Pear Tree Nursery

Pear Tree Nursery Mary Street, Longtown, Carlisle, CA6 5UG

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 15/09/2014 11/11/2013

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early years provision

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

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This provision is good

 All staff use effective teaching techniques to encourage children to think, express their ideas and communicate confidently. They use a wide range of open ended questions that instigates wonderful conversations between the staff and children.  Staff plan a wide range of interesting and exciting experiences for children. The learning environment is bright, stimulating and supportive of children's development. As a result, all children make good progress in their learning, relative to their starting points.  Staff at all levels have a firm knowledge and understanding of safeguarding and are confident in their roles. The conscientious managers ensure good leadership and management of the nursery.  Effective partnership working with parents and other settings supports all children's continuity of care and learning. Parents' views are sought regularly and used to make improvements to the nursery.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Children's behaviour is not always managed consistently as some staff miss opportunities to help children understand the rules of the nursery and the consequences of their actions.

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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 staff and children in all rooms of the nursery, during outdoor play and at snack and lunch time.  The inspector spoke to the staff and the children throughout the inspection.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector viewed documentation, including assessment and planning records, staff suitability checks and a sample of the policies and procedures.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector met with the deputy manager to discuss the leadership and management of the nursery including safeguarding, self-evaluation, staff training and safe recruitment.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector held a joint observation with the deputy manager of the nursery and took account of her evaluations.

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Information about the setting

Pear Tree Nursery opened in 2007 and is managed by a voluntary management committee. It operates from the former junior school building in Longtown, approximately nine miles north of Carlisle. The nursery serves the immediate locality and also the surrounding areas. The nursery opens five days a week from 8am until 6pm all year round, except for bank holidays and a week at Christmas. Children attend for a variety of sessions. An out of school provision, 'Kidzone', is open before and after school each weekday until 6pm and during school holidays. Children are cared for across four rooms and have access to an enclosed outdoor play area. There are currently 48 children in the early years age range on roll. The nursery receives funding for the provision of free early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children. The nursery supports children who speak English is an additional language. There are currently nine staff working directly

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Information about the setting

with the children, eight of whom have an appropriate early years qualification. Seven of the staff have appropriate qualifications at level three. The nursery receives support from the local authority. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register.

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

 enhance children's understanding of the expectations of the setting by consistently offering children explanations about the rules as well as the consequences of their behaviour.

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who attend

Children have a wonderful time at the nursery. The learning environment is bright, welcoming and well planned to offer children freedom of movement and choice in their learning. A wide range of resources are available, that children use in a number of ways, to stretch their skills. Staff plan flexibly for the children, using their good knowledge of children's interests and developmental needs. The educational programme is interesting and exciting, offering children choice across all areas of learning. Staff have a good knowledge and understanding of how young children learn. As a result, children make good progress in their development and acquire the skills, attitudes and dispositions they need to be ready for the next stage of their learning and school. The quality of teaching is high. Staff support children's learning well as they join in sensitively with children's play. They ask a wide range of open ended questions to support and challenge the children. For

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who attend

example, pre-school children have great fun pretending to cook in the role play area. A member of staff joins in, asking what the children are making, what else they could cook and introduces new words. The staff member's quality interactions strongly encourage children's communication skills and their critical thinking. Younger children are equally well supported. Staff are skilful in allowing children time to explore independently, joining in sensitively when they feel appropriate. For example, a child clearly enjoys time alone at the train tracks and concentrates for some time, fixing the trains together. A member of staff eventually joins in, helping to extend the learning that is taking place as she introduces the bricks and asks what the child might like to build. She labels the different shaped bricks, modelling mathematical language well for the child.

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who attend

Children have wonderful opportunities across all areas of learning to explore and investigate. They enjoy using the water wall outside. Children of all ages use their investigative skills as they pour water down the pipes and tubes, noticing the changes in direction. They have fun in the mud kitchen and enjoy the wide range of natural resources such as wood stools and large tyres. Children have fun in the construction area. They use large bricks and crates to build and construct. Staff deploy resources well as they place linked items nearby such as hard hats and high visibility jackets, helping children to make connections in their learning. The environment is rich in print and provides wonderful opportunities for children to develop their early literacy skills. They understand that print carries meaning as they are exposed to labels, magazines and print in various locations around the nursery. Children learning English as an additional language benefit from the

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who attend

excellent use of labels also. Staff display words in children's home language alongside the English words to support their growing understanding of the English language. Furthermore, staff use a range of other resources such as dual language books and music to enable children to play and learn in their home languages also.

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who attend

Parents are valued within the nursery and are encouraged to keep staff up to date on changing interests and any new achievements, for example, through the home nursery diaries and home observations displayed on the 'wow board'. Staff use this information from parents to help them plan for and assess children's learning. This collaborative approach to supporting children's development is highly effective as children benefit from continuity in their learning. Furthermore, staff provide parents with opportunities and ideas for continuing learning at home. For example, the implementation of the borrowing library encourages parents to take books home to read with their children.

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

Children's emotional well-being is high as a result of the well-established key-person system in place and effective settling-in procedures. Parents are invited to share detailed information about their children ahead of them starting at the nursery, helping staff to support continuity of care for children and build upon firm foundations for secure relationships. Children are equally well-prepared for transitions within the nursery and onto school. For example, staff spend time with their key children in the new rooms for short sessions, helping children to feel secure in new surroundings. Children have many opportunities to talk and learn about the schools they will go on to attend. As a result of staff's good support and encouragement, children are emotionally prepared for their move to school. Children behave well and play harmoniously together. They listen well to staff's instructions and happily follow the routine of the day. Many children demonstrate a good

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

understanding of the rules, managing their behaviour well. Other children require prompts from staff and are, at times, less keen to follow the routines. On occasion, staff miss opportunities to extend upon their reminders with explanations or manage children's behaviour consistently. For example, children leaving the lunch table before finishing their meal are promptly invited back to join the others but staff miss the opportunity to explain the rules of the lunch time routine and why it's important to stay seated when eating.

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

Children demonstrate a firm understanding of the importance of healthy lifestyles and good hygiene. Staff follow good hand washing routines vigilantly with the children, helping them to develop a good sense of this important routine themselves. They learn about healthy eating during their play as they enjoy rummaging through the play fruit and vegetables in the role play shop as they talk with staff about healthy options. At snack time, children independently serve their own snack, enjoying the opportunity to spread the butter on their toast. Children have a wonderful time as they develop their large muscle skills outside. They play and explore with crates and tyres, which they use to build and climb on. They push themselves along on trikes and climb on the climbing frame. As a result of the well-equipped outdoor space and staff's close supervision, children are able to make their own risk assessments and manoeuvre safely. Children develop a wonderful

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

sense of safety during their imaginative play. For example, they pretend the play cooker is hot and say to staff, 'Don't burn your finger, here put this glove on', as they fashion an oven glove from a piece of fabric.

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provision

There is a clear management structure in place and all leaders have a firm understanding of their roles and responsibilities to meet the safeguarding and welfare and the learning and development requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. As a result, the nursery is led and managed efficiently. Thorough policies are in place and procedures are effectively implemented and understood by all staff to safeguard and protect children from harm. All staff have completed safeguarding training and demonstrate they are confident in the steps that they would take if they have any concerns about a child in their care. Managers have received safeguarding training at level 3 and are the designated persons for safeguarding. They ensure staff remain knowledgeable and confident in their roles through regular and consistent safeguarding discussions. For example, staff complete scenario-based quizzes to help ensure they are aware of appropriate steps to take,

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provision

including how to report a concern. Robust recruitment procedures are in place to ensure staff are suitable to work with children. Detailed risk assessments help to ensure that children are kept safe as they play.

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provision

Managers closely monitor the effectiveness of the provision. They complete both formal and informal observations of the staff, enabling good monitoring of practice and staff's interactions with the children. More formally, checks are carried out on children's files to ensure staff are up to date and planning effectively for children's next steps. Staff complete assessments of the children that are collated and used to track children's progress from their starting points. Managers regularly review this information to further monitor children's progress and identify any gaps in development of groups of children. The managers and staff are well qualified and have a strong understanding of how children learn. Staff are supported well by the managers, who are aware of the importance of ensuring the staff team remains skilled and knowledgeable. As a result, they attend regular training and implement their new skills into the nursery. Staff work

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provision

collaboratively to reflect on the service they offer. Staff use systems of self-evaluation to highlight areas where practice is most effective, as well as areas for development. Staff have implemented positive changes since the last inspection, effectively addressing the actions and recommendation raised at the last inspection. Support from the local authority is in place and widely utilised. Staff use the feedback they receive to inform the nursery's development plan in order to maintain continuous improvement.

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provision

Staff share positive relationships with parents, who are made to feel welcome in the nursery. Their views are sought via questionnaires and used to make improvements around the nursery. Partnerships with others are firmly in place. Staff work in partnership with the staff of the other early years settings children attend to share information on children's next steps and planning. This further supports the good continuity of learning children benefit from. They work in partnership with schools to complement chidlren's learning and aid their transitions and with specialised professionals when this is required to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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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 EY344683 Local authority Cumbria Inspection number 962821

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 50 Number of children on roll 48 Name of provider Longtown Childcare Trust Limited Date of previous inspection 11/11/2013 Telephone number 01228 791 005

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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

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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