Old Station Nursery

Inspection of Old Station Nursery 7 Park Road, Faringdon SN7 7BP

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Overall effectiveness Good

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

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The provision is good

Children are safe, secure, and confident at the nursery. They enjoy a variety of activities based on their interests. Children show a love for water play and enjoy making puddles to splash and play with toy dinosaurs in. They begin to explore a range of mathematical concepts, from shape and size to counting and numbers. Children use spoons to scoop water and count how many spoons of water will fill a bowl. They initiate conversations with practitioners about how many spoons they think will fill the bowl and predict a number. Practitioners support their counting skills.

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The provision is good

Children begin to develop good communication skills. Practitioners are good role models and encourage children to be polite and respectful. They support children to listen to each other and take turns in conversation, for instance when suggesting songs and rhymes they want to sing. Children use sign language and actions alongside spoken language.

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The provision is good

Children behave well and have good attitudes to learning. They engage and focus on activities planned for them. Children enjoy outdoor play and exploring large apparatus. They encourage each other as they climb or use large dome-shaped spin tubs together. They help each other balance in the tubs and take it in turns to spin each other.

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need to do better?

n Leaders construct a curriculum that is ambitious and designed to build on what children already know and can do to build on their next steps. For example, practitioners build positive relationships with parents to gather information about children's starting points. This helps them support children to make good progress in their development. n Practitioners plan an effective curriculum based on what they know and understand about their key children's interests and stage of development. For example, children have a keen interest in dinosaurs, and so practitioners provide activities that engage and inspire them. Children learn interesting facts about dinosaurs, like their eating habits, and staff introduce new vocabulary, such as 'carnivore' and 'herbivore'. However, at times, practitioners provide a lot of information in quick succession, preventing children from having the time they need to process and formulate their own responses.

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need to do better?

n The provider has the same aspirations for all children. The curriculum is ambitious and challenging for all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Practitioners work with partner agencies to plan a cohesive and consistent approach to support the learning and development of children with SEND.

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need to do better?

24 May 2023 n The provider has effective care practices in place that supports the emotional development of the children. Key people know their children well and demonstrate the progress and next steps of individual children. Young children are supported in building strong bonds with their key people to ensure that children are secure and settled in the nursery. n Practitioners promote children's confidence and independence. They teach children to take appropriate risks as they play and learn, both inside and outside. Children enjoy the physical challenge of the climbing wall. They are proud when they succeed and sit at the top to look around them. Practitioners are close by to offer a helping hand to those that need it. n Children are beginning to manage their own feelings and behaviour and to understand how these have an impact on others. Practitioners have high expectations for children's behaviour and conduct. They model this in their

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need to do better?

interactions with children. Children are caring towards each other and when they struggle to regulate their behaviour, practitioners take appropriate action to support them. n Children demonstrate positive attitudes to learning through high levels of curiosity. They learn resilience as they explore the shape and size of toy cars they want to fit on the ramp of the toy garage. Children use a trial-and-error approach to discover the smaller cars fit on the ramp. They then look for all the small cars in the basket to play with on the toy car garage. n Relationships among the children, parents and practitioners are positive and reflect a culture of mutual respect. Parents comment on the good level of care their children receive and the progress they have seen their children make. They remark their children are safe and settled at the nursery and that practitioners share informative feedback each day.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders, managers and practitioners know their responsibility for safeguarding children and acting on any concerns. Practitioners recognise the signs and symptoms that may indicate that a child may be at risk of harm. They know how and who to report concerns to, and understand their responsibility to effectively record and document these. Practitioners demonstrate their understanding of the processes to follow where there are concerns raised against a member of staff. The provider ensures that recruitment processes include checking that practitioners are suitable to work with children. The complete, routine risk assessments help to ensure that the environment and activities on offer are safe for children.

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should:

24 May 2023 n review and improve methods of effectively identifying any weaknesses in teaching, to support staff to enhance children's thinking skills further and provide more time for children to process and respond to questions.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY218342 Local authority Oxfordshire Inspection number 10285236 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 138 Number of children on roll 94 Name of registered person The Old Station Nursery Limited

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reference number

Telephone number 01367 243800 Date of previous inspection 26 February 2019

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Information about this early years setting

Old Station Nursery registered in 2002. The nursery is located in Faringdon, Oxfordshire. It is open weekdays, from 8am to 6pm, all year round with the exception of a week at Christmas. The provider receives funding for the provision of free early education for children aged two, three and four years. The provider employs 20 staff to work directly with the children. Of these, 13 hold recognised early years qualifications.

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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 setting. n The deputy manager and inspector completed a learning walk together and discussed the curriculum. n The deputy manager and inspector carried out a joint observation together to observe the quality of education. n The inspector tracked the experiences of children during their day at nursery. n The inspector reviewed relevant documentation that demonstrated the suitability of staff. n The inspector spoke to parents during the inspection and took account of their written views. n The inspector talked to children and staff at appropriate times during the inspection and took account of their views.

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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

24 May 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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