Bright Horizons Harpenden Central Day Nursery and Preschool

Harpenden Day Nursery Peel House, 15 Vaughan Road, Harpenden, Hertfordshire, AL5 4EL

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 16 February 2017 18 April 2013

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This inspection: Good 2

Effectiveness of the leadership and management Good 2

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This inspection: Good 2

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good 2

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This inspection: Good 2

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good 2

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This provision is good

 Staff form very good partnerships with parents and involve them in every aspect of their children's learning. Parents attend regular workshops and stay-and-play sessions. This helps them to support their children's learning at home and provide them with a true reflection of their children's time at the nursery. Parents describe staff as very loving and thoughtful.  Children form warm and caring bonds with their key person and each other. Older children ask if their key person can come on holiday with them. Babies demonstrate that they feel secure as they snuggle up to their key person when they become tired.  All children develop very good physical skills in the stimulating outdoor areas. These are well designed with many interesting features that staff effectively use to help promote children's exploration and confidence. Babies persevere crawling along the popular mound and pull themselves up on the rails. Older children assess risks for themselves

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This provision is good

as they climb up and down the large apparatus.  The well-qualified team of staff receives regular supervision meetings and has good training opportunities to consistently update their skills. A member of the management team has recently become an ambassador of a new initiative to promote children's literacy skills. This enables her to share her new knowledge with other staff in the nursery and those in other settings.

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It is not yet outstanding because:

 The acting manager has not yet fully reviewed the detailed improvement plans. This does not fully support her and the staff to drive the quality of the nursery further.  Staff do not always provide babies with opportunities to acquire the widest possible vocabulary at an early age.

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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

 evaluate the plans for development in order to work towards delivering the highest quality of provision for children  enhance opportunities for babies to acquire the widest possible vocabulary at an early age.

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Inspection activities

 The inspectors observed the quality of teaching during activities indoors and outdoors and assessed the impact this has on children's learning.  The inspectors spoke with staff and children during the inspection.  The inspectors completed joint observations with the acting nursery manager.  The inspectors held a meeting with the acting nursery manager and the regional training manager. They looked at relevant documentation and evidence of the suitability of staff working in the nursery.  The inspectors spoke to parents during the inspection and also took account of their written views provided.

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Effectiveness of the leadership and management is good

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. Staff demonstrate a good understanding of how to identify any children who may be at risk of harm. They know the action to take if they have concerns about a child's welfare. Recruitment procedures are robust. Rigorous checks are conducted to ensure that staff are suitable to care for children. A video entry system enables staff to verify the identification of visitors prior to permitting them into the nursery. The enthusiastic acting manager thoroughly monitors children's progress, including specific groups of children. Swift action is taken to address any gaps in children's learning.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

All children are motivated and inquisitive learners; they engage in challenging activities with enthusiasm in this welcoming nursery. For example, older children have a wonderful time re-enacting one of their favourite stories outdoors. Staff provide children with visual aids to help them understand how stories are structured. Children positively respond the staff's use of questioning to challenge their thinking. Staff listen and react well to children's interests as they excitedly ask to repeat the engaging activities. Children learn how to use various mathematical equipment. For example, they use tape measures, wooden blocks and a ruler to measure and compare the difference in each other's height. Staff skilfully make children's favourite nursery rhymes come alive. Younger children are fascinated with the contents of a broken egg and learn new descriptive words. They make predictions and work out the best method to scoop up the contents of the egg. Babies

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

explore the texture of mud with their hands and persevere at balancing toy blocks on top of one another to build a tower.

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare are good

Staff take their time to get to know children well; they organise themselves well to support their own key children whenever possible. Children demonstrate a real sense of responsibility for their environment. They eagerly help to carry out age-appropriate responsibilities. For example, older children take turns to help staff complete the daily safety check. Children behave well and happily share the wide range of good quality toys and activities. They thoroughly enjoy the freshly prepared nutritious meals and snacks. Parents comment how they appreciate the opportunity to take home the daily recipe cards of the meals their children eat. This helps them to replicate the same meals at home.

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Outcomes for children are good

Children are making good progress in relation to their starting points. Older children are able to identify their name. They demonstrate good listening skills and learn to link letters to sounds. Children enjoy bringing in items from home that begin with the letter sound of the week to share with others. All children are encouraged to develop good independent skills. Babies learn to feed themselves and older children manage their own outer clothing and serve themselves food. These are just some of the skills that help to prepare children for their future learning at school.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY289502 Local authority Hertfordshire Inspection number 1064599 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 - 4 Total number of places 57 Number of children on roll 57 Name of registered person Asquith Nurseries Limited

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reference number

Date of previous inspection 18 April 2013 Telephone number 01582 762981

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reference number

Harpenden Day Nursery was registered in 2004 and is managed by Bright Horizons Family Solutions Limited. It employs 19 members of childcare staff. Of these, 16 hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 3 or above. The nursery opens from Monday to Friday all year round. Sessions are from 7am until 7pm. It provides funded early education for three-year-old children.

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reference number

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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reference number

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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reference number

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

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