Balliol Day Nursery

Balliol Day Nursery 2a Rawlinson Road, Oxford, Oxfordshire, OX2 6UE

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 14 October 2015 11 August 2011

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This inspection: Outstanding 1

Effectiveness of the leadership and management Outstanding 1

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This inspection: Outstanding 1

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Outstanding 1

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This inspection: Outstanding 1

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Outstanding 1

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This provision is outstanding

 The nursery operates a highly effective approach to caring for, and teaching, children in mixed-age family groups. This has a very positive impact on children's personal development, behaviour and learning.  Key persons have an excellent understanding of the children they care for. They consistently challenge children's learning to help them make rapid and sustained progress from their starting points.  Partnerships with parents are exemplary. Staff take every opportunity to include parents fully in their children's learning and development, both at home and in the nursery environment.  The quality of teaching is inspirational. Activities led by adults are very exciting, engaging and challenging so that children are highly motivated and very keen to learn.  Leaders and managers have an uncompromising approach to self-evaluation, with no room for complacency. They make excellent use of monitoring children's progress to

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This provision is outstanding

reflect on, and adapt, their practice to benefit every child.  Staff are fully aware of safeguarding procedures. They work very effectively as a team to create a safe and exceptionally welcoming environment where children feel secure and confident.

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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

 continue to broaden the range of media and materials available to children to further encourage them to explore and investigate in order to extend the already outstanding practice.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed activities indoors and outdoors.  The inspector completed a joint observation with the manager.  The inspector talked to staff, the manager, children and parents at appropriate points throughout the inspection.  The inspector took account of documentation, including children's development records, evidence of staff qualifications and suitability, questionnaires from parents and children, other written comments from parents, and the nursery's self-evaluation form.

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Effectiveness of the leadership and management is outstanding

Leaders and managers have an excellent understanding of their responsibilities. The nursery manager is highly effective in reviewing practice and driving improvement by working alongside staff and incorporating the views of others. Following rigorous monitoring, staff are making ongoing and sustained improvements to group times, specifically to support children within a particular age band. They are considering ways to improve the range of materials available outdoors to offer further play opportunities. Staff are ambitious and receive excellent support for professional development. One member of staff has become a 'literacy champion' and helps to ensure that all staff have a highly consistent approach to teaching sounds and letters. Safeguarding is effective. All staff receive relevant training and support to help keep children safe.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is outstanding

Parents are delighted with the quality of teaching, stating that it is 'amazing' and 'highly responsive to children's individual needs'. It is clear that staff and children have a great deal of fun during their time together. For example, they engage in exciting science experiments that challenge children's knowledge and encourage them to be very curious about the world around them. Very enthusiastic and highly engaging singing sessions have an exceptionally positive impact on children's communication and language development. Even very young children join in with complex choruses and all children learn to think carefully about sounds and words. Key persons carry out rigorous assessments of children's progress. They plan strategies and activities for individual children meticulously to ensure that they continue to challenge and engage them. Staff provide children's new settings with detailed information to promote continuity.

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare are outstanding

Younger children quickly learn about positive behaviour and daily routines from older children. Older children develop high levels of cooperation to help protect their younger friends and siblings, such as remembering to close a stairgate. Key persons have a small allocation of children, including siblings, which helps them to respond exceptionally well to the individual needs of children and their families. The nursery has an all-embracing approach, welcoming and encouraging every family to share their important events and cultural backgrounds with everyone else. Since the last inspection, significant developments to the garden have improved the quality of outdoor learning for all children. Staff are highly effective in promoting children's welfare, providing nutritious meals and ensuring that children are safe and comfortable.

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Outcomes for children are outstanding

All children, including the most able, bilingual, with special educational needs or requiring additional support, make sustained and often rapid progress in preparation for the next stage of learning.

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Setting details

Unique reference number 134032 Local authority Oxfordshire Inspection number 825581 Type of provision Full-time provision Day care type Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 1 - 4 Total number of places 16 Number of children on roll 16 Name of provider Balliol Day Nursery Committee Date of previous inspection 11 August 2011 Telephone number 01865 515654

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Setting details

Balliol Day Nursery registered in 1994. It is run by a committee consisting of Fellows of Balliol College. The nursery is located in North Oxford and operates from the ground floor of a large Victorian house. It serves the local area, although priority for places is given to people with connections to Balliol College. Children are cared for in mixed-age family groups. The nursery supports children with special educational needs and bilingual children. The nursery opens five days a week from 8.45am until 5pm for 46 weeks of the year with closed periods at Christmas, Easter and in August. The nursery receives funding for the provision of free early education for children aged two, three and four years. The nursery employs six regular staff; of whom, five hold relevant qualifications, including staff who have attained Early Years Teacher Status.

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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

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Setting details

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