Aylesbury College Day Nursery

Aylesbury College Day Nursery Oxford Road, Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, HP21 8PD

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 06/11/2014 01/10/2009

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 Previous inspection: 2 How well the early years provision meets the needs of the range of children who attend The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children 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 range of activities that stimulate and interest children to learn. Consequently, all children make good progress from their starting points.  Staff have good knowledge of the children in their care and their routines. They use a friendly and caring key person approach to help children settle and feel comfortable in the nursery.  Partnerships with parents and external agencies are good. This contributes to children receiving consistent support to meet their individual needs.  The management team has good systems of self-evaluation and staff development, helping them promote good outcomes for children.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 The role-play opportunities do not fully support children to enhance their understanding about different cultures and reinforce their home experiences.  Staff do not always allow children sufficient time to consider questions before providing an answer. This does not encourage children to develop confidence in expressing their own views and ideas.

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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 teaching, learning, and care practices in the main playrooms and outdoors.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector and manager undertook joint observations of teaching practice and discussed this.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with staff and children during the inspection and held a meeting with the manager to discuss leadership and management in the nursery.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector viewed samples of documentation including policies, staff qualifications, staff suitability checks, and children's learning records.  The inspector spoke to parents and took account of their views.

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Information about the setting

Aylesbury College Day Nursery is run by the Aylesbury College Corporation. It registered in 1989 and operates from three large rooms in a purpose built premises in the grounds of Aylesbury College, Buckinghamshire. The children have daily access to a secure outdoor play area. The intake of children is from a wide area as parents travel in to attend the college or work in the town. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. There are currently 114 children on roll in the early years range. The nursery receives funding for the provision of free early education for children aged two, three, and four. The nursery opens on weekdays from 8am to 5.30pm all year round. Support is currently offered to children for whom English is an additional language. The nursery employs 23 staff, of whom 20 hold appropriate early years qualifications.

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

 provide further opportunities for children to consider and explore different cultures through play

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

 offer more consistent support for children to consider and share their views by giving them more time to think and answer questions during discussions.

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who attend

Staff provide a friendly greeting to parents and children as they arrive at the nursery. This helps children to settle and they quickly become happily engaged in their chosen play. Staff are sensitive to children's individual needs. They make great efforts to find out about children when they join the nursery. Parents provide details about their child's routines, abilities and favourite activities. This helps staff to plan to meet children's care and learning needs from when they first start. As a result, children develop secure bonds with staff.

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who attend

Staff have a good understanding of the learning and development requirements for the Early Years Foundation Stage. They record observations electronically and share these securely with parents. They carefully observe and assess children's play and achievements. This enables them to respond to children's interests and adapt activities to support their individual learning. For example, some of the children develop the group discussion around the icy cold morning to talk about their favourite characters from a similar themed movie. This activity follows on to singing songs and imaginary play around frozen and icy objects. Some children eagerly search for traces of frost in the playground as good staff intervention keeps children fully engaged and interested.

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who attend

Children have fun playing and exploring their environment. Staff offer ongoing support to help them make good progress in their learning relative to their starting points. Parents actively participate in their children's learning. Staff encourage this through daily discussions, newsletters and meetings. Parents can loan 'chatter bags' to take home, which contain a range of items relating to a story or song. These props encourage children to talk with their parents about the story and create different endings. Staff regularly share children's learning records with parents. Good partnerships with parents maintains clear communication and staff offer suggestions on how parents can further support their child's learning at home. Staff effectively complete the progress checks for two year old children, fully involving parents in the process. There are arrangements to offer interpreters to translate letters or policies in different languages if this is required. Children

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who attend

take part in activities to celebrate different festivals and cultures, and posters promote positive images of diversity. However, the role play area does not reflect children's home experiences or represent their cultures in a meaningful way. For example, the play kitchen does not contain a variety of utensils or food that some children may be familiar with at home.

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who attend

Younger children move around confidently to explore their surroundings. They crawl, walk or pull themselves up on the low-level equipment to investigate the range of toys and interesting activities, such as a tray of shaving foam. Staff stay in close proximity to ensure children's safety. They skillfully model language, such as 'round and round', as children make shapes in the shaving foam with their fingers. This provides children with opportunities for sensory play and to practise making marks with a purpose. Children develop physical coordination outdoors through fun play activities. For example, older children carefully carry and line up chairs to create a train, confidently sharing their ideas and talking happily about taking a journey. Staff regularly engage children in conversation to support their communication skills. The use of story sacks allows children to read their favourite stories using puppets. Staff introduce numbers and counting as children play. For

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who attend

example, during the inspection they asked children to count how many model fireworks were lined up, and encouraged others to count cubes as they built a tower. Staff offer a good level of challenge for older children. For example, they spoke to them about three- dimensional and two-dimensional shapes as they created their own rockets and fireworks from wooden blocks. Children learnt new words and concepts such as the difference between cylinders, cones, and pyramids. Group time is an opportunity for children to share in discussions and develop listening skills. However, on occasion, staff do not allow children enough time think about a question before providing the answer for them. This does not fully support children to develop the confidence to suggest ideas in a group situation. All children access a wide range of sensory play materials, such as dough, shaving foam, paint, and soil. Children recall growing their own vegetables, such as

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who attend

carrots, and planting flowers in the sensory garden. This teaches them to learn to care for living things.

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

The effective key person system meets children's individual needs and staff personalise settling-in procedures to reflect each families requirements. Staff working with babies and younger children liaise closely with their families to follow each child's daily routines, such as sleep times and feeding preferences. This helps to ensure children settle quickly and feel secure in their environment. Staff promote children's emotional well-being very well through a caring and friendly approach. They offer cuddles, reassuring words and comfort when children require this. Staff are good role models and set clear consistent behavioural boundaries. They use praise and visual aids to help children understand what is expected of them. As a result children's behaviour is good throughout the nursery. Children are learning to share resources and take turns. For example, while playing outdoors, they take turns climbing the equipment with encouragement from staff. Children also show

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

understanding of the needs and feelings of others, For example, during the inspection, they responded with appropriate concern when a friend fell over in the playground

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

Staff liaise with parents to share key words for children who speak English as an additional language. This helps them to support children's language and communication skills. The nursery has effective links with multi-agency professionals, including speech and language therapists. This ensures staff are swift to identify and seek early intervention for children where necessary. The nursery has good contacts with the local schools. They invite teachers into the nursery and arrange visits to schools. This fosters an effective two-way flow of communication. Staff read books about starting school and show photographs of the schools children will be going to, helping children prepare emotionally. Staff work hard to ease the move for each child by sharing information about their individual achievements, progress and specific needs with parents and teachers.

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

Staff consider children's safety well throughout the nursery, regularly conducting risk assessments and regular fire drills. Children are developing a good understanding of healthy eating as staff provide snacks that are nutritious. Staff recommend healthy food for the children's lunch boxes. They have also completed training specifically to help them support children's good dental hygiene. Children have constant access to fresh drinking water. Mealtimes are sociable occasions as children sit and talk with staff and their peers. Younger children receive support to practice feeding themselves. Staff remind children to wash their hands before eating and as part of the bathroom routine. This helps children to develop good hygiene practices. Hygienic nappy changing procedures effectively minimise cross infection risks. Children demonstrate good self-care skills as they put on their coats and hats prior to playing outdoors. They are able to play outdoors each day, regardless of

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

the weather, ensuring they experience good opportunities for fresh air and exercise.

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provision

The leadership and management of this welcoming nursery is good and, as a result, staff understand and meet all safeguarding and welfare requirements. Staff are motivated, caring and dedicated to providing a quality service, resulting in positive teamwork. All staff have completed safeguarding training. They are aware of the procedures to follow, and who to contact, if they have concerns regarding a child's welfare. Recruitment, vetting and induction procedures are strong, consistent and well-established. This ensures only suitable staff work with children. Regular supervisions, appraisals and performance management promotes the professional development of staff and monitors their ongoing suitability.

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provision

Safety arrangements within the nursery are good. Staff undertake daily safety checks. In addition, good security systems include keeping accurate details of children's attendance and records of visitors to the nursery. The majority of staff are qualified in first aid and fully understand the accident and medication recording systems. This promotes children's welfare as staff can be deployed appropriately in the event of an emergency. Detailed policies and procedures are readily available to parents, staff and students. Staff provide a safe, welcoming, stimulating environment where all children are valued and supported in making good progress.

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provision

Collaborative working with local schools and other agencies helps provide tailored support for children. Parents spoken to at the time of the inspection were very complimentary about the nursery. They praise the friendly and caring staff. They state that their children are very happy attending and are progressing well. They also feel that staff value and respect their children's individuality. They particularly appreciate the nursery's settling-in process, which enables them to be reassured that their children are happy and secure. This shows the staff are successful in developing good partnerships with parents. The management team effectively monitors the educational programme, including the quality of teaching and learning. They review planning and assessment documents to identify children's progress and any additional support they may need.

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provision

Management and staff demonstrate a strong commitment to the continual development of the whole provision and have a proactive attitude to change. They gather opinions from parents, staff, and children. The manager also works closely with the local authority early years development team to set targets and assess quality in the setting. They use accurate self-evaluation to identify their strengths and areas for development, and set appropriate targets for future improvement. This means staff are effective in driving forward to improve outcomes for children.

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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 EY264202 Local authority Buckinghamshire Inspection number 833239 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 80 Number of children on roll 114 Name of provider The Corporation of Aylesbury College Date of previous inspection 01/10/2009 Telephone number 01296 588594

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Setting details

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

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Type of provision

For the purposes of this inspection the following definitions apply:

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Type of provision

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

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Type of provision

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

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Type of provision

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

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Type of provision

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

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Type of provision

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Type of provision

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

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