Fern Hollow Day Nursery

Fern Hollow Day Nursery 4 Birches Nook Road, STOCKSFIELD, Northumberland, NE43 7PA

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 13 May 2015 4 April 2014

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This inspection: Good 2

Previous inspection: Requires Improvement How well the early years provision meets the needs of the range of children who attend Good 2

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This inspection: Good 2

The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children Good 2

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This inspection: Good 2

The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision Good 2

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This inspection: Good 2

The setting meets legal requirements for early years settings

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This provision is good

 Staff working with pre-school children are particularly skilful in planning unique and interesting activities. This ignites children's curiosities and their thirst for learning. As a result, children are actively engaged and motivated in their play and, subsequently, make good progress.  Staff give high priority to children's safety and welfare. They carefully assess risks to ensure children play in a very safe, secure environment.  Children are well supported by staff to develop the skills they need to become independent in managing a range of self-care tasks. For example, children are encouraged to select their own resources and to serve themselves at snack time.  Children are protected from harm because management and staff attend relevant safeguarding training to support their practice. This means that they understand the role they play in ensuring that all children are kept safe from harm.

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This provision is good

 Systems to evaluate what is working well and what needs to improve are effective and take into account the views of staff, parents and children.  The combined expertise of staff with higher level early years qualifications has a positive impact on the overall quality of teaching.

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It is not yet outstanding because:

 The existing arrangements for the monitoring of staff performance are not yet consistently used to reflect fully on the impact of teaching, or to observe and share best practice, to help staff improve their knowledge and skills to the highest level.  Staff in the baby room have not fully considered how the organisation of routine tasks, whenever possible, can be consistently carried out by the key person.

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

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

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

 strengthen teaching further by ensuring observations of practice are focused more precisely on evaluating the impact of teaching, and used to inform ongoing training and share best practice, to build on children's good learning even further  improve the organisation of routine tasks, so that babies are consistently supported by their key person, in order to enrich their learning and development to its fullest potential.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with the manager, staff and children at appropriate times throughout the inspection.  The inspector observed children of all ages engage in learning activities indoors and outside.  The inspector looked at documentation, including children's records, learning and development information, staff records and a selection of policies and procedures.  The inspector took account of the views of parents spoken to on the day of the inspection and the setting's self-evaluation.  The inspector checked evidence of the suitability and qualifications of staff.  The inspector conducted a joint observation with the manager.

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who attend. This is good

The nursery staff support children's learning and development well. Children's language development is also fostered well. This is due to positive input from staff, who continuously promote language development through questioning and the skilled use of toys and resources. Staff have an in-depth knowledge of how children learn. From this, they provide good-quality play experiences that interest children and capture their imaginations. For example, staff have responded very well to children's interests in fairy tales. This has enabled children to creatively use their imagination in many ways. For example, pre-school children enthusiastically re-enact a favourite fairy tale. Toddlers are enthused and motivated by planned activities, such as making gingerbread biscuits. Staff competently promote children's early literacy skills by encouraging them to select their name cards at the start of the sessions. They sing number songs, so that children develop

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who attend. This is good

early number skills. Staff carry out consistent observations and precise assessments, which accurately identify what children can do. This information is shared with parents, so they can discuss and agree the next steps to move children on in their development.

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good

The care provided for children across the nursery is good. The key-person system works well overall and helps children to build trusting relationships with staff. However, babies' personal-care routines tend to be carried out by the member of staff whose turn it is on the rota, rather than by their key person. Consequently, staff miss valuable opportunities to engage with their key child during these intimate times, and to enhance relationships to the fullest potential. Meal times are occasions when staff encourage children to develop their social skills and to talk about healthy food choices. Children move on to school with confidence. This is because staff take effective steps to ensure they are well prepared for these changes.

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provision is good

The manager and staff have a good understanding of the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. Recruitment, selection and induction procedures are clear and vetting procedures for staff are thorough. Close monitoring of all children's progress is carried out to promptly identify any areas for improvement, to help narrow gaps in their learning. Supervision meetings are used well to discuss children's safety, well-being and learning needs. The manager also carries out observations of staff practice as part of the supervision process. However, this is not always sufficiently focused on the impact of teaching, to raise the quality of teaching from good to outstanding. Parents speak highly of the nursery. They are encouraged to be involved in their child's learning at home and have opportunities to take resources, such as play dough, home to further support their enjoyment and achievement. Well-established links with local schools ensure children

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provision is good

make smooth transitions into full-time education.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY308455 Local authority Northumberland Inspection number 1010759 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 40 Number of children on roll 84 Name of provider Fern Hollow Limited Date of previous inspection 4 April 2014 Telephone number 01661 842717

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Setting details

Fern Hollow Nursery re-registered in 2008. The nursery employs 12 members of childcare staff. Of these, eight hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 3 and above, one holds a level 2 early years qualification and two hold Early Years Professional status. The nursery opens Monday to Friday, all year round. Sessions are from 7.30am until 6pm. The nursery provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children.

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Setting details

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

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

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Setting details

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Setting details

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

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