The Mulberry Bush at Casterton

The Mulberry Bush at Casterton Casterton Sedbergh Preparatory School, Casterton, Carnforth LA6 2SG

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Inspection date 17 October 2018 Previous inspection date 25 January 2016

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This inspection: Outstanding 1

Previous inspection: Good 2 Effectiveness of leadership and management Outstanding 1 Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Outstanding 1 Personal development, behaviour and welfare Outstanding 1 Outcomes for children Outstanding 1

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The provision is outstanding

n Managers and leaders have made vast changes since their last inspection to raise the quality of their practice to an outstanding level. Highly inclusive evaluations, tailored learning experiences and superior partnership working contribute towards ensuring that children's care, safety and learning is highly prioritised in all aspects of their work. n The enthusiastic and passionate staff work together seamlessly and uphold their key ethos, to place children at the heart of everything they do. They create a very tranquil and welcoming atmosphere where children feel comfortable and at home to explore their delightful surroundings. Children are extremely happy and content. n Staff have extremely high expectations for what children can achieve. They inspire children to use their 'hands to play, their head to think critically and their heart to become actively involved'. This helps to give children a supreme start in life and

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The provision is outstanding

contributes towards them becoming highly motivated and successful learners. n Staff teach children to be resilient and to always try their best. They advocate the importance of being caring, creative, curious and courageous. This helps children to adopt an extremely positive attitude towards themselves and others. n Staff help children to develop life-long skills for the future. Ingenious experiences, such as weekly swimming lessons, help older children to gain confidence, build up muscle strength and develop a superb awareness of how to keep themselves safe in water. n Transition through the nursery and on to school is seamless. Innovative strategies, such as twice weekly visits to the reception class and lunch in the school hall, help children to become familiar with school routines and fit in with school life effortlessly.

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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

n continue to refine the already excellent systems for performance management, to help all staff to excel even further and maintain the outstanding level of teaching practice across the nursery.

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

Inspection activities n The inspector observed the quality of teaching indoors and outside and assessed the impact this has on children's learning and development. n The inspector spoke with the staff and children at appropriate times during the inspection. She held a meeting with the manager of the nursery. n The inspector conducted a joint observation with the manager during a planned activity with the older children. n The inspector looked at evidence of suitability, a record of staff's qualifications and training, policies and procedures, health and safety documents, children's learning files and self-evaluation documents. n The inspector took account of the views of parents spoken with on the day of the inspection and from comments noted on the nursery website.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is outstanding

Safeguarding is effective. All staff have a first-rate knowledge of the procedures to be followed to protect children's welfare. Staff keep their expert accredited knowledge of first aid at the forefront of their minds and use this to minimise any risks. For example, at lunchtime staff remind older children to cut up foods into manageable pieces to eradicate the risk of choking. Managers and leaders invest highly in their whole staff team through safe recruitment, thorough inductions, purposeful supervisions and personalised training. New systems, such as talented teachers, provide opportunities for staff to share their specialist knowledge and skills. The manager has clear plans in place to refine these systems even further to maintain the highest standards of teaching practice across the team. Tracking is scrupulously analysed. Staff now place an even stronger emphasis on supporting babies' communication and language development to

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is outstanding

avoid any gaps in learning emerging later on.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is outstanding

The highly qualified staff make detailed observations that capture children's learning exceptionally well. They are entirely in tune with the age range of children they are working with and provide activities that focus intently on what they need to learn next. Inspiring ideas, such as providing various woodland materials for babies and younger children to explore, help them to connect with their natural world and spark their innate curiosity and imagination. Older children are highly motivated during experiences, such as weekly French lessons. They demonstrate a marvellous ability to recall familiar action words, such as 'stand up', 'sit down', 'turn around' and 'march', in French and revel in opportunities to hear and say new words. Staff expertly involve parents in all aspects of their children's learning and development and nursery life.

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare are outstanding

Key persons form excellent relationships with each and every child. The abundance of encouragement, support and praise they offer helps children to acquire high levels of self-confidence and adopt a 'can-do attitude'. Staff endorse children's love for books. They provide a key focus on stories with fundamental morals that help children to develop a greater awareness of feelings and emotions and difference and diversity. Staff actively engage children in weekly activities, such as physical education sessions in the school hall, to help to build on their advanced self-care skills and teach them about the effects that exercise has on their body. Staff are superb role models for behaviour. They use more complex concepts, such as time, to promote sharing, taking turns and fair play.

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Outcomes for children are outstanding

All children make outstanding progress. Babies express a desire to listen to stories and do so with great attention for their age. Younger and older children begin to learn how stories are structured and start to understand the process of reading, such as following text with their finger from left to right. They link sounds to letters and delight in using real-life materials, such as apples, to count using one number name for each item. Children form special friendships with their peers. They are incredibly confident and self- sufficient and more than ready for their future learning, including school.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY481764 Local authority Cumbria Inspection number 10062415 Type of provision Full day care

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Registers

Early Years Register, Compulsory Childcare Register, Voluntary Childcare Register Day care type Childcare on non-domestic premises Age range of children 1 - 4 Total number of places 32 Number of children on roll 33 Name of registered person Robinson, Claire Elizabeth Catherine

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reference number

Date of previous inspection 25 January 2016 Telephone number 01524 938277

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reference number

The Mulberry Bush at Casterton registered in 2014 and operates from within the grounds of Casterton Sedbergh Preparatory School. The nursery employs eight members of childcare staff. Of these, all hold appropriate qualifications at levels 3 or 5, including one member of staff who holds qualified teacher status and the manager who holds both early years professional status and qualified teacher status. The nursery is open Monday to Friday, from 7.30am to 6pm, for 51 weeks of the year. The nursery provides funded early education for two- three- and four-year-old children.

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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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procedures set out in the guidance Complaints procedure: raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted, which is available from Ofsted's website: www.ofsted.gov.uk . 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 and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, 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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