Fair Start Nursery

Fair Start Nursery Adult Learning & Leisure, Burnham & Highbridge, 6 Princess Street, Burnham-on-Sea, Somerset, TA8 1EH

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 17/12/2014 03/12/2008

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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

 The strong partnerships with parents, other early years providers and outside agencies ensure children make good progress in their learning and development.  Through good support, children learn effective practices to keep themselves safe and healthy.  Staff use good systems to monitor children's development, through understanding their starting points, identifying the next stages of learning and planning an educational programme that meets their individual needs.  The provider effectively monitors staff performance and supports ongoing training, so that the quality of teaching is consistently good.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Staff sometimes miss opportunities to promote children's mathematical development fully.

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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 activities indoors and outdoors.  The inspector carried out a joint observation with the manager.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of the nursery's self-evaluation and talked to parents present on the day of the inspection.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector sampled documentation, including policies, procedures, children's development records and planning.  The inspector checked safeguarding information and the premises.

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Information about the setting

Fair Start Nursery opened in 1991 and re-registered in 2007. It is privately owned by three directors. The nursery operates from a temporary building in Burnham-on-Sea, Somerset. There is an enclosed area for outdoor play opposite the nursery. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. There are currently 41 children on roll in the early years age range. The nursery supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. It receives funding to provide free early education for children aged two, three and four years. The nursery opens from 8.45am to 4pm each weekday, for 47 weeks of the year. There are 10 members of staff. The manager holds an early years qualification at level 4. Four members of staff have an early years qualification at level 3 and four staff have a qualification at level 2. In addition, there is a regular volunteer who works with the children.

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

 enhance the programme for mathematics by encouraging children to categorise items by pattern and size.

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who attend

Staff seek good information on children's starting points, interests and any concerns parents may have before children start at the nursery. This enables them to plan effectively for children's next stages of learning and motivates them to take part in the activities. Staff make regular observations of the children's achievements, which means they have a good understanding of what makes the children unique. In addition, they ensure the educational programme meets every child's individual needs. Consequently, all children make good progress in their learning and development.

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who attend

Staff provide strong support for children's prime areas of learning, which prepares them well for their eventual move to school. Staff label items and use visual aids as they speak to young children; this gives context to their meaning and supports children in increasing their vocabulary. Parents comment on how well their children's speech has developed since starting at the nursery. Children gain independence and physical skills, for example helping with their dressing, putting on aprons for art activities and managing their shoes and coats. Staff use meal times as an opportunity for children to spread butter, and help with pouring drinks and peeling fruit. Staff also promote mathematical skills, such as counting plates and using terms such as whole, half and segments of fruit. In addition, children recognise their names. Staff use photographs with younger children and help older ones to sound the letters. Staff challenge the more able children by having their

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who attend

Children have fun and enjoy their learning. For example, they laughed as they pegged socks on a line. Children climbed up and down from a step to reach the line and used different types of pegs needing different physical skills. Staff engaged the children in talking about their actions and stayed close to keep them safe. They pointed out to children that they had the same pegs but missed opportunities for children to find matching patterns of socks. In addition, staff encouraged children to find pairs of shoes but missed opportunities for them to look at differences in sizes.

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who attend

Staff join in with children's games and provide additional resources to challenge their learning further. For example, young children explored how they could transport water from one container to another. Staff showed them how to use a funnel and they copied this, watching in wonder as the water flowed through the funnel. Older children found coins in their treasure hunt and staff encouraged them to count how many they had and see who had the most. Children enjoy stories and staff regularly use story sacks or props to engage the younger children. For example, children use teddy bears to see which is the biggest and smallest after listening to Goldilocks and the Three Bears. Children listen and contribute ideas because staff ask 'What do you think happened next?' Staff pose good open-ended questions so that children learn about cause and effect, such as why things blow backwards and forwards outdoors. Children want to take part in the activities and

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who attend

explore the resources, thereby gaining a positive attitude to learning.

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

Staff use an effective key person system to help children feel secure. This includes having a buddy so that children always have a special person in their key person's absence. Parents comment positively on how quickly their children settle in the friendly, homely environment. They state that they were introduced to their child's key person from the start and now exchange information with them on a daily basis. This enables staff to meet children's individual needs well. For example, staff work closely with parents when children are learning to stop wearing nappies, and provide sensitive support for children. Children have a strong understanding of the staff's expectations. For example, when staff play music, children know they have a little longer to play before they have to tidy up and when a bell rings, they know the time is up. As a result, children stop and help to tidy up. Children have good relationships, seeking their friends or key person to sit with them or

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

join their games. Staff help children feel emotionally secure and this prepares them well for their move to another setting or school.

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

Children can make independent choices from the good range of low-level resources. Young children have an area they can use as their secure base but children also have times of the day that they spend together. Snack and lunch times are a social occasion, with staff and children sitting together. Staff ensure they plan to promote children's development in all areas of their learning, both indoors and outdoors. For example, children enjoy stories and practise their early writing skills in the garden. Staff deploy themselves effectively, moving to where the children show an interest in the resources. This ensures they always supervise children, and support their learning and development well. Staff make good use of resources in whole group activities. For example, children chose a toy from a box to represent a song, such as Humpty Dumpty.

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

Children learn about staying safe during their routines and play. For example, staff reminded children to use an oven glove as they pretended to bake cakes in their role play. Children take part in planned activities to enable them to identify risks, such as wearing safety goggles and gloves when using a hammer and nails. Staff use the fact that they have to cross the car park to get to their garden as a learning opportunity. For example, children wear a fluorescent jacket and carry a stop sign. They hold the rail to manage steps and use the zebra crossing, watching out for cars all the time. Children help to dry the equipment after rain so that they do not slip. Staff support children well in gaining independence in managing their personal hygiene, such as blowing their nose. As a result, children develop effective practices to keep themselves healthy. For example, after changing a young child, staff asked 'What happens now?' and the child pushed up their

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

sleeves and went to the sink to wash their hands. Children also learn about dental hygiene. They have daily opportunities to be outdoors and dress appropriately for the weather to keep healthy and enjoy exercise. Children enjoy nutritious snacks and have plenty of water to drink, as well as milk at snack time. All the staff have training in first aid and child protection so they know how to protect children's health and well-being.

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provision

The provider has a good understanding of the Early Years Foundation Stage and how to meet the requirements. There is effective security and staff know how to implement the safeguarding policies. For example, no one has their personal mobile phone in the same areas as the children. Staff carry out daily risk assessments so that they can minimise any risks to children. They keep all required records, including children's confidential information and a record of any accidents. The manager analysis this to see if there are any further improvements they can make. There are well-documented systems to track children's development, including the Every Child a Talker monitoring forms and the progress check for two-year-old children. The provider updates these every half term to identify any gaps, ensure further support and improve any areas of the educational programme.

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provision

The provider uses several systems of self-evaluation to ensure continuous improvements. The staff team has reviewed the organisation of the premises and planning, to make changes according to the children's needs. For example, due to a large intake of two-year- olds, they have divided the room to provide a base with specific resources and activities. They also have more storage off the premises for additional resources, to give children more space to play safely in an uncluttered environment. In addition, they are looking for ways to have secure access to the garden, to enable children to choose when to be outdoors. The manager provides good support and supervision for staff. The acting deputy is new to the post and has a clear knowledge of her responsibilities. The provider supports students well and enables staff to work towards higher qualifications. She is also implementing peer observations so that staff can learn from each other and discuss better

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provision

ways of working. Staff have weekly planning meetings, and evaluate the activities and environment to ensure they meet children's needs.

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provision

There are strong partnerships with parents. The notice board provides good information, as well as regular newsletters. The manager records for parents which staff are present each day and who is responsible for each key group. There are plans in place to hold a parents' evening to demonstrate how staff support children's learning and development. Parents state that they receive regular information on their children's development, including their next stages of learning, so that they can support learning at home. In addition, they can borrow story sacks and puzzles to share with their children. Staff work closely in partnership with parents and other early years settings children attend. This includes sending them their plan for children's next stages of development. They meet with parents and other professionals to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. This helps to provide a consistent approach for children and ensures

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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 EY367869 Local authority Somerset Inspection number 829056 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 2 - 8 Total number of places 24 Number of children on roll 41 Name of provider Fair Start Nursery Ltd Date of previous inspection 03/12/2008 Telephone number 01278 795165

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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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