St Catherines C of E Private Nursery

St Catherine's C of E Private Nursery St. Catherine's Hoddesdon C of E Primary School, Haslewood Avenue, Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire, EN11 8HT

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 18 June 2015 13 February 2009

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This inspection: Good 2

Previous inspection: Good 2 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

 The joint leaders use their qualifications effectively to model their strong knowledge of the Early Years Foundation Stage, and this supports strong staff teaching.  Children's personal, social and emotional development is warmly promoted. An effective key-person system ensures that parents are fully aware of who their child's key person is. Good settling-in procedures and follow-up parent meetings mean that staff and parents work together to support children's self-esteem and confidence.  Teaching is good because staff understand how to promote children's learning. Staff are consistent role models, supporting children with positive praise and encouragement to promote good behaviour. Consequently, children's progress is good given their starting points and capabilities.  The nursery leaders implement regular opportunities to identify staff's strengths and possible training needs, during regular supervision and appraisal meetings. They

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This provision is good

monitor and evaluate the quality of teaching and track children's progress. As a result, they can quickly identify and resolve any gaps in children's learning.

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It is not yet outstanding because:

 Staff do not always adapt activities, when children are grouped together, to take greater account of their different ages and stages of development.  On occasion, staff do not extend opportunities for children to become deeply involved in their play and explore resources and materials.  Opportunities for children to move freely between indoor and outdoor play are not maximised.

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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

 extend learning opportunities during group activities, for example, by adapting these so that children of different abilities are challenged appropriately  enhance opportunities for children to pursue their learning without interruption, for example, by allowing them to complete activities before moving on to something else  extend opportunities for children to move freely between indoor and outdoor play.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed general play and adult-led activities both inside and outside, and viewed the morning snack routine. She talked with staff and children at appropriate times throughout the inspection.  The inspector checked evidence of the suitability of staff members, and viewed a range of other documentation, including supervision and appraisal records. Staff training and qualification records were also seen.  The inspector carried out joint observations and held joint discussions with the co- leaders in relation to observations of children's play, learning and progress.  The inspector reviewed the provider's self-evaluation and spoke to some parents during the inspection.

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who attend. This is good

The nursery staff use observations and assessments effectively. They plan and provide activities and experiences that interest children and link these to their next steps in learning. As a result, all children make good progress towards the early learning goals and develop the skills they need for their next stage of learning. All children, including those who speak English as an additional language and children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, are skilfully supported. The nursery staff interact very well with children and join in with their play. For example, children and staff play imaginatively with an outside flower shop. They practise their counting skills as they pretend to spend play money, write how many flowers they sell and enjoy the creativity of mixing different flowers together. However, when staff group children together for adult-led activities, they do not always consider their differing abilities, such as when on a shapes walk around the

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who attend. This is good

nursery, where children are asked what shapes they can see. Some younger children are not given the chance to say what they see, while some older children quickly respond and clearly find the experience very easy.

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good

Children are confident and develop strong friendships with staff and children at the nursery. They are motivated, happy and settled. Staff provide good opportunities for children to develop their physical skills with a range of different-sized equipment. For example, children paint using tooth and nail brushes, and manage watering cans when watering strawberries they recently planted. The outside area is stimulating and welcoming, and children flourish while exploring the wide range of activities available to them. However, staff do not make the best use of the environment to ensure that children have independent access to move between the inside and outside areas. As a result, some children are not provided with enough time to finish what they are doing before it is time to go out as a group. Also, by only providing children with set times for outside play, those who learn best when outside are not fully encouraged to thrive. Staff provide children with

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good

fresh snacks and drinking water to encourage healthy lifestyles. Furthermore, in hot weather, children are reminded of the importance of wearing sun hats and finding shade where possible. Consequently, children learn about their personal safety.

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provision is good

Staff promote children's safety and welfare. All staff have attended safeguarding training and have awareness of the signs and symptoms of abuse. They each have knowledge of the procedures to follow and the professionals to contact if they have concerns about a child in their care. Staff demonstrate strong partnerships with parents, carers and other providers to ensure that children are fully supported in their moves from home to school. Regular staff meetings ensure that the well-established staff team are consistent in their approach. The meetings support staff in delivering good quality teaching, and they evaluate effectively to ensure that they can make continuous improvements.

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Setting details

Unique reference number 124114 Local authority Hertfordshire Inspection number 874785 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 2 - 5 Total number of places 26 Number of children on roll 48 Name of provider St Catherines C of E Private Nursery School Committee Date of previous inspection 13 February 2009 Telephone number 01992464700

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Setting details

St Catherine's C of E Private Nursery was registered in 1994. The nursery employs eight members of childcare staff. Of these, seven hold appropriate early years qualifications ranging from level 3 to level 6. One member of staff also has Qualified Teacher Status. The nursery opens from Monday to Friday during term time only. Sessions are from 8.35am until 3.10pm, with an optional lunch club for children over three-years-old. The nursery provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children. The nursery supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who speak English as an additional language.

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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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