Strong Tower Day Nursery

Strong Tower Day Nursery 26 Admiralty Close, Lewisham, London, SE8 4SS

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 11 January 2016 19 January 2015

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This inspection: Inadequate 4

Previous inspection: Requires Improvement

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This inspection: Inadequate 4

Effectiveness of the leadership and management Inadequate 4

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This inspection: Inadequate 4

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Inadequate 4

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This inspection: Inadequate 4

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Inadequate 4

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This provision is inadequate

 The provider has a poor understanding of her role and responsibilities. For example, she has failed to notify Ofsted of information relating to the disqualification of a member of staff. This is a breach of the legal requirements.  Staff do not have a clear understanding of safeguarding, including the signs and symptoms that would cause concerns about children's well-being. This compromises children's welfare and is also a breach of the Childcare Register requirements.  Staff in the toddler room do not identify hazards that arise to ensure children's safety at all times. This also applies to the requirements of the Childcare Register.  The key-person system is ineffective. The lack of experienced staff has a negative effect on the quality of teaching and learning, and children's emotional well-being.  Outcomes for children are poor. Staff do not use information about children's starting points to plan precisely for individual children and the next stages in their learning.

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This provision is inadequate

 Staff supervision, induction and training is inadequate. New staff do not follow the behaviour management policy. Self-evaluation is weak.  Staff deployment is not managed efficiently. The provider does not ensure that all rooms consistently have senior and experienced staff who can offer guidance and support to less qualified staff. This compromises children's learning and their care.

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It has the following strengths

 Children eagerly explore the activities and resources in the improved garden area.

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

The provision is inadequate and Ofsted intends to take enforcement action We will issue a Welfare Requirements Notice requiring the provider to:

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Due Date

 ensure all staff have a secure understanding of the setting's safeguarding policy and procedure and are able to recognise and respond in a timely manner to any safeguarding concerns in order to protect children effectively 01/02/2016

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Due Date

 ensure all staff are alert to hazards that expose children to risk and understand what action should be taken to minimise risks and promote children's safety 01/02/2016

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Due Date

 implement an effective key-person system to ensure that children's individual needs are met and that there is a smooth settling-in process 01/02/2016

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Due Date

 implement effective induction training so that staff are clear about their roles and responsibilities, and understand safeguarding, child protection and health and safety issues 01/02/2016

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Due Date

 deploy staff effectively to ensure that children's needs are met 01/02/2016  ensure that the staff manage children's behaviour in an appropriate way 01/02/2016

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Due Date

To meet the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage the provider must:

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Due Date

 use initial information gained from parents and observations of what children can do to plan challenging and enjoyable experiences that meet the needs and interests of all children, particularly the youngest 01/02/2016

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Due Date

 provide planned activities and those that children choose for themselves that enable children to make progress to the next stages in their learning. 01/02/2016

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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed children and their interaction with the staff.  The inspector viewed a sample of documents, including the children's learning records.  The inspector held discussions with the staff and manager as appropriate.  The inspector took account of the views of parents and children.  The inspector carried out a joint observation with the manager.

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Effectiveness of the leadership and management is inadequate

The provider does not have a clear understanding of her role and responsibilities and has not addressed all the actions and recommendations from the previous inspection. Safeguarding is ineffective. Some newly recruited staff lack the knowledge and skills to safeguard children adequately. Although these staff are booked to attend safeguarding training, they manage a room when senior staff are absent. This has a significant impact on children's well-being. The provider has failed to notify Ofsted of an allegation against a member of staff, although not connected to this setting. The manager has evaluated the provision and prepared an action plan; however, this is not effective as it does not identify all areas of weakness to help drive improvement, or monitor the effect of these on children's care and learning. Staff work in partnership with parents to help support children's care. They have established relationships with external agencies to help support

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Effectiveness of the leadership and management is inadequate

children with additional needs when required.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is inadequate

Due to the high turnover of staff and absences due to staff sickness, those working directly with the children are not always aware of children's preferences. Staff do not make effective use of observations, assessments and information collected when children first start. Children are not supported effectively to progress to the next stages in their learning. Staff do not plan challenging activities that are suitable for the individual needs of children to aid their progress. At times, staff ask children to follow planned routines, preventing them from following their own interests and developing the concentration skills to complete tasks. Staff provide activities but are not clear about the learning intentions. For example, when young children played in the sand, staff did not extend their learning experiences through good quality interactions or consistent teaching. The provider has failed to address these weaknesses, identified at the previous inspection.

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare are inadequate

Breaches in safeguarding requirements compromise children's well-being. Staff fail to identify potential hazards to children's safety. They did not promptly clear spills at the water tray to prevent children from slipping over, which put them at risk. Staff encourage children and praise them for their achievements. However, some staff do not use the setting's positive behaviour management strategies consistently or speak to children in an appropriate manner. The key-person system is not effective to help the youngest children settle in. These weaknesses affect children's emotional well-being.

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Outcomes for children are inadequate

Children do not have consistency in the key persons that guide their learning. This has a significant impact on their care and prevents them from making adequate progress.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY463095 Local authority Lewisham Inspection number 1034447 Type of provision Full-time provision Day care type Childcare - Non-Domestic Registers Early Years Register, Compulsory Childcare Register, Voluntary Childcare Register Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 56 Number of children on roll 32 Name of provider Taiwo Omotola Bamgbele Date of previous inspection 19 January 2015 Telephone number 0208 691 9135 or 07535706323

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Setting details

Strong Tower Day Nursery registered in 2013. It is located in the Deptford area of the London Borough of Lewisham. There are 13 members of staff, 12 of whom hold appropriate early years qualifications. The setting operates for most of the year on weekdays between 7am and 7pm.

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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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