Smarties Nursery

Oak Tree Day Nursery 453 Watling Street, Mile Oak, Tamworth, Staffordshire, B78 3ND

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 25 February 2016 8 January 2013

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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

 Safeguarding arrangements are not effective. Staff do not identify all risks and take the necessary action to keep children safe at all times. Nevertheless, leaders took swift action to address a recent safeguarding concern which placed a child at risk.  Managers do not have effective systems fully in place to monitor the quality of the provision and children's progress. They do not have an accurate understanding of the progress children make.  Children do not make the progress of which they are capable because the expectations of staff are too low and their assessment, planning and teaching, are weak. Older children are not sufficiently challenged and younger children are included in activities that are not appropriate for their age. Consequently, children lose interest and become bored or boisterous.  Children's behaviour is not managed in a consistent manner. Poor staff deployment during staff lunch breaks, and children's lack of engagement in activities, lead to a

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This provision is inadequate

disorderly environment that hinders children’s learning and results in accidents taking place.  Not all parents are aware of the progress that their children are making and how they can support their children's learning at home.

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It has the following strengths

 Babies and toddlers form secure attachments with their key person. They enjoy the physical closeness when being cuddled and are happy, settled and safe.  Staff are kind and caring towards children. They develop positive relationships with parents who speak highly of the care their children receive and how much their children enjoy attending the nursery.

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

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

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Due Date

 take all reasonable steps to remove, minimise and manage risks and hazards to protect children's safety and welfare, particularly the risks when accessing teaching away from the setting, and those associated with the storage of medication creams, plastic gloves, aprons and bags 25/02/2016

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Due Date

 ensure all children make the best possible progress in their learning and development by taking into account their individual needs, interests, and stage of development and use this information to plan a challenging and enjoyable experience for each child in all of the areas of learning and development 25/03/2016

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Due Date

 ensure children make the best possible progress in their learning and development by raising staff's expectations of what the children can achieve and by supporting staff to gain further knowledge and skills to improve the quality of teaching and learning 25/03/2016

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Due Date

 implement robust systems to monitor the provision and to track children's progress in order to gain an accurate understanding of the quality of provision and knowledge of any gaps in children's learning. Take swift action to ensure provision is effective and all children make suitable progress 25/03/2016

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Due Date

 improve children's behaviour and learning through good deployment of staff and providing children with rich learning opportunities that ignite their interests, sustain their engagement and challenge them 25/02/2016

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Due Date

 ensure all parents are kept up-to-date with their child's progress and learning and engage with, and support parents to, guide their child's development at home 25/03/2016

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Due Date

 take all necessary measures to minimise any risks to the health and safety of the children in your care (Also applies to the voluntary part of the Childcare Register) 25/02/2016

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Due Date

 ensure that children's behaviour is managed in a suitable manner. (Also applies to the compulsory part of the Childcare Register) 25/02/2016

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Inspection activities

 This inspection took place due to the reporting to Ofsted of a safeguarding concern regarding the safety and well-being of children.  One of Her Majesty's Inspectors carried out this inspection.  The inspector observed activities in the both play rooms, the outside learning environment and at an external venue.  The inspector checked evidence of suitability and qualifications of the staff, risk assessments and policies and procedures.  The inspector spoke with the registered person, the area manager, the deputy manager and staff, parents and children at appropriate times throughout the day.  The inspector looked at children's assessment records and planning documentation and staff records.

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Effectiveness of the leadership and management is inadequate

The setting's self-evaluation is inaccurate. Staff have an over-generous view of the effectiveness of the setting. Children's files include records of all accidents, incidents and medication administered but managers do not sufficiently analyse these to investigate any patterns or risks in order to safeguard children. The new area manager knows what is needed to improve the provision. She has begun to take steps to address weaknesses. She is developing and implementing new systems and procedures for the monitoring and supervision of staff. However, these are not well enough embedded to develop staff’s practice effectively. Consequently, the quality of teaching is weak and is preventing children from learning as quickly as they should. The provider's, and area manager's, procedures for checking and reviewing children’s progress lack rigour. They have recently introduced on-line learning journals to replace paper-based systems to enable parents to

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Effectiveness of the leadership and management is inadequate

access their children's observations. However, during this changeover, staff have failed to keep records of all children's starting points. Not all observations are recorded using the electronic system, resulting in gaps in children's progress records. Consequently, these records are inaccurate.

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Effectiveness of the leadership and management is inadequate

Staff are well qualified and supported in their professional development. All staff have up- to-date training in safeguarding and almost all staff are trained in paediatric first aid and food hygiene. Recruitment and induction procedures are robust. A comprehensive range of policies and procedures are available to guide and support staff in their everyday practice. Staff have good knowledge of signs that indicate abuse and what to do should they have a concern regarding a member of staff's practice. Staff work with professionals to ensure children who may be at risk of harm are kept safe. They adequately promote British values, and equality and diversity through teaching. Staff have a varied range of resources and celebrate a range of festivals. However, they are unable to demonstrate that they are narrowing gaps in outcomes between different groups of children.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is inadequate

The system for assessing and tracking children's progress is not robust. Tracking sheets do not include dates of when they are completed and do not accurately match with observations. Staff's assessments of children's progress conflict and staff do not always share with parents and managers their concerns regarding children's communication and language. The provider and area manager do not have an accurate understanding of the progress all children make, including groups of children. The educational programmes adequately cover all areas of learning and staff take into account children's interests when planning for their learning. However, the planning is ineffective and teaching is not matched well enough to children's needs. Children do not have daily opportunities to learn outdoors because staff do not effectively plan learning experiences in the outdoor environment. They do not use activities and resources well enough to engage and

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is inadequate

challenge boys and girls equally well, or to meet the differing ages of children. For example, phonic sessions, which include children aged between two and four years, come to an abrupt end because younger children disrupt the learning for older children. Adult- led activities, such as 'self-portraits' are not well planned for. Consequently, older children are not challenged, they lose interest and leave the activity after only a few minutes. When children were taken outside to 'let off steam' boys charged around, resulting in a child falling and banging his head. The communication skills of children, including for those who have a speech delay, are suitably fostered. Staff model clear speech during everyday tasks and activities. Older children thoroughly enjoy the Spanish lessons and are keen and confident to try speaking new words. Staff in the baby room have a good understanding of how children learn and focus well on their development in their prime

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare are inadequate

Staff do not ensure children are safe at all times because hazards are not identified and addressed. Ineffective staff deployment during staff lunch breaks results in poor supervision of children. Pre-school children have developed their own 'Golden Rules' to encourage good behaviour. Nevertheless, more than occasionally, children's lack of engagement in activities leads to a disorderly environment that hinders their learning. Staff sensitively intervene and remind children of the rules when they squabble over pens or treat equipment and resources with disrespect. Good settling in, and transition between room, procedures, help children to form secure emotional attachments and promote their sense of security and belonging. Transition onto school is managed well.

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare are inadequate

Children are provided with healthy, nutritious and balanced meals and snacks, prepared freshly on site. Staff promote children's physical development adequately. Children enjoy the weekly dance sessions and visits to the park. Staff talk to them about the effects of physical activity on their bodies, such as how their heartbeat changes as they move around. Children learn appropriate hygiene practices through daily routines. They learn about safety when on outings. Children wear high visibility vests, walk sensibly holding staff's hands, and know to stop, listen and look for cars before crossing the road. Babies’ and young children’s care needs are met well. They thrive in the happy, relaxed atmosphere. Kind, attentive staff settle the children and calmly manage their care, hygiene, sleep and mealtime routines. The key person system generally works well. Where possible, the key person changes nappies of their key children to provide continuity for the

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare are inadequate

child and a sense of safety and security.

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Outcomes for children are inadequate

Not all children make the progress of which they are capable and are not as well prepared for school or their next stage in learning as they could be. Sometimes the older, more-able girls wander around aimlessly, and boys become boisterous and do not engage in purposeful learning. On occasions, learning is more effective, such as when the older, more-able children confidently recognise and sound out many letters, write their own name and initiate conversations with adults. Children behave safely and sensibly on outings but within the setting their behaviour and respect for their environment is not always good. For example, children sometimes throw their coats on the floor when they take them off and show little respect for resources which end up strewn all over the floor and walked on. Children are developing skills to be independent as they pour their own drinks, help themselves to snacks and clear away their cups and plates.

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Setting details

Unique reference number 218466 Local authority Staffordshire Inspection number 1040589 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 - 5 Total number of places 40 Number of children on roll 36 Name of provider Sara Dawn McLellan Date of previous inspection 8 January 2013 Telephone number 01827 280696

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Setting details

Oak Tree Day Nursery was registered in 2001. It is one of two nurseries owned and managed by the same provider. The nursery operates from converted domestic premises in the Mile Oak area of Tamworth, Staffordshire. The nursery employs 10 members of childcare staff. All hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 2 and above or are working towards a qualification. One member of staff has Qualified Teacher Status, three have foundation-stage degree qualifications, one has a level 4 qualification, four have level 3 and three are working towards a qualification. The nursery opens Monday to Friday all- year-round, except for Christmas and bank holidays. Sessions are from 7.30am until 6pm, with flexibility to attend from 7am until 6.30pm by arrangement. 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

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Setting details

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