learning. Parents comment positively on the children's happiness in the nursery and the flexibility of the provision.

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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 EY404995 Local authority Calderdale Inspection number 879510

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 34 Number of children on roll 29 Name of provider Gingerbread House Ltd Date of previous inspection 07/07/2010 Telephone number 01422 385 438

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Type of provision

set out in the guidance ‘Complaints procedure: raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted’, which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk.

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Type of provision

For the purposes of this inspection the following definitions apply:

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Type of provision

Full-time provision is that which operates for more than three hours. These are usually known as nurseries, nursery schools and pre-schools and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. They are registered on the Early Years Register and pay the higher fee for registration.

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Type of provision

Sessional provision operates for more than two hours but does not exceed three hours in any one day. These are usually known as pre-schools, kindergartens or nursery schools and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. They are registered on the Early Years Register and pay the lower fee for registration.

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Type of provision

Childminders care for one or more children where individual children attend for a period of more than two hours in any one day. They operate from domestic premises, which are usually the childminder’s own home. They are registered on the Early Years Register and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Type of provision

Out of school provision may be sessional or full-time provision and is delivered before or after school and/or in the summer holidays. They are registered on the Early Years Register and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. Where children receive their Early Years Foundation Stage in school these providers do not have to deliver the learning and development requirements in full but should complement the experiences children receive in school. achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work-based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children,

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Type of provision

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Type of provision

T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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