Wainscot House Day Nursery

Wainscot House Day Nursery 5 Harpenden Road, St. Albans, Hertfordshire, AL3 5LW

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 05/01/2015 18/07/2011

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early years provision

This inspection: 1 Previous inspection: 1 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 1 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 1

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This provision is outstanding

 The quality of teaching throughout the nursery is outstanding and children make exceptional progress in relation to their starting points. The highly qualified practitioners plan a diverse and exciting programme of activities, which promote children's learning to an outstanding level.  The entire team of practitioners demonstrate an excellent understanding of how to implement the Early Years Foundation Stage. Children develop secure emotional attachments because the key-person system is fundamental in supporting children's excellent personal and social skills.  The leadership and management are inspirational. Highly motivated practitioners are monitored and supported extremely well. This enables them to consistently provide an outstanding learning experience for all children. Management use information from parents and practitioners to evaluate and consistently improve their already outstanding practice.

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This provision is outstanding

 Children are safe because practitioners demonstrate an excellent understanding of safeguarding issues. They know how to recognise different types of abuse and how to monitor and manage potential risks very effectively. There is a robust recruitment process, regular team meetings, appraisals and peer reviews to help to ensure all adults working with children are suitable to do so.

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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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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke to the children and observed a range of learning opportunities within the nursery, the pre-school unit and the outside learning environment.  The inspector completed a joint inspection with the principal.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector talked to key members of staff about the individual needs of the children in their care.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector held a meeting with the registered provider, the principal and the early years consultant.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at relevant documents that are used to monitor children's progress, the provision's self-evaluation and evidence of the suitability of practitioners working at the nursery.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke to a small selection of parents during the inspection and took account of their views from questionnaires.

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Information about the setting

Wainscot House Day Nursery was registered in 1992, moved to this site in 2002 and is on the Early Years Register. It is situated in St Albans and is managed by the registered provider. The nursery serves the local area and is accessible to all children. It operates from a refurbished Victorian House and a newly built pre-school unit set in the grounds. There is an enclosed garden and areas for outdoor play. The nursery employs 23 members of childcare staff. Of these, 19 hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 3 or above, including the Principal, who holds Early Years Professional status and an early years consultant who holds Qualified Teacher Status. The nursery opens from Monday to Friday and is closed between Christmas and the New Year and for bank holidays. Opening hours are from 8am until 6pm. There are currently 77 children attending who are in the early years age group. The nursery provides funded early education for two-, three- and

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Information about the setting

four-year-old children. Children attend for a variety of sessions. The nursery supports a number of children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who speak English as an additional language. The nursery is a member of the National Day Nurseries Association.

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

 refine the process for evaluating and planning for the outdoor learning environment to further enhance the already excellent opportunities for children to explore and to support different styles of learning.

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who attend

Highly skilled practitioners base an exceptionally broad and diverse programme of activities on the children's individual interests. The next steps in children's learning are identified through rigorous assessments. The quality of teaching is outstanding because practitioners have an exemplary understanding of the Early Years Foundation Stage. Senior practitioners use a detailed cohort tracking system to monitor children's progress across the nursery. Excellent links with parents help to ensure information about children's progress and opportunities are used to support children's learning at home. Consequently, all children make excellent progress in relation to their starting points and are exceptionally well-prepared for their move to nursery and school. The nursery and pre- school unit are extremely well-resourced, bright and cheerful. Children are highly motivated and are very keen and active learners. Practitioners place high importance on

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who attend

the development of children's language and communication skills. Young children, those who speak English as an additional language and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities are supported extremely well. Practitioners use laminated displays with clear pictures and signs to show children the different activities they can take part in. Practitioners support early number recognition by asking appropriate questions during a cooking activity. Language and communication skills are extended by linking practical experiences, such as cooking, to popular stories. This enables children to make links between what they know and what they have learnt. Older children are confident in making their needs known and practitioners are excellent role models, as they listen to what children say and support their play ideas. Practitioners have an excellent understanding of how the environment impacts on children's learning. They adapt and

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who attend

change the planning, resources and the layout of the rooms to promote children's learning to an exceptionally high level. However, there is scope to enhance the planning for the outdoor environment so that outdoors constantly reflects the excellent indoor learning opportunities for children.

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

Children are clearly very happy and content at the nursery. Practitioners know the children extremely well. The robust settling-in process, information recorded on the All about me form and regular discussions with parents help children settle quickly at nursery and in the pre-school unit. Children's behaviour is outstanding because practitioners provide a welcoming environment where children understand what is expected of them. Highly skilled practitioners teach children to think for themselves and they are given time to consider what they want to do. Children receive lots of appropriate praise and thanks for kind and good behaviour. Practitioners teach children about healthy lifestyles through well-managed daily routines. Children are very confident in accessing the cloakrooms to wash their hands when they come in from outside play and before eating. Practitioners are excellent role models and they sit and talk to the children about their lunch and snack

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

foods, which extends children's understanding of a healthy diet. The nursery prides itself in providing nutritious meals and snacks that are prepared and cooked on site. Routines and activities for all children are adapted to help to ensure they have the skills to thrive and move on to new learning experiences with confidence and a strong sense of self- esteem. As a result, children are developing strong emotional bonds and their personal needs are met to an exceptionally high level.

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provision

The exceptionally well-qualified and experienced team of practitioners have very high expectations for the quality of care and learning they provide for children in their care. Children are protected because the Local Safeguarding Children Board code of practice is used as the basis for the safeguarding procedures. The supervisor and senior staff have excellent working relationships with the local authority support teams. This enables them to seek advice and offer support if they have concerns about children in their care. A robust recruitment and thorough induction process ensures all adults working with the children are suitable to do so. The principal is supported in the management of the nursery by the registered provider and early years consultant, who oversee the detailed planning and sharply-focused assessment process. The management team monitor practitioners closely and support their professional development through appraisals, peer

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provision

reviews and a consistent review of the activities and outcomes for all children. The partnership with parents is highly effective and is a very important aspect of how the nursery supports and extends children's overall learning. Practitioners demonstrate extremely strong commitment to providing and maintaining an outstanding care and learning provision for all children.

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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 123574 Local authority Hertfordshire Inspection number 854161

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 5 Total number of places 60 Number of children on roll 77 Name of provider Wainscot Limited Date of previous inspection 18/07/2011 Telephone number 01727 811116

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Type of provision

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

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Type of provision

For the purposes of this inspection the following definitions apply:

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Type of provision

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

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Type of provision

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

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Type of provision

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

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Type of provision

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

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Type of provision

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Type of provision

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

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