Castle Nurseries at Dunstanburgh Road

Inspection of Castle Nurseries at Dunstanburgh Road 1 Bywell Street, NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE NE6 2QN

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Overall effectiveness Outstanding

The quality of education Outstanding Behaviour and attitudes Outstanding Personal development Outstanding Leadership and management Outstanding Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Outstanding

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The provision is outstanding

Children benefit from exceptional quality interactions with staff at this inviting and stimulating setting. They show that they feel safe and secure as they immerse themselves in experiments and games, such as finding out what object can move the fastest down a hill in the nursery garden. Children use balls, toy vehicles and pipes to conduct their experiment. Staff offer questions to help children to enhance their already excellent imagination and thinking skills. Children are inquisitive and make predictions as they play. Staff celebrate with them as they solve problems they encounter. This helps to effectively promote children's self-esteem.

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The provision is outstanding

Staff are superb role models. They encourage children to develop remarkable friendships with each other. This includes children being able to resolve minor conflicts between themselves and learning to recognise how others are feeling. Staff use emotive language to acknowledge children's emotions from young babies to pre-school age. This helps children to recognise how their own feelings and behaviours may impact on others. Staff complete precise assessments of children's learning and astutely plan for what children need to learn next. This helps them to provide an appropriately challenging and ambitious curriculum for all children that helps them to build on their excellent skills ready for starting school.

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need to do better?

n Managers have detailed action plans in place that help them to continuously review the overall quality of the setting. They have worked exceptionally hard to maintain the highest standards of care and education for all children since their last inspection. They provide high levels of support and training for staff. This includes performance reviews and utilising staff's expertise. For instance, staff have additional lead roles and share their knowledge with other staff. This includes safeguarding responsibilities in specialist subjects, such as domestic violence and the impact of this on families. n Managers and staff work very closely with schools and other professionals. This includes sharing training and completing research projects to provide a consistent approach to children's learning and development needs. Staff work on specific targets and action plans for individual children set by external

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need to do better?

professionals. This includes focused time for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Managers review the needs of individual children to help them identify how additional funding is to be used. For instance, children benefit from music, movement and dance sessions, specialist communication and language focused groups as well as yoga sessions. This has a remarkable impact on children's personal, social and emotional development as well as helping to develop children's physical and communication skills. n Children's communication and language skills are threaded throughout all

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need to do better?

17 April 2023 aspects of practice. Staff use exciting props, puppets and resources to maintain children's engagement in learning and play. Managers and staff arrange targeted support sessions for parents during holiday times to help to continue children's learning at home. Staff use rich vocabulary, introducing new words and phrases through conversations and story time sessions. As a result, children are able to communicate very well with others. n Children follow excellent hygiene practices. Staff talk to children about why it is important to wash their hands. They involve children in experiments using lotion and glitter and show that the glitter represents germs as it spreads. Children show that they understand the need to use soap when they are unable to wash the glitter away when just running their hands under water. Young children access tissues independently when they need to wipe their nose and manage

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need to do better?

their self-care needs. Mealtimes are a social occasion for all children. They offer to help serve one another and complete tasks, such as handing out plates and cutlery. Children show excellent levels of independence. n Partnership working with parents is a particular strength of the setting. Parents give the highest praise for managers and staff for their support, not only for their children but their wider family. Parents comment that managers and staff have provided advice and guidance, including signposting to external groups and organisations. Parents are provided with in-depth feedback about their children's learning and development. This includes sharing assessment information. There is a designated lending library space in the setting, where parents and children can sit together to choose story books to take home. This helps to provide a consistent approach to children's learning. n Children explore the extensive outdoor area and demonstrate their excellent

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need to do better?

physical skills. This includes creating obstacle courses using crates and tyres, they lift logs and wooden stumps and discover various insects underneath, Children climb trees and investigate their world around them. n Staff support children to understand how they are unique. They talk to children about how they are similar and also different to others. Staff talk to children about why they wear glasses and why they need glasses to help them to see. Children join in with celebrations and festivals and learn about their own traditions and those different to their own. This helps to develop children's understanding of the wider world.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Managers' and staff's knowledge of safeguarding and child protection issues is first rate. They are quick to identify and respond to any concerns in relation to a child's safety. There is a detailed safeguarding policy in place, which includes the safe use of mobile phones and cameras in the setting. Managers review staff's safeguarding knowledge through regular questioning and training. Medication procedures include detailed information about reasons for medication and procedures for how to administer medication safely. There is excellent partnership working in place with children's social care team. Managers and staff attend external meetings for

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Safeguarding

17 April 2023 children and families. There are stringent recruitment procedures in place. Managers review the ongoing suitability of staff to ensure they remain suitable to work with children.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY104355 Local authority Newcastle upon Tyne Inspection number 10284384 Type of provision Childcare on non-domestic premises

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Registers

Early Years Register, Compulsory Childcare Register, Voluntary Childcare Register Day care type Full day care

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inspection

Total number of places 55 Number of children on roll 87 Name of registered person Newcastle City Council

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reference number

Telephone number 0191 2654546 Date of previous inspection 8 September 2017

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Information about this early years setting

Castle Nurseries at Dunstanburgh Road registered in 1991. It is managed by the local authority and operates from purpose-built premises in Walker, Newcastle upon Tyne. The nursery opens Monday to Friday, from 8am until 6pm for 51 weeks a year. The nursery receives funding for the provision of free early education for two-, three- and four-year-olds. It supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, and children who speak English as an additional language. There are currently 16 staff working directly with the children, all of whom have an appropriate early years qualification at level 3 or above and two have early years professional status.

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Inspection activities

n This was the first routine inspection the provider received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with the provider and has taken that into account in their evaluation of the provider. n The manager and inspector completed a learning walk together of all areas of the nursery and discussed the early years curriculum. n Children spoke to the inspector during the inspection. n The inspector talked to staff at appropriate times during the inspection and took account of their views. n The inspector observed the quality of education being provided, indoors and outdoors, and assessed the impact that this was having on children's learning. n The inspector carried out a joint observation of a communication and language activity with the manager. n Parents shared their views of the setting with the inspector.

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Inspection activities

We carried out this inspection 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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Inspection activities

17 April 2023 regulates and inspects to 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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Inspection activities

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Inspection activities

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Inspection activities

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Inspection activities

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