Muriel Green Nursery School

The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre

(incorporating Muriel Green Nursery School) St Albans

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The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre

Inspections carried out under section 10 of the School Inspections Act 1996 and under Part XA of the Children Act 1989 This report may be reproduced in whole or in part for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that all extracts quoted are reproduced verbatim without adaptation and on condition that the source and date thereof are stated.

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The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre

Further copies of this report are obtainable from the nursery. Under the School Inspections Act 1996, the nursery must provide a copy of this report and/or its summary free of charge to certain categories of people. A charge not exceeding the full cost of reproduction may be made for any other copies supplied.

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The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre

The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE NURSERY

Type of school: Nursery with Children’s Centre status School category: Maintained Age range of pupils: 3-5 Years Gender of pupils: Mixed Number on roll: 181

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE NURSERY

School address: Church Crescent St Albans Postcode: AL3 5JB

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE NURSERY

Telephone number: 01727 891109 Fax number: 01727 891114

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE NURSERY

Appropriate authority: The governing body Name of chair of governors: Andrew Freeman

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE NURSERY

Date of previous inspection: 19 January 1998

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CHARACTERISTICS OF THE NURSERY

The Nursery at St Alban’s Children’s Centre, incorporating Muriel Green Nursery School, opened as an Early Excellence Centre in autumn 2001. It was designated a Children’s Centre in June 2003 and is run as a partnership between Hertfordshire Partnership (NHS) Trust and Hertfordshire’s Children, Schools and Families Department. The governing body retains statutory responsibility for the nursery but not the centre. The centre board is responsible for the strategic development of the whole centre and its day-to-day operation is overseen by the partnership manager.

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CHARACTERISTICS OF THE NURSERY

The nursery offers 90 part-time places for children aged from three and a half years to four and a half years. In addition, 60 day care places are offered for children aged from three months to four+ years. Approximately ten per cent of children come from ethnic minority backgrounds. No children are at the early stages of learning English. One child has a statement of special education need. When children enter the nursery at three and a half years old, most are attaining the levels expected for their age. Although there are small pockets of deprivation locally, the nursery serves an area that is relatively affluent.

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CHARACTERISTICS OF THE NURSERY

The centre provides an Opportunity Class for pre-school children with special needs and a range of specialist support from childcare professionals as part of its health care services. A health visitor and child minding network operate from the centre. It also offers training programmes and guidance for local childminders and pre-school staff.

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CHARACTERISTICS OF THE NURSERY

The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

Members of the inspection team Subject responsibilities

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

22199 Jane Wotherspoon HMI Lead Inspector Mathematical development Physical development 9835 Glenda Spencer Lay Inspector 33787 Jenny Andreae HMI Team Inspector Communication, language and literacy Creative development 20498 Mary Hamby HMI Team Inspector Personal, social and emotional development Knowledge and understanding of the world 00836 Christina Downey Child Care Inspector National standards for day care

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

Provision for children in the day care and ‘wrap around’ care (care that is provided for children in addition to the nursery session they attend) were inspected under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000.

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

Any comments, concerns or complaints about the inspection or the report should be raised with Ofsted by writing to:

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

The Complaints Manager Subjects and Quality Assurance Division Ofsted Alexandra House 33 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE E-mail schoolinspection@ofsted.gov.uk

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre CONTENTS Page

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PART A: SUMMARY OF THE REPORT 1

Standards achieved 1 Quality of education 1 Leadership and management 2 The centre’s other services 2 Parents’ and children’s views of the nursery 2 Improvements needed 2

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PART B: COMMENTARY ON THE INSPECTION FINDINGS 3

Standards achieved by children 3 Children’s attitudes, values and other personal qualities 3 Quality of education provided by the nursery 4 The curriculum 6 Care, guidance and support 6 Partnership with parents, other schools and the community 7 Leadership and management 8

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PART C: THE QUALITY OF EDUCATION IN AREAS OF LEARNING 10

Personal, social and emotional development 10 Communication, language and literacy 10 Mathematical development 11 Knowledge and understanding of the world 12 Physical development 12 Creative development 13

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INSPECTION OF CHILDMINDING AND DAY CARE SERVICES 16

About the inspection 16 Information about the setting 16 How good is the day care? 16 what has improved since the last inspection? 16 What has improved since the last inspection? 17 What is being done well? 17 What needs to be improved? 17 Outcome of the inspection 17 What needs to be done next? 18 Summary of national standards 19

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INSPECTION OF CHILDMINDING AND DAY CARE SERVICES 16

The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre

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PART A: SUMMARY OF THE REPORT

The nursery 1 at St Albans Children’s Centre is effective. It has many strengths and is well placed to become very effective. Its main aim of recognising that ‘We are all different, we are all special’ is borne out each day. The strong ethos, good teaching and a stimulating curriculum, contribute significantly to children’s enjoyment and learning. Their personal development is supported effectively by high levels of day-to-day care and a strong partnership with parents. Children achieve well in this environment which is led and managed very effectively. The nursery gives good value for money.

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PART A: SUMMARY OF THE REPORT

The nursery’s main strengths and weaknesses are :

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PART A: SUMMARY OF THE REPORT

• very good teaching for children’s personal, social and emotional development, and in aspects of early literacy and mathematics, lead to their very good achievement in these areas • a rich and varied curriculum takes very good account of children’s abilities • the very effective integration of day care and education makes a positive contribution to children’s achievement • a very effective partnership with parents contributes significantly to the children’s well-being • leadership and management are very good; the head, staff, and governors share a strong commitment to ensuring the quality of nursery provision • a few staff do not always seize opportunities to extend children’s learning • joint projects across the Centre are not shared and discussed at an early enough stage

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PART A: SUMMARY OF THE REPORT

The nursery has not been inspected previously as part of a Children’s Centre.

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STANDARDS ACHIEVED

The children achieve well in all areas of learning. They do especially well in their personal, social and emotional development and reach above expected levels in all other areas. In particular, there are strengths in the development of children’s speaking and listening, in their knowledge of shapes, and in the way that they explore and investigate the world around them. Children with special educational needs achieve well. Older, more able children make good progress in developing early literacy and numeracy skills and this prepares them well for the next stage of their education.

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Personal development is very good and is underpinned by highly effective provision for

children’s spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Children have very good attitudes to learning, behave very well and display high levels of concentration and perseverance. Their confidence and self esteem are high. Children settle well and quickly gain confidence to take responsibility and initiative for their learning. They enjoy very good relationships with each other and with staff.

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The quality of education is good with strong features. Teaching and learning are good with

elements that are very good . There are particular strengths in the teaching of children’s personal, social and emotional development and this helps them to make very good progress. Well- established daily routines and consistently high expectations ensure that children learn to do things for themselves. Staff are clear about what children are to learn and make their teaching lively and engaging. Just occasionally, staff do not use questions that challenge and extend children’s learning by encouraging them to think carefully. The nursery’s resources are organised

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The quality of education is good with strong features. Teaching and learning are good with

1 The term ‘nursery’ in the context of this report refers to all provision for children from three months to four years within day care, ‘wrap around’ care (care that is provided for children in addition to the nursery session they attend) and the maintained nursery.

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The quality of education is good with strong features. Teaching and learning are good with

The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre - 1 imaginatively. Staff are good at checking what children have learnt and use this information effectively to plan what they should learn next.

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The quality of education is good with strong features. Teaching and learning are good with

The curriculum is rich and stimulating. Activities are presented imaginatively to meet the needs of all children from nought to four years and to stimulate their curiosity and interest in learning. High levels of care contribute significantly to the children’s confidence and love of learning. The support for children with special educational needs is very effective. Staff are very successful in involving parents in reviewing how well their children are doing and in helping to set their targets.

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LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

Leadership and management are very effective. Strong leadership from the head and senior staff has ensured that significant changes have been made to working practices but with minimum disruption to the children’s education. All staff work very well as a team and day-to-day management is very good. Governors have a high level of involvement in successfully steering the nursery’s developments in partnership with staff. There is a high expectation that children will achieve well which is shared by staff, parents and governors.

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THE CENTRE’S OTHER SERVICES

Links with partners and other services are good. The day care provides good support for children and their families. Partnerships with health services are breaking new ground and have faced many challenges. Communication between the different parts of the centre has not always been effective in developing joint initiatives. However, a number of good links are now developing between the different partners to improve the services for families and the wider community.

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PARENTS’ AND CHILDREN’S VIEWS OF THE NURSERY

Parents are overwhelming in their praise and support for what the nursery does for them and their children. Many commented on the way that staff treat children as individuals and say that ‘Each child is encouraged to become the person he or she is’. The high rate of attendance is testament to the fact that children can’t wait to come each day.

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IMPROVEMENTS NEEDED

The most important things the nursery should do to improve are to:

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IMPROVEMENTS NEEDED

• strengthen communication between the head of nursery and the partnership manager so that joint projects can be developed more effectively • continue to improve the knowledge and expertise of staff.

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IMPROVEMENTS NEEDED

These areas have already been identified as priorities for development by senior staff.

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IMPROVEMENTS NEEDED

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Standards achieved in areas of learning

By the time the children leave the nursery, they exceed what is expected for their age (the stepping stones towards the national early learning goals that children are expected to reach by the end of the reception year). There are no significant differences between boys and girls.

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Main strengths and weaknesses

• Children make very good progress in their personal, social and emotional development and in aspects of communication, language and literacy, mathematics, and their knowledge and understanding of the world. • Children make good gains in all the other areas of learning as a result of good teaching and a very good range of stimulating activities. • Older, more able children develop very good early literacy and numeracy skills. • Babies and children with special educational needs make good progress.

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Commentary

1. When children enter the nursery at three and a half years of age, the majority are at the levels expected for their age. They make good progress and exceed expectations by the time they leave. Many older four-year-olds are already at some of the levels expected for the end of the reception year. Regular staff checks on children’s progress confirm this.

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Commentary

2. Children achieve very well in personal, social and emotional development where staff place particular emphasis on developing children’s confidence and self esteem. All adults have high expectations of good behaviour and children meet them. There are particular strengths, too, in speaking and listening, in children’s knowledge of shapes and spatial awareness, and in their exploration and investigation of the world around them. They are highly independent and organise themselves effectively in a wide range of self-chosen activities. These positive attributes combine with good teaching of specific skills and knowledge to contribute significantly to children’s good progress in all other areas of learning.

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Commentary

3. Older, more able children do very well in aspects of literacy and numeracy. They are beginning to identify initial sounds and to use these in writing their names and other simple words. Their understanding about numbers is developing strongly in response to challenging teaching and regular practice. Babies and children with special educational needs also achieve well. Good practical support from teaching assistants ensures that the children participate fully in activities and that targets in their individual education plans can be met.

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Children’s attitudes, values and other personal qualities

Children’s personal development is very good. They have extremely positive attitudes to their learning and behave very well . Provision for spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is very effective with opportunities successfully woven into daily activities . Attendance is excellent and punctuality is good .

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Children’s attitudes, values and other personal qualities

The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre - 3

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Main strengths and weaknesses

• Children’s relationships with each other and with adults are very good. • The children behave very well and are increasingly willing to take responsibility as they get older. • The children have very good attitudes to learning and are eager to participate in all that is provided; attendance is excellent.

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Commentary

4. Relationships are very positive. Children learn very well from the exemplary role models provided by the staff, who value what children say and recognise their achievements with smiles and encouraging praise. These warm relationships underpin the strong provision for moral and social development. Staff encourage children to work together in pairs or small groups and emphasise the importance of cooperation and sharing. Consequently, the children enjoy each other’s company and play together joyfully. They form good friendship groups and racial differences are irrelevant. They are taught that they are all ‘ different, but special’ and are starting to understand the need to show respect for each other’s needs and beliefs; for example, that some children don’t eat meat, or that others find it difficult to express themselves in speech. All children within the nursery are treated equally and with

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Commentary

5. The children’s behaviour is very good. They know that at times they must listen and they do so very attentively without undue restlessness; they comply with requests willingly and are eager to take on small responsibilities. Babies and children soon adjust to nursery procedures and manage well without the direct support of their parents. They make rapid progress in many aspects of learning and social development. Older children are gaining a good awareness of self-discipline and are starting to show initiative. For example, when the babies were coming out into the garden, two of them held the toddlers’ hands without being asked. The children know right from wrong and take good account of the lunchtime ‘Golden Rules’ that they devised. They are polite and welcoming to visitors.

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Commentary

6. Children, including those with special educational needs, have very good attitudes to learning. They are highly motivated and keen to learn; this contributes significantly to the progress they make. Children are very happy to come to the nursery. They arrive with smiley faces and greet staff waiting at the gate to welcome them. They participate keenly in a wide range of activities that supports their spiritual and cultural development and try new things willingly. They show exuberance when they succeed with a tricky task, such as hooking a magnetic fish, blowing a giant bubble or walking along a narrow plank, and try again if they do not succeed at first. They are curious to find things out and show a good sense of adventure and fun.

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The quality of education is good overall with many very good features. The quality of

teaching is good with very good elements. Staff are especially effective at fostering children’s personal, social and emotional development, speaking and listening skills and elements of mathematical knowledge and understanding. The teaching of older, more able children is well targeted. A rich and stimulating curriculum contributes significantly to the children’s positive attitudes to learning. High levels of support and a strong partnership with parents have a beneficial impact on children’s confidence.

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The quality of education is good overall with many very good features. The quality of

The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre - 4

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Main strengths and weaknesses

• Well-established routines and a stimulating learning environment contribute significantly to children’s positive attitudes and love of learning. • Focused, adult-led activities are well planned but there is scope to give more guidance to staff about how to develop activities chosen by children, especially in the outside area. • Children are taught effectively in all areas of learning but adults occasionally miss opportunities to build on previous learning. • Assessment systems are very good and the information is used effectively to group children for sessions led by adults.

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Commentary

Summary of teaching observed during the inspection in 31 observations

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Commentary

Excellent Very good Good Satisfactory Unsatisfactory Poor Very Poor

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Commentary

The table gives the number of observations made in each of the seven categories used to make judgements; figures in brackets show percentages where 30 or more observations are seen.

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Commentary

7. Staff work hard to create a stimulating environment both indoors and out with purposeful activities and resources that are changed daily. Resources are set out in a way that makes them readily accessible and this contributes significantly to the children’s independence. Routines are well-established and followed consistently; this is a strong factor in enabling the children to feel secure and to settle to life in the nursery. Not a moment is wasted. However, staff are flexible about timings within sessions in order to respond to children’s interests. For example, one morning group session was delayed in order to extend the time for very successful outdoor water and sand activities. Relationships are very good. All staff set clear boundaries for children’s behaviour which is managed very effectively and consistently.

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Commentary

8. Teaching is good across all areas of learning. Weekly planning for focused adult-led sessions is thorough with clear objectives. Effective links are made across areas of learning that help to make connections in children’s experiences and learning. Just occasionally, these links result in a loss of focus on a particular area of learning, but staff are alert to this and adapt their planning accordingly. The best teaching is lively and adults present activities in a way that captures the children’s interest and capitalises on their enthusiasm for learning. Planning for outdoor learning does not always contain enough detail to ensure that all staff know precisely the purpose of activities chosen by children and how they might develop them. When this happens children do not learn as much as they could.

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Commentary

9. Overall, the quality of adults’ questioning and intervention is good. At its best, it challenges children and extends their thinking, encouraging them to seek their own solutions and fostering their curiosity. Adults supply children with the vocabulary they need, for example, when describing mathematical shapes and are skilled at developing their speaking and listening skills. However, on occasion, a few adults’ interventions are superficial and do not take the children’s learning forward by building on what they have learnt. These weaknesses have been identified already by senior staff and are being tackled through staff training and team teaching.

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Commentary

10. There are very good systems for all staff to observe and record what the babies and children know, understand and can do and for tracking the progress they make over time. This information is used effectively to set targets for each child, which are reviewed termly with parents. Day-to-day assessment is good and used effectively to group children for adult-led

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Commentary

The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre - 5 activities and for additional support and challenge. Children with special educational needs are supported very well to meet the targets in their individual education plans and able children are given activities that effectively extend their early literacy and numeracy skills.

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The curriculum

The curriculum is very good. It is rich and varied and takes very good account of children’s different interests and abilities.

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Main strengths and weaknesses

• The balance of planned activities between those led by staff and those chosen by children is very good. • Babies and children with special educational needs have full access to activities. • The accommodation and resources, both in and out of doors, are well-organised.

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Commentary

11. The curriculum is very well planned with activities that include and integrate the six areas of learning. The deputy head and nursery teacher review the curriculum weekly to ensure that it is broad and balanced for all the groups of children. Short daily group times are focused on developing the children’s awareness of the sounds of letters in words and on using numbers. Other adult-led group times cover all areas of learning. In addition, there are plenty of opportunities for children to select their own activities both in and out of doors. The teachers are very careful to plan different activities for those children in ‘wrap around’ care (care that is provided for children in addition to the nursery session they attend) who spend additional time in the nursery.

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Commentary

12. Babies and children with special educational needs have equal and full access to all the activities and group times. Their programme and the support they need to participate takes good account of their individual learning targets. The good staffing levels and the wide range of stimulating provision all contribute strongly to their progress.

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Commentary

13. The internal accommodation is spacious and well-organised to give children a wide variety of opportunities. Resources are carefully placed for children to select what they need independently. The outdoor space has been maximised to provide very good quality large equipment as well as a natural garden area for children to investigate and explore.

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Care, guidance and support

The quality of care, guidance and support is very good. Staff have a thorough knowledge of all the children and are sensitive to their individual needs. They provide a supportive, safe and caring environment.

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Main strengths and weaknesses

• Staff provide a very good level of day-to-day care. • Very good induction arrangements help babies and children to settle quickly and gain confidence.

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Commentary

14. The head and staff are committed to the welfare of the children. They provide stability and a supportive learning environment. The staff have a thorough knowledge of the individual children and their families. This contributes greatly to children’s learning, personal development and maturity, and is appreciated by parents.

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Commentary

The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre - 6 15. Day-to-day health and safety procedures and checks are carried out rigorously to ensure that children learn in a safe and secure environment. Child protection procedures are well known and followed consistently. Staff are alert to children’s needs and treat them as individuals. ‘ We are all different we are all special’ is a premise that underpins the strong ethos of care. Staff listen to children. Parents’ confidence that their children are treated with respect is well placed.

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Commentary

16. Very good induction arrangements begin with home visits. Transfer from one kind of provision to another is simplified and eased by the seamless way that day care, ‘wrap around’ care and education are woven together. The deputy head maintains close links with staff in the primary schools to which the children transfer and this smoothes their move to full-time education very well.

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Main strengths and weaknesses

• Staff work closely with parents and give them a very good range of information. • The integration of the day care and ‘wrap around’ care with the nursery is very effective. • The shared planning, assessment and formation of a continuous curriculum from nought to four years of age contributes to the children’s good achievement. • Partnerships between the nursery and different services in the Centre are strengthening slowly.

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Commentary

17. Parents are overwhelmingly positive about what the nursery does for them and for their children. Home visits are a strong starting point for the very warm relationships that are enjoyed by staff and parents. Comprehensive information about the organisation of the curriculum, weekly teaching programme, and other services at the centre ensure that parents are very well informed. Parents have plenty of opportunities, both formal and informal, to discuss how well their child is progressing. Termly meetings, where children’s progress is discussed and their new targets are set, are supplemented with informal exchanges at the beginning and end of the day. Very good quality written reports provide a comprehensive summary of how well children are doing at the end of the year

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Commentary

18. The services offered by the nursery such as day care and ‘wrap around’ care and the centre’s Opportunity Group are well established and offer parents and families good support. The quality of these services is good and the strong links with the nursery teachers has enabled a curriculum to be formed that is linked between the nought to three years and the nursery foundation curriculum. The common systems to plan the curriculum, assess children’s progress and share these regularly with parents mean that there is continuity for children and their parents. The integration of the children in the ‘wrap around’ and day care with the children in the maintained nursery is already having a positive impact on children’s learning and achievements.

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Commentary

19. Representatives of other services based at the centre are starting to link more closely with the staff of the nursery and day care, such as the health visitor, health consultants, and speech and language therapists. Parents of children with special educational needs are very well supported by the integrated health and educational provision available in the centre.

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Commentary

20. The centre is unusual in that it has professional partners such as Health consultants working alongside nursery and day care professionals to address the challenges posed to an

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Commentary

The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre - 7 integrated Children’s Centre that serves both the local and a wider community. The role of the partnership manager is becoming more established and his working links with the governing body and head of nursery are strengthening. However, communication between these parties is not yet as effective as it needs to be.

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LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

Leadership and management of the governors, head, and senior staff are very good. The head is a very effective leader who puts the quality of provision at the heart of all she does. She is supported very well by senior staff and a hardworking staff team. Governors are proactive and provide a very good level of support and challenge for developing the nursery and day care.

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Main strengths and weaknesses

• Governors make a major contribution to the leadership of the nursery. • The head and deputy have successfully brought together disparate teams into a cohesive staff. • Day-to-day management is very efficient. • Strategic planning for the nursery’s improvement is well established with clear priorities but, as yet, does not link sufficiently to the wider development of the whole Centre’s services.

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Commentary

21. The governance of the nursery and day care is very effective. Governors are fully involved in devising policies and in the strategic development of provision for children aged nought to four. Many are regular visitors to the nursery while it is in session and they are very knowledgeable about its strengths and the issues it faces. There are well-established structures for working efficiently through committees. Individuals have specific roles and responsibilities for monitoring provision, for example, in literacy, numeracy, and provision for children with special educational needs. They contribute very effectively to the evaluation of the action plan. Governors are committed to being part of the extended services of the centre and have recently recruited additional members from the wider community to reflect the changing nature of the nursery’s place within the Children’s Centre. However, they are

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Commentary

clear that their prime function is to assure the quality of provision in the nursery and day care.

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Commentary

22. Strong leadership from the head has successfully brought together distinct staff teams for care and education across all age groups. This cohesive unit works together effectively to provide a coherent learning experience for babies and children. She has managed significant changes while maintaining the many strengths for which the previous school was well known by parents and the community. Her high expectations of staff are balanced by a strong commitment to, and provision for, their professional development. Senior staff share her vision of making sure that all children are able to achieve their potential. They work tirelessly to support the nursery’s aims through, for example, initiating the work on curriculum development. The deputy head of education also leads staff strongly through providing them with a very good role model of teaching. Team teaching is used effectively as a strategy to

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Commentary

raise the professional knowledge and expertise of staff who are not trained teachers.

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Commentary

23. Management is very good. Day-to-day management runs smoothly. Team work is a strength and staff are becoming increasingly aware of the wider working practices in all parts of the nursery. Well-established systems and daily organisation have been adapted successfully to accommodate new working practices. Procedures for monitoring staff performance are well-embedded and effective in identifying areas for professional development. These reflect closely the priorities for improving the quality of teaching in, for example, using different kinds of questions to challenge children. Staff training has sensibly focused on developing common systems for planning, assessment and recording children’s achievements. Such systems are frequently shared with other early-years practitioners from local schools and further afield. Well thought-out induction procedures for new staff include

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Commentary

The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre - 8 shadowing other members of the wider nursery team. Staff have also shadowed professionals from across the centre’s services and this has led to a broader understanding of the Centre’s work. Finances are managed efficiently within the constraints caused by the high cost of renting the premises from the Health Trust.

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Commentary

24. Monitoring and evaluation are central to the nursery’s development. Self-evaluation systems have developed very well to include the changes in provision and a comprehensive improvement plan identifies clear action. It is based on an accurate assessment of what needs to improve. Information about children’s progress in each area of learning is used successfully to identify strengths in provision and areas for development. Until recently, there have been few clear links between the strategic development plan for the Centre devised by the Centre’s managers and the priorities identified by the governing body and staff in the nursery’s improvement plan. However, this is changing. The most recent draft development plan for the whole centre recognises, as its first priority, the need to strengthen the partnership between its services and the continued integration of the nursery. This is a positive step forward.

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Financial information

Financial information for the year April 2003 to March 2004

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Financial information

Income and expenditure (£) Balances (£) Total income 270551 Balance from previous year 35930 Total expenditure 283259 Balance carried forward to the next 23222 Expenditure per pupil 3219

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Financial information

The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre - 9

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PERSONAL, SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Provision in personal, social and emotional development is very good and is one of the nursery’s key strengths.

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Main strengths and weaknesses

• Children make very good progress and achieve very well. • The staff understand how to nurture the children’s personal development and do this very well. • The children grow in confidence and independence and this helps them to make good progress in other areas of learning.

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Commentary

25. The children are well on their way to achieving the early learning goals in this area because staff understand how to promote effective learning in every situation. All the children are encouraged to join in, make choices and persevere. The children with special educational needs are given judicious levels of support so that they can participate in, and succeed with, a wide variety of activities.

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Commentary

26. The children grow in confidence as they get older and more familiar with routines, for example, the need to tidy things away when the tambourine is played and find their name cards when they start each day. All of the children are familiar with the building and the grounds and move around from place to place purposefully. They show independence in selecting activities for themselves and persevere with them, even when they encounter difficulties. For example, one boy who chose a maze program on the computer persisted with careful movements of the mouse for over ten minutes showing avid concentration throughout; his friend who sat with him offered advice and encouragement.

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Commentary

27. Children’s good behaviour and relationships, and their very positive attitudes to learning are reported in Part B.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Provision in communication, language and literacy is good.

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Main strengths and weaknesses

• Children’s speaking and listening skills are developed very well. • Very good teaching of sounds enables children, particularly the oldest and more able, to use this knowledge in writing their names and other simple words. • Staff ensure children enjoy stories, but books are not always linked enough to other activities.

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Commentary

28. The teaching is good across the different aspects of this area of learning. The older and more capable children are already achieving some aspects of the learning goals in speaking and listening and in early literacy and are likely to exceed in these by the end of the reception year. All staff make a point of listening carefully to what children have to say and feed in relevant words and comments as they talk to them. Children respond, even the youngest, by listening attentively to staff and to other children for extended periods of time.

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Commentary

29. There are carefully planned regular group times for different aged children when staff teach them a range of rhymes and how to listen and name the different sounds in words they

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Commentary

The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre - 10 know. The older and more able children use this knowledge throughout the day when they want to write their names and other words linked to their chosen activities; many are able to form recognisable letters and some do this correctly.

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Commentary

30. Staff are particularly good at catching children’s attention and interest through sharing and reading stories to them in ways that feed their imaginations. Consequently the children are able to remember the sequence of what happens in the stories they know and with help can act them out. For example, the story of We’re Going on a Bear Hunt , was acted out with great enjoyment in the garden by one group using relevant vocabulary from the story. The effective teaching by staff enables children to use their own stories to make up different characters and events. Occasionally a few opportunities are missed to develop the children’s thinking but the good questioning by most staff, such as Why was the cave dark and gloomy? builds well on what the children already know.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Provision in mathematical development is good.

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Main strengths and weaknesses

• Children develop a very good knowledge of shapes and spatial awareness; this aspect is particularly well taught. • Well planned mathematical activities are integrated successfully into everyday routines but a few adults do not always intervene effectively in children’s self chosen activities. • More able children are challenged very effectively in small groups.

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Commentary

31. Teaching is good and children achieve well. The children’s attainment is above the levels expected overall, and they are on course to exceed the early learning goals. Children have a very good knowledge of simple shapes and are beginning to recognise some of their properties. The oldest know the difference between a square and a rectangle, for example. Teaching is very good in this aspect of mathematical development. Adults emphasise the correct mathematical vocabulary and so children describe and use the correct mathematical names for common two-dimensional shapes. Even the three-year olds recognise shapes in everyday objects inside and outside the nursery. For example, when looking out of the window at the roof of the building opposite, one child noticed that it was…. ’like a triangle, but only the top of it’ . Teachers are skilled at asking questions such as ‘What can I do with it?’ which encourage the children to explore shape properties. ‘Can you roll a triangle?’ ‘ Why

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Commentary

not?’ prompt the youngest children to test out what they can do with shapes. This investigative approach adds excitement and fun to children’s learning.

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Commentary

32. Staff teach number concepts well by weaving them into everyday routines such as counting ‘How many children want milk?’, ‘How many want water?’, and ‘How many altogether?’ Children have a good grasp of numerals and number names to 10 and many older and more capable children know numbers well beyond this. Children’s counting skills are practised effectively in well-planned, twice weekly, group sessions. Not all adults are as effective as others at intervening in children’s self-chosen activities, such as water play, to explore and develop mathematical concepts.

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Commentary

33. Adults assess children’s ability well and have identified some capable four-year-olds who need challenging activities. In an activity for such a group, excellent questioning built on children’s initial responses to challenge their thinking and to extend their understanding of ‘more’ and ‘less’. The children had to guess how many objects were contained in a small string bag, record their guess on paper, and empty the bag to count the objects. The teacher then challenged them further to compare their guess with the actual total and to say whether it was more or less. In this short activity the children demonstrated standards well

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Commentary

The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre - 11 above expectations for their age in making sensible estimates, recording estimates using numerals correctly, counting up to and beyond ten objects accurately, and in making comparisons.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Provision in knowledge and understanding of the world is good .

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Main strengths and weaknesses

• The children achieve well and, in particular, make very good progress in early science skills. • The outdoor area is used effectively, particularly for investigative work. • Teaching is good overall but occasionally staff do not make the most of learning opportunities.

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Commentary

34. The children love to investigate their surroundings and show great curiosity by asking questions about what they can see. For example, when they went on a worm hunt they wanted to know why there were few worms to be found on a sunny day. Their teacher explained this well to them and then turned their attention to other forms of life near the trees; the children were fascinated with the range of small insects they found and used magnifiers to look closely at them. The teacher taught them effectively to show respect for these tiny creatures and the children responded positively to this request, returning them to the shade after their observations. The children are also very interested in physical phenomena, such as how bubbles are made and were delighted when a giant bubble was made to wobble by the movement of the ring.

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Commentary

35. The children understand how to use a walkie-talkie, a telephone and a camera and use pretend versions of these as part of their freely chosen play. They understand how to adjust the volume on a tape recorder and how to follow a computer program. They show a natural care for living things; some children used their initiative to water the plants outside because the weather was so hot and they thought that the soil was too dry. Adults are adept at introducing new vocabulary such as ‘ brittle ’, ‘ larvae ’, and ‘ hexagon ’ which the children learnt as they looked at a wasps’ nest brought in by a member of staff. On a few occasions, staff do not make the most of their interaction with the children. For example, when giving directions to a child using a computer program, the terms ‘ this way’ and ‘ that way’ were used, rather than ‘left’ and ‘right’.

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Commentary

36. The children select materials independently when making models and collages and are starting to understand the need to use resources sparingly. They are taught skills well, for example, how to join materials effectively and how to use a range of tools safely. They collaborate well when using construction kits and know that they should have hard hats on when playing building sites! They are developing an appropriate understanding of certain roles in society through visits by doctors and fire fighters. The children’s knowledge of their home town is soundly extended by visits, for example to the local Abbey. The staff are successful in extending the children’s understanding of different localities through stories such as Handa’s Surprise. They develop their understanding of different cultures and beliefs well through stories from world religions.

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Provision in physical development is good.

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre - 12

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Main strengths and weaknesses

• Children achieve well in this area because staff provide a good range of opportunities for them to develop their physical skills. • Very good resources are set out imaginatively to stimulate the children’s interest.

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Commentary

37. Teaching in this area is good and children make good progress and exceed the expected levels. Staff plan a good range of focused activities that are interspersed effectively with self-chosen opportunities. Resources are plentiful and the outdoor space is managed carefully. The children develop a good sense of space as they steer and manoeuvre wheeled toys skilfully around the designated area.

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Commentary

38. The large fixed climbing equipment is very challenging for some children who are given careful and well targeted support from staff. As a result, they gain a good level of confidence and control in balancing, climbing, and jumping. Children are frequently adventurous in their movement and inventive about the way they use the equipment which is often set out to offer different levels of challenge. For example, three boys practised climbing a short ladder set against the grass slope until they gained sufficient confidence and balance to walk up it without using their hands. They took great delight in their achievement.

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Commentary

39. Staff provide a wide variety of opportunities for children to learn to handle small pieces of equipment and tools, and teach specific skills well. The children manipulate small objects with a fine level of control and show good co-ordination when, for example, using the computer mouse to move objects on the screen. They are dexterous at writing, painting with small brushes, cutting, gluing, and threading activities.

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CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT

Provision for creative development is good.

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Strengths and weaknesses

• All children achieve well. • Children use their ideas imaginatively. • The teaching is good though occasionally adults miss opportunities to extend children’s learning.

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Commentary

40. The children are adept at using the wide range of resources. They often work on their own sustaining their concentration for long periods of time. For example, one child used different sized paint brushes and carefully selected colours to meticulously paint a picture that covered every space on the paper. The drawings and models children make are purposeful and the results are of a good standard. Older children were seen selecting and combining materials from different areas of the rooms to embellish their creations.

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Commentary

41. Children’s imaginations are developed particularly well through the stimulating materials and activities provided, as well as by the lively music and story sessions. These experiences extend children’s knowledge effectively. Children play and act out stories together well in the house or café. They have a wide repertoire of songs which they sing tunefully and with enjoyment. They use percussion instruments successfully and others they have made to repeat sound patterns and move in different ways.

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Commentary

The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre - 13 42. The good teaching results in children being skilful in using a range of media and tools creatively. Most children sustain good levels of concentration and involvement on activities but on a few occasions some children need more direction to extend their learning.

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Commentary

The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre - 14

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PART D: SUMMARY OF THE MAIN INSPECTION JUDGEMENTS

The overall effectiveness of the nursery 3 How inclusive the nursery is 2 How the nursery’s effectiveness has changed since its last inspection n/a Value for money provided by the nursery 3

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PART D: SUMMARY OF THE MAIN INSPECTION JUDGEMENTS

Overall standards achieved 3 Children’s achievement 3

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PART D: SUMMARY OF THE MAIN INSPECTION JUDGEMENTS

Children’s attitudes, values and other personal qualities 2 Attendance 1 Attitudes 2 Behaviour, including the extent of exclusions 2 Children’s spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 2

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PART D: SUMMARY OF THE MAIN INSPECTION JUDGEMENTS

The quality of education provided by the nursery 3 The quality of teaching 3 How well children learn 3 The quality of assessment 3 How well the curriculum meets children’s needs 2 Enrichment of the curriculum, including out-of-school activities 2 Accommodation and resources 2 Children’s care, welfare, health and safety 2 Support, advice and guidance for children 2 How well the nursery seeks and acts on children’s views 3 The effectiveness of the nursery’s links with parents 2 The quality of the nursery’s links with the community 3 The nursery’s links with other schools and colleges 3

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PART D: SUMMARY OF THE MAIN INSPECTION JUDGEMENTS

The leadership and management of the nursery 2 The governance of the nursery 2 The leadership of the head 2 The leadership of other key staff 2 The effectiveness of management 2

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PART D: SUMMARY OF THE MAIN INSPECTION JUDGEMENTS

Inspectors make judgements on a scale: excellent (grade 1); very good (2); good (3); satisfactory (4); unsatisfactory (5); poor (6); very poor (7).

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PART D: SUMMARY OF THE MAIN INSPECTION JUDGEMENTS

The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre - 15

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ABOUT THE INSPECTION

The purpose of this inspection is to assure government, parents and the public of the quality and standard of day care. When making judgements, inspectors have regard to how well the provider meets the national standards for under eights day care and childminding. A list of these is attached. The report identifies strengths and areas for improvement. This inspection report must be made available to all parents.

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Information about the setting

St. Albans Children's Centre is located in the centre of the city of St. Albans. Children's Centres aim to develop and promote models of high quality integrated services for young children and their families and are individually tailored to the needs of their local community. As well as integrated nursery education and day care provision St. Albans Children's Centre provides access to: Children's Physiotherapy, Clinical Psychology, Children's Orthoptic Service, Children's Occupational Therapy, Children's Speech and Language Therapy, RNIB Inclusion Officer, a childminding coordinator, a specialist health visitor and an opportunity class. Day care at the centre is offered from 07:45 to 18:15 each weekday for 50 weeks of the year. There are 97 children from the local community on roll at present and 25% of places are allocated to children with special needs. There are 18 day care staff in total, most of whom hold appropriate

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Information about the setting

early years qualifications. Older children also spend time with the nursery school team. The day care accommodation consists of three main rooms, to which children are allocated on an age basis, a large garden and an extensive outdoor play area.

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How good is the Day Care?

The quality and standard of the day care provided by St Albans Children's Centre is good, and the attractive premises provide a welcoming atmosphere to children and their families. Staff work in close partnership with parents and carers. They ensure sufficient information is shared to enable children to settle into the nursery happily and for parent's wishes to be respected. Details of many nursery policies and procedures are made available in the introductory brochure but others are less easily accessible, parents are kept well-informed about their children's progress. Babies' individual routines are supported well and there is sufficient good quality equipment to meet their changing care needs and to allow them to take part in a range of nursery activities including playing in the garden. Relationships between children and staff are good, and children use all areas of the nursery confidently. They engage in many interesting activities, indoors and outside, and the

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How good is the Day Care?

resulting purposeful atmosphere successfully contributes to children's good behaviour. Staff have identified that greater development of the key worker system would be beneficial in further promoting children's self-esteem and levels of involvement in chosen activities. Good attention is given to maintaining children's safety. Access to the premises is carefully monitored and regular risk assessments help ensure hazards are minimised. Detailed record keeping further underpins the safe level of care offered and also helps to promote children's good health. Effective systems are in place to maintain hygiene and meet any special dietary needs. Procedures for the care of sick children are good and shared well with parents. Staff are confident about dealing with accidents, although medication records are not yet complete. They have a good working knowledge of how to protect children from abuse, and the care and inclusion of children

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How good is the Day Care?

The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre - 16 This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000

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What has improved since the last inspection?

Since the last inspection St. Albans Children's Centre has made many improvements to safety. For example, access arrangements have been reviewed to provide maximum security, fire checks are now complete and procedures for the safe conduct of outings have been formalised. Other improvements made concern the quality of care of children. Under-threes now have meals more comfortably in their own areas and additional changing facilities have been provided close to appropriate rooms.

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What is being done well?

• The inclusion of children with special needs is very good. A graduated level of support is provided to enable all children to take part in the full range of activities and play opportunities. Access to multi-agency professionals is available on site, and children and their families are supported in a consistent and familiar environment. • Use of the 'Birth to Three' framework as a planning tool provides consistency of approach across the two rooms primarily caring for under threes and also promotes the professional development of the staff. • The provision of opportunities for children of all ages to access exciting and stimulating outdoor play is a strength of the nursery. There is sufficient space for children to move freely and spontaneously, and enough resources for all to choose freely between activities. Older children are able to challenge themselves physically on the varied apparatus as well as solve

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What is being done well?

problems whilst building with large wooden blocks or using resources to transfer water from one place to another. Babies have their own peaceful, enclosed grassed space where they are successfully introduced to a wider range of sensory experiences. • Support for parents whilst their child is attending day care makes an effective contribution to children's development. As well as the good amounts of information exchanged with key workers on initial home visits successful daily information sharing systems help promote individual children's sense of security and well-being. Parents are always welcome in the nursery and are invited to extra meetings and workshops which cover topics such as behaviour management. They also have on-site access to additional services and multi- agency support where necessary. • Children's good behaviour is promoted particularly well. The policy is accessible, clear and detailed, and helpful to both staff and parents. Staff are fully conversant with it and implement

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What is being done well?

it consistently, working closely with parents where necessary.

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What needs to be improved?

• Systems to ensure parents sign the medication record book to acknowledge any entry. • Contents of the Operation Plan to ensure all required policies and procedures are easily available to parents. • Attention given to further developing the key worker system to increase the link between observations of children's achievement and planned activities, as well as enhancing the emotional well-being of the youngest children and babies.

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Outcome of the inspection

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000

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Outcome of the inspection

The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre - 17

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the next inspection

Std Recommendation 2 Continue to develop the operational plan to ensure requisite details of policies and procedures are easily available to parents. 3 Further develop the key worker system to increase the link between observations of children's achievement and planned activities, and enhance the emotional well-being of the youngest children and babies. 7 Ensure parents sign the medication records to acknowledge any entry made.

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the next inspection

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre - 18

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STANDARD 1 - SUITABLE PERSON

Adults providing day care, looking after children or having unsupervised access to them are suitable to do so.

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STANDARD 2 – ORGANISATION

The registered person meets required adult: child ratios, ensures that training and qualifications requirements are met and organises space and resources to meet the children’s needs effectively.

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STANDARD 3 - CARE, LEARNING AND PLAY

The registered person meets children’s individual needs and promotes their welfare. They plan and provide activities and play opportunities to develop children’s emotional, physical, social and intellectual capabilities.

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STANDARD 4 - PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT

The premises are safe, secure and suitable for their purpose. They provide adequate space in an appropriate location, are welcoming to children and offer access to the necessary facilities for a range of activities which promote their development.

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STANDARD 5 – EQUIPMENT

Furniture, equipment and toys are provided which are appropriate for their purpose and help to create an accessible and stimulating environment. They are of suitable design and condition, well maintained and conform to safety standards.

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STANDARD 6 – SAFETY

The registered person takes positive steps to promote safety within the setting and on outings and ensures proper precautions are taken to prevent accidents.

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STANDARD 7 – HEALTH

The registered person promotes the good health of children and takes positive steps to prevent the spread of infection and appropriate measures when they are ill.

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STANDARD 8 - FOOD AND DRINK

Children are provided with regular drinks and food in adequate quantities for their needs. Food and drink is properly prepared, nutritious and complies with dietary and religious requirements.

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STANDARD 9 - EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES

The registered person and staff actively promote equality of opportunity and anti-discriminatory practice for all children.

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DISABILITIES)

The registered person is aware that some children may have special needs and is proactive in ensuring that appropriate action can be taken when such a child is identified or admitted to the provision. Steps are taken to promote the welfare and development of the child within the setting in partnership with the parents and other relevant parties.

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STANDARD 11 – BEHAVIOUR

Adults caring for children in the provision are able to manage a wide range of children’s behaviour in a way which promotes their welfare and development.

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STANDARD 12 - WORKING IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS AND CARERS

The registered person and staff work in partnership with parents and to meet the needs of the children, both individually and as a group. Information is shared.

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STANDARD 13 - CHILD PROTECTION

The registered person complies with local child protection procedures approved by the Area Child Protection Committee and ensures that all adults working and looking after children in the provision are able to put the procedures into practice.

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STANDARD 14: DOCUMENTATION

Records, policies and procedures which are required for the efficient and safe management of the provision, or to promote the welfare, care and learning of children are maintained. Records about individual children are shared with the child’s parent.

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STANDARD 14: DOCUMENTATION

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000

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STANDARD 14: DOCUMENTATION

The Nursery at St Albans Children’s Centre - 19

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