Harwell Day Nursery

Inspection of Harwell Day Nursery Harwell International Business Centre, Curie Avenue, Didcot, Oxfordshire OX11 0QQ

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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

Staff make children feel extremely welcome, safe and secure. Children are greeted warmly at the front door and these positive interactions continue throughout the day. Leaders understand how important it is to children's sense of security to be cared for by staff they recognise and know well. Staff are deployed extremely well to ensure this is the case. Children respond by showing high levels of well-being. Children of all ages are confident to move around the environment and approach and engage with staff. They know they will be helped to join in with all the exciting activities on offer. In turn, this effective practice helps build positive attitudes towards learning. Children behave well for their age, because staff are clear and consistent about expectations and gently support children to learn to share and consider the needs of each other.

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The provision is good

Leaders are highly ambitious for all children. They have designed a detailed programme of learning that provides children with opportunities to develop a broad set of important skills in preparation for their future learning. Over their time at nursery staff build on children's skills. For example, staff clearly build on children's self-help skills as the move from the baby room, to the toddler room, to pre-school. By the time children are approaching the start of school they are more than ready for the move.

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need to do better?

n Children's language and communication development is given a high priority throughout the nursery. Staff adapt their interactions with children very effectively to meet their stages of development. They clearly model sounds and single words for babies. Toddlers are encouraged to engage in simple back-and- forth conversations about what they see and do. Staff understand the value of giving all children time to think, so they can consider their responses to questions and thoughtfully add to conversations. Throughout the nursery staff are always available to read with children, and children relish these opportunities. Children develop into confident communicators, with a real love of books. n Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities receive very good support. Staff identify children who may need extra help and work closely with parents and other professionals to ensure they get the support they may need to

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need to do better?

make the progress of which they are capable. Additional funding is used very effectively to help these children join in, and learn well from, all the nursery has to offer. These children are supported very well to close gaps in their learning. n Leaders plan a comprehensive curriculum, based on children's interests and learning needs. Overall, staff share leader's understanding of the aims for the curriculum, especially in regard to promoting children's social, physical and

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need to do better?

27 June 2024 language skills. However, sometimes during focused learning experiences staff are not fully confident about the skills or knowledge they are to focus on teaching children. At these times teaching is less effective at building further on children's existing skills and knowledge. n Children are successfully supported to become inquisitive learners. Staff encourage children to keep trying and to explore all that is on offer. For example, children are fascinated to learn about the smells, tastes and feel of different fruits. Staff introduce new words and encourage children to repeat to embed understanding. Staff work with children to consider the impact that rubbish has on our environment and children enjoy learning about the different ways they can protect the sea and the creatures that live in it. n Staff plan well to give children a wide range of experiences about the world around them. This adds to children's bank of knowledge and also helps them

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need to do better?

well to develop into responsible and caring citizens. Children learn about recycling. They learn about the natural world and make trips out into the local community to experience different types of transport and places of interest. Staff know that families come in all different shapes and sizes and value and celebrate all equally. Children develop a strong understanding of what makes them unique and valuable to society. n Partnerships with parents are strong. Parents are full of praise for the nursery, one saying they 'struck gold' when they found this nursery. Staff successfully engage them in nursery life. They invite parents to events hosted at the nursery, using these opportunities well to help them understand what their children are learning. Staff encourage parents to borrow books to read with their children and send home activities for families to enjoy together. This all helps further promote children's learning at home.

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need to do better?

n The manager leads her team very well. She values her staff and the good job they do. She helps them achieve a healthy work-life balance, which in turn helps ensure a stable staff team, who know the children well and who children trust and like. This has a positive impact on the well-being of both staff and children.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

There is an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts children's interests first.

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should:

n strengthen some staff's understanding of the curriculum intent, to enable them to more precisely deliver teaching that focuses clearly on what children will most benefit from learning next.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY492874 Local authority Oxfordshire Inspection number 10350918 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 94 Number of children on roll 131 Name of registered person Bright Horizons Family Solutions Limited

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reference number

Telephone number 01235 422053 Date of previous inspection 13 September 2018

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Information about this early years setting

Harwell Day Nursery re-registered in 2015 and is situated on the outskirts of Didcot, Oxfordshire. It operates from 7.30am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, for most of the year. The nursery offers funded education for children aged two, three and fours years. A team of 35 staff works with the children. The manager holds an appropriate qualification at level 5. Of the remaining staff team, 27 hold childcare qualifications between level 6 and level 2.

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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 her evaluation of the provider. n The inspector and the manager completed a learning walk together and discussed the early years curriculum. n The manager and the inspector carried out a joint observation. n The inspector held meetings with the manager and representatives of the provider to find out about the leadership and management of the setting. n Parents and children shared their views and the inspector took these into account.

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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

27 June 2024 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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