The Little School by the Lake

The Little School by the Lake Heath Road, Petersfield, Hampshire, GU31 4EJ

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 17 August 2017 20 January 2014

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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

 Staff provide a highly stimulating environment that enables children to explore and investigate freely. They benefit from a very wide range of high-quality resources across all rooms and outdoor areas of the nursery.  The quality of teaching is consistently outstanding. All children make excellent progress from very clearly established starting points. Staff assess children's progress precisely and ensure activities provide optimum challenge.  Children are very happy and settled. Their behaviour is excellent. Staff teach children to be kind to each other and meet their individual needs exceptionally well.  The nursery provides outstanding outdoor play areas for children of all ages that inspire their play and learning. Children play tremendously well together.  Leadership and management are dynamic and there is a strong drive for continuous improvement. Management and staff reflect on their work very systematically and make

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This provision is outstanding

targeted changes to continually enhance children's care and learning.  Staff provide excellent support for children who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. Staff forge exemplary links with other professionals to fully support children's welfare and all-round development.  There are superb partnerships with parents. Staff involve them in all aspects of their children's learning and exchange valuable information about their children's progress.

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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 extend children's interests and curiosity in technology and how things work even further.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector viewed activities and resources in all rooms and garden areas and assessed the impact this has on children's well-being and learning.  The inspector held meetings with the provider and manager and spoke to staff, children and parents.  The inspector sampled a range of documentation, including children's records, safeguarding procedures, written policies and procedures.  The inspector conducted several joint observations with the manager.  The inspector took account of the views of parents as well as their written comments.

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Effectiveness of the leadership and management is outstanding

Safeguarding is effective. All staff have an in-depth understanding of safeguarding and deliver robust practice in keeping children safe. Managers implement a highly effective professional programme for staff through supervision, mentoring and training. The strengthening of these areas since the last inspection has impacted very well on the consistency of high-quality teaching. Monitoring extends to different groups of children as well as individuals. This ensures all children make the best possible progress. Increased professional development for staff has led to consistently excellent teaching for different groups, for example, in mathematics. Managers now intend to help staff to provide even greater challenge in developing children's fascination with technology, especially moving parts and how things work.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is outstanding

Staff are exceptionally skilled at building on children's interests, vocabulary and mathematical skills while they play. For example, when older babies fully engaged in building with large bricks, staff played alongside them and stimulated their enthusiasm for counting and building longer brick lines. As older children played in their mud kitchen, staff asked them to estimate how many scoops of water and soil and pieces of vegetables they needed to create their pretend soup. Staff develop children's investigative and problem-solving skills extremely well. For example, they encourage children to suggest and try different ideas when using plastic guttering and tubes to find ways of enabling water and balls to travel as far as possible down slopes.

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare are outstanding

Staff support children's emotional well-being exceptionally well. Babies relish cuddles and staff pay meticulous attention to following their home routines. Children develop tremendous physical skills in the inspirational outdoor areas. For example, babies clamber up small climbing walls while older children tackle larger climbing walls. Toddlers delight in balancing on logs in the forest area. Children play an active role in assessing risks and develop confidence in their own abilities. Children enjoy nutritious food cooked on the premises. They grow some fruit and vegetables and learn to cook a range of foods.

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Outcomes for children are outstanding

Children are highly confident and acquire an impressive set of skills in preparation for future learning and school. Children's communication, literacy and mathematical skills develop exceptionally well. For example, toddlers delight in acting out favourite stories to musical accompaniments. Older children know some sounds that letters represent and can often read simple words. Children enjoy spontaneously drawing, painting and mark making. For example, older babies love flicking brushes to make splatter marks with water, while older children practise writing and successfully write their names.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY301512 Local authority Hampshire Inspection number 1068742 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 60 Number of children on roll 113 Name of registered person Patricia Lynne Matthews

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reference number

Date of previous inspection 20 January 2014 Telephone number 01730 231537

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reference number

The Little School by the Lake registered in 1998 and re-registered in 2005 under its current ownership. It is one of two nurseries privately owned by the provider. The premises is a converted golf club close to the centre of Petersfield, Hampshire. The nursery is open each weekday from 8am to 6pm for 52 weeks of the year. There are 22 members of staff who work with the children, 20 of whom hold a relevant early years qualification at level 3, 4, 5 or 6 while others are studying for their qualifications.

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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

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reference number

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