St Nicholas House

Busy Nought to Fives Ltd St Nicholas House, Walton Lane, Birchwood Park, WARRINGTON, WA3 6YL

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 17/09/2014 12/02/2014

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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

 Staff provide a wide selection of resources and activities around the rooms, so that children have good opportunities to make their own choices in play. As a result, children are happy, busy, enthusiastic and confident learners.  Staff have close relationships with children and they make effective use of observation and assessment to plan for their individual learning needs.  Transition arrangements and partnerships with parents are effective. As a result, staff meet children's needs and they support children to approach their next stage in learning with confidence, such as moving rooms or starting school.  Children are well safeguarded due to robust recruitment and vetting procedures and staff's understanding of their roles and responsibilities in protecting those in their care.  Staff receive regular support, guidance and coaching to support their personal effectiveness. This means they are confident and keen to improve, resulting in them

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This provision is good

setting high expectations for themselves and children.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Children's independence and self-care skills are not promoted to the maximum potential during lunchtime.  Staff do not consistently make the best use of outdoor play spaces to provide all children with regular opportunities to access outdoor play, fresh air and exercise, with particular regard to babies.

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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 engaging in a range of indoor and outdoor learning activities, play and daily care routines with children.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with the manager, staff and children at appropriate times throughout the inspection.

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Inspection activities

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

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's assessment records and planning documentation, and a selection of policies and children's records.  The inspector and manager took part in a joint observation.

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Information about the setting

Busy Nought to Fives Ltd at St. Nicholas House registered in 2003 on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register, and is one of eight settings run by a company. It operates from a purpose-built, single-storey building located in the Birchwood, Warrington. The nursery opens Monday to Friday, from 7.30am to 6pm, all year round with the exception of bank holidays and a week at Christmas. Children attend for a variety of sessions. Children are cared for in 10 rooms and have access to an enclosed outdoor play area. All areas are fully accessible and the nursery has assisted toilet facilities. There are currently 117 children on roll in the early years age range. 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 as an additional language. There are currently 25 staff working directly with the children. Of

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Information about the setting

these, 21 have an appropriate early years qualification. These include one member of staff who has Qualified Teacher Status and two who hold Early Years Professional status. Three members of staff hold an early years degree and 16 members of staff have qualifications at level 3. Four members of staff have a qualification at level 2 and one member of staff is working towards a qualification. The nursery receives support from the local authority.

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

 enhance children's independence and self-care skills during lunchtime, for example, by supporting children to set the tables and self-serve their lunch and drinks

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

 make the best use of outdoor play spaces to provide all children with consistent opportunities to access outdoor play, with particular regard to babies.

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who attend

Staff have a secure knowledge of the Early Years Foundation Stage. They provide an interesting and motivating range of activities and resources, which support children to develop and progress across the seven areas of learning. Staff complete individual journals for each child, which show detailed observations and assessments. This information is skilfully used by staff to identify the next steps for children and to create experiences to enrich their learning. Successful planning includes opportunities for child- initiated activities, which are enhanced by focused and adult-led activities. This means children are engaged in experiences, which have depth and breadth across all areas of learning. All children are generally working comfortably within the typical range of development expected for their age. This results in children having the skills needed for the next steps in their learning, including school.

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who attend

The quality of teaching is good and all staff have high expectations of children. Staff support children in their learning by encouraging them to initiate their chosen activities by exploring and playing independently. Staff skilfully question children to extend their critical thinking and to challenge their learning. Children display the characteristics of effective learning, for example, while pushing cars through foam outside, young children enjoy getting messy and examine the texture of the foam as they squeeze it through their fingers. Older children are engaged as they explore and have their own ideas of how to make water go faster down the tube. Staff support children's good communication and language skills and help them to build their vocabulary by talking to them and introducing new words during daily activities. For example, staff encourage babies to repeat words whilst they play with chalk and sensory toys and older children join in with repeated

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who attend

phrases in rhymes and stories. Personal, social and emotional development is given high priority. For example, staff spend a lot of time with their key children as they recognise children learn best when they feel safe and secure, with adults they know really well. The key person works with children in small groups, singing familiar rhymes to them as they sit together on the floor. Children join in with pleasure, as they make noises as part of the rhymes and are asked to predict what will happen next. This high emphasis on the promotion of personal, social and emotional development as a basis for learning, prepares children well for the next stage in their learning, such as moving rooms or when they start school. Children who speak English as an additional language are supported well and displays are colourful and have images of children and languages from around the world, promoting inclusion and the diversity of society. Staff encourage children to engage in

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who attend

number work and simple mathematics. Children are provided with the opportunity to explore sand and blocks, placing them in towers as they start to understand about size, space and measure. They learn about successful ways to stack objects and soon begin to recognise that a larger tower is not secure. Staff encourage them to count, as they make their towers higher, teaching children about number, order and value. This means that as children are increasingly able to use their mathematical knowledge to independently count and problem solve in their play.

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who attend

Practitioners have good relationships with parents. Since the last inspection, practitioners have taken positive steps to improve information sharing and communication with parents about their children's learning. Parents are fully aware of the service and education in place for their children through discussions, noticeboards, open days, newsletters, policies and procedures. This means, parents are involved in their children's learning through sharing information on their progress and achievements. They have daily talks with their child's key person and they are invited to attend a parent open day each term. As a result, staff know children very well and talk to them about their home life, which helps them to feel valued. Starting points for children's development are established using information from parents during settling-in sessions. This information helps children's key persons to get to know them quickly, supporting a smooth start to nursery.

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

Children's emotional well-being is effectively promoted throughout the nursery. A key- person system ensures all children benefit from secure attachments. The caring and supportive environment helps children to feel safe and secure, which provides a strong foundation for their well-being and independence. Children's care routines are adhered to and the exchange of regular information between parents and staff ensures children's changing needs are consistently met. Consequently, staff know individual children well and they benefit from consistent care. Staff prepare children to ensure they are emotionally ready for changes and movements through the nursery by providing short visits until they feel secure to move. Teachers from relevant settings are invited into the nursery. This enables children to meet them and form new attachments in a safe and familiar environment.

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

Children are generally developing good independent self-care skills. They use the toilet and wash their hands with confidence and others confidently ask for help if needed. Children in nappies have their care needs met effectively through consistent routines throughout the day. Fresh drinking water is readily available to children to access all day, which they are encouraged to do as they learn to recognise and manage their own need for a drink. However, at lunchtime some opportunities to promote self-help skills and independence are missed, because children are not encouraged or supported with learning how to help with setting the table or with serving drinks and their lunch. However, staff use lunchtime positively to help children understand about nutrition and how to make healthy choices by encouraging the children to try a variety of foods.

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

Older children move freely between indoor and outdoor spaces, promoting fresh air, exercise and supporting a healthy lifestyle. However, babies do not have such consistent opportunities to be outdoors to enhance their learning. The garden is well planned and supports all areas of learning. Children learn to develop physical skills as they climb, throw balls into hoops and kick footballs. Children are showing good awareness of their own and others safety and learn how to assess and manage risks independently. They are encouraged to tidy up when they have finished with resources to keep the environment safe and minimise hazards. This helps children develop a sense of growing responsibility, which helps them with their future learning. Staff are good role models and use age and stage appropriate explanations to provide children with a clear knowledge of acceptable behaviour. Staff use simple reinforcement and distraction with children, which supports

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

the consistent and calm approach by staff.

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provision

All staff have a good understanding of their responsibilities regarding the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. Staff are aware of the indicators that would alert them to a child at risk. They have a strong knowledge of child protection and the procedures to follow if they have a concern about a child, or the conduct of a member of staff or any of the managers. Several staff have first-aid certificates and appropriate accident and medicine records are in place. Safety is promoted through robust arrangements for assessing any risks to children. Checks are carried out on a daily basis to identify any new risks and to ensure that the safety measures that are in place remain safe. Effective procedures are implemented whenever new staff, volunteers or trainees are recruited. This includes thorough background and vetting checks and clear induction procedures. This ensures children are cared for by suitable and knowledgeable

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provision

The manager's drive for improvement is demonstrated by a clear improvement plan. Since the last inspection, the manager has successfully met the actions that were raised, which has improved the outcomes for children. She has achieved this by implementing robust systems for recording the times of children's attendance. Assessment records are now effective and clearly show children's good progress through the planning of purposeful next steps in learning. Consequently, the educational programme has been improved to provide challenging activities that meet the individual needs of all children. Furthermore, the manager gives good support to all staff to ensure teaching supports all children appropriately. She has carried out in-house training to strengthen staff's practice with using consistent questioning techniques. This promotes children's language and critical thinking and effectively supports their characteristics of learning. Partnerships between

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provision

staff and parents are positive. Parents spoken to comment on the friendliness of staff and how they are kept informed of their children's development through daily discussions and regular assessment. Staff encourage parents to express their opinions of the nursery, in order to ensure their views contribute to the nursery's overall self-evaluation and ongoing developments. Staff understand the importance of sharing information with relevant professionals, and teachers from schools in the area are invited to meet children prior to starting reception class. As a result, children's move to school is as smooth as possible.

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provision

Robust recruitment, vetting and performance management arrangements are in place to ensure staff are suitable to work with children. For example, detailed induction programmes, which routinely include food hygiene and safeguarding training, ensure all staff understand their role and responsibilities. In addition, significant changes to the performance management arrangements mean strategies for improving staff's personal effectiveness are good. This includes increased frequency of supervisions and regular observations of the quality of teaching. This contributes to staff receiving the support, training and coaching they need. As a result, staff are confident in their roles; they know what management expects of them and they are keen to improve, so that they promote high expectations for themselves and children. Continual professional development opportunities are decided on effectively by providing training that meets the needs of

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provision

individual staff and by providing group training to the whole staff team when necessary. This ensures that each member of staff has their needs met and that there is a shared knowledge, understanding and consistency within the nursery.

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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 EY259610 Local authority Warrington Inspection number 966507

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 140 Number of children on roll 117 Name of provider Busy Nought to Fives Ltd Date of previous inspection 12/02/2014 Telephone number 01925 850755

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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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