Under the Willow Nursery

Under the Willow Nursery Under the Willow Nursery, 198a Croxted Road, LONDON, SE21 8NW

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 27 June 2017 6 January 2014

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Effectiveness of the leadership and management Requires improvement Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement Personal development, behaviour and welfare Requires improvement Outcomes for children Requires improvement

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This provision requires improvement. It is not yet good because:

 Key persons do not consistently make the best use of all opportunities to help children build on their relationships with them.  Partnerships with parents and other settings that children attend require improvement. The management team does not consistently support a two-way flow of information with parents. The team has not developed effective procedures to share information with other settings that children attend.  Monitoring of staff practice is not fully effective and there are inconsistencies in teaching practice. On some occasions children are not fully engaged and their learning is interrupted. Not all children make the best possible progress.  Self-evaluation is not fully successful. Although the manager has identified most areas of weakness, improvement action is still in its initial stages and not fully effective.

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It has the following strengths

 Children have opportunities to build on their physical skills. For instance, young children learn to crawl and walk and they explore while riding on play vehicles.  Staff provide opportunities for young children to learn the meaning of words. For instance they introduce words such as 'scoop' and 'pour' and they use opportunities in children's play to model these actions.  Staff encourage older children to share experiences that are special to them. For instance, children confidently sing songs to the group in their home languages and kindly state that they can 'teach' the song to others.

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

To meet the requirements of the early years foundation stage the provider must:

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Due Date

 ensure that all key persons make best use of all opportunities to help children build relationships 15/07/2017

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Due Date

 improve arrangements for a regular two-way flow of information with parents and other settings that children attend 15/07/2017

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Due Date

 improve arrangements for staff training and support to help establish consistency in the quality of teaching. 15/07/2017

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Due Date

To further improve the quality of the early years provision the provider should:

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Due Date

 improve self-evaluation to identify and address all weaknesses in practice and provision.

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Inspection activities

 The inspection took place following Ofsted's risk assessment process.  The inspector observed children and their interactions with the staff.  The inspector viewed a sample of documents, including children's learning records.  The inspector carried out a joint observation with the manager and assessed the arrangements for monitoring staff performance.  The inspector took account of the views of staff, parents and children.

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Effectiveness of the leadership and management requires improvement

The management team has not addressed all areas of weakness successfully, although it has made some improvement towards previous recommendations. The team does not always inform parents promptly of matters that affect their children's time at the setting or establish links with other settings that children attend. Teaching practice is inconsistent. Nevertheless, the manager supports individual staff and is taking some steps to address this issue. For instance, following training, staff have identified further ways to support children's free choice. The manager reviews individual children's progress and works in partnership with external professionals to help support staff to identify concerns for individual children's learning. Safeguarding is effective. Staff have an up-to-date knowledge of the nursery's policies and procedures relating to protecting children's welfare and know how to refer child protection issues. The management team ensures that there

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Effectiveness of the leadership and management requires improvement

are adequate staff to care for the children. Overall, the provider takes appropriate steps to deal with complaints.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment requires improvement

Some staff miss opportunities to challenge children effectively in their learning. For instance, during a book reading activity, they did not question older children skilfully or encourage their participation. They miss some opportunities to identify occasions when children are not engaged and to redirect them to enjoyable play experiences. Nevertheless, overall, staff take account of individual children's learning styles and plan appropriate next steps in their learning. They provide opportunities for babies to get to know each other. For instance, they choose a 'helper' to hand out the water beakers and make use of this opportunity to help them learn other children's names. Staff encourage older children to build effectively on their understanding of the world, for instance, as they go on visits to the local supermarket.

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare require improvement

Key persons do not support children well enough to help them build consistent relationships. For instance, they hand over responsibilities, such as nappy change and feeding routines, to other staff and do not make the most of all opportunities to interact with the children. Nevertheless, overall, staff meet children's personal needs appropriately and supervise them effectively to ensure their safety. Staff support children's independence at mealtimes. For instance, older children learn to serve food onto their plates. Appropriate arrangements are in place to record information relating to accidents, incidents and medication, and the management team reviews these regularly to identify any patterns and to plan improvements. The team completes regular risk assessments and take necessary steps to minimise hazards to children's safety.

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Outcomes for children require improvement

Children are not consistently engaged in activities due to the variable quality of teaching. Nevertheless, they generally behave well and learn to take account of the needs of others. Overall, they develop a range of skills in readiness for school.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY453559 Local authority Southwark Inspection number 1101019 Type of provision Full-time provision Day care type Childcare - Non-Domestic Registers Early Years Register Age range of children 1 - 4 Total number of places 37 Number of children on roll 56 Name of registered person Under the Willow Ltd

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reference number

Date of previous inspection 6 January 2014 Telephone number 0208 761 7972

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reference number

Under the Willow Nursery registered in 2012. It is located in Dulwich, London. The nursery operates Monday to Friday from 7.30am to 6.30pm. It is open all year round, except for a week at Christmas and on public holidays. The nursery receives funding for the provision of free nursery education to children aged three and four years. The provider employs 16 staff. Of these, 11 staff hold relevant childcare qualifications at level 3 or above; one of whom holds qualified teacher status.

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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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