Inspection report for early years provision
Unique Reference Number |
EY321046 |
Inspection date |
29 June 2006 |
Inspector |
Melissa Cox |
Setting Address |
137 Worting Road, BASINGSTOKE, Hampshire, RG22 6NN |
Telephone number |
01256 331147 |
E-mail |
|
Registered person |
The Hatchlings Nursery School Limited |
Type of inspection |
Integrated |
Type of care |
Full day care |
About this inspection
The purpose of this inspection is to assure government, parents and the public of the quality of childcare and, if applicable, of nursery education. The inspection was carried out under Part XA Children Act 1989 as introduced by the Care Standards Act 2000 and, where nursery education is provided, under Schedule 26 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998.
This report details the main strengths and any areas for improvement identified during the inspection. The judgements included in the report are made in relation to the outcomes for children set out in the Children Act 2004; the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding; and, where nursery education is provided, the Curriculum guidance for the foundation stage.
The report includes information on any complaints about the childcare provision which Ofsted has received since the last inspection or registration or 1 April 2004 whichever is the later.
The key inspection judgements and what they mean
Outstanding:
this aspect of the provision is of exceptionally high quality
Good:
this aspect of the provision is strong
Satisfactory:
this aspect of the provision is sound
Inadequate:
this aspect of the provision is not good enough
For more information about early years inspections, please see the booklet Are you ready for your inspection? which is available from Ofsted's website: www.ofsted.gov.uk.
THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION
On the basis of the evidence collected on this inspection:
The quality and standards of the care are good. The registered person meets the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding.
The quality and standards of the nursery education are good.
WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?
The Hatchlings Nursery School in Worting Road opened in 2005. It is one of two nurseries owned by Hatchlings Nursery School Ltd. The nursery has three playrooms and a large outside play area.
The nursery is open 08:00-18:00 Monday to Friday, all year round except Christmas and bank holidays. A maximum of 24 children may attend at any one time. Children attend morning, afternoon or the whole day. There are currently 42 children aged from 2 to under 5 years on roll. Of these children, 26 receive funding for early education.
Children come from a wide catchment area. The nursery currently supports a number of children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities and also supports a number of children who speak English as an additional language. The company currently employ seven staff, of these four staff hold early years qualifications and the owner has a teaching qualification. Other staff are working towards early years qualifications.
THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE PROVISION
Helping children to be healthy
The provision is good. Children begin to learn about healthy eating and to know their personal likes and dislikes. They are eager to try various fresh fruits following encouragement from the staff. They eat foods suited to their individual needs because staff liaise closely with parents before children start at the nursery school to find out about possible allergies or religious requirements. They learn and demonstrate, through effectively implemented routines, a good awareness of the importance of good personal hygiene. They gain a good awareness and understanding of why they need to wash their hands after visiting the toilet and before eating food through regular explanations from staff.
All children benefit from taking daily fresh air and exercise, making good use of the outdoor area. They move confidently between areas both in and out of doors. They have good co-ordination and an awareness of others, particularly when riding bikes and wheeled toys outside. Children take part in a range of activities in all areas of learning, which help to develop both their fine and gross motor skills. They are able to control pencils, scissors and paintbrushes with a good range of activities to develop their manipulative skills. Children move with confidence, jumping on the bouncy castle, balancing on the climbing frame or spraying water on the plants.
Children's good health is promoted effectively by staff who demonstrate an excellent knowledge of the procedures for promoting health and hygiene. Staff consistently wear disposable gloves and aprons for nappy changing which sustains high levels of hygiene and helps prevent the spread of infection.
Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe
The provision is good. The environment is warm and welcoming to parents and their children, who are greeted individually on arrival. The individual welcome helps the children feel secure and encourages them to settle at the start of the session. Children play in a well planned environment because staff plan the room and the equipment layout carefully. They use a varied range of safe and developmentally appropriate resources and have successfully developed a separate area for children under three to access toys suitable for their age. As a result resources and play equipment support, stimulate and challenge the children's individual development needs appropriately. Equipment and resources are kept clean and in a good state of repair and are checked regularly for safety.
Children feel confident and secure in their environment. Staff's awareness of children's developing abilities helps to ensure appropriate safety measures are in place to avoid dangerous situations and minimise risks. However, on occasions, staff deployment in the outside play area is not sufficiently effective to ensure children are effectively supervised. Comprehensive policies and procedures are individual to the setting and promote the children's safety and well being.
Children learn to keep themselves safe. They begin to understand how to take care of themselves, knowing that they must wear sunhats outside on very hot days and not to run in the nursery rooms. They know to be careful as they leave the classroom and go down the steps and that they should do their best to avoid collisions when riding wheeled toys.
Children are very well protected by staff who have a clear understanding of child protection policies and procedures and give high priority to the children’s welfare.
Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do
The provision is good. Children are confident in their environment, arrive happily and eager to take part in all activities. The staff have excellent relationships with parents and cooperate well to meet each child's individual needs. Children play an active part in the setting. They show immense enthusiasm as they make independent choices and select their own activities from well-presented play equipment and self-selection areas. They show an excellent understanding of the individual development needs of the children, helping them to focus on activities such as writing their names or painting pictures of their families. Children throughout the setting are motivated and become engrossed in a wide range of developmentally appropriate activities, indoor and outdoor, which provide good levels of challenge. Children respond well to the routine changes in the session, they follow clear guidelines and are aware of the expectations such as, helping tidy activities away.
Children's needs are met effectively through staff's sensitive and appropriate interactions that promote their self-esteem. Very good positive relationships are evident between staff and children. They know the children well nurturing their self-esteem. Children develop a good awareness of their own needs and a mature respect for the needs of others as they negotiate turn taking with books in the under threes. Children in the nursery build and construct with bricks, have good opportunities to make informed choices in activities such as playing in the garden or playing with the sand. They share and work together cooperatively.
Nursery Education
The quality of teaching and learning is good. All children are happy, settled, and thoroughly enjoy their time in the setting. They are very confident, interested and able to work on their own in activities such as drawing, sticking, imaginary play and looking at books. They have extensive opportunities to explore their senses through music and respond enthusiastically to the adults' lead .
Children show an excellent understanding and willingness to keep themselves safe and healthy through routines such as hand washing and caring for their environment. Children's behaviour is exemplary. They know right from wrong and show confidence in their negotiating skills. Children are sensitive to the needs of others, readily share toys and resources and co-operate with each other.
Children receive praise in their work and play helping build their self-esteem and confidence. They show a well-developed self-respect for others in the setting. They explore different beliefs, traditions and cultures and talk about special events in their lives at circle time. Children experience varied opportunities to develop their physical skills through well-planned and spontaneous activities both indoors and out. As a result, they develop an excellent understanding of the importance of a healthy lifestyle.
Children are skilful communicators. They interact with confidence, speak clearly and listen well to each others and staff's conversations. Children listen attentively to stories and recall parts of the story from memory. Children's imaginary play is varied and interesting as they draw on their experiences pretending to be shop keepers in the playhouse shop. Children concentrate well at varied planned and spontaneous activities such as counting and comparing animals, learning to use numbers in everyday situations. They are adept at using simple programs on the computer, which foster different aspects of their mathematical understanding. Many of the children recognise and name simple two-dimensional shapes and some can name three-dimensional shapes. When talking to an adult, they describe some of the properties accurately using everyday language.
Staff develop and use varied teaching methods to engage the children's interests and develop their progress. They use good consolidation techniques through repetition, questions and revisiting topics and activities to support the children's learning. Staff plan and provide a good range of activities that promote children's learning. They are well qualified and demonstrate a clear understanding of the Foundation Stage. They use this knowledge to plan a broad range of experiences for all children. As a result the children are progressing well as independent learners. Staff receive good opportunities for ongoing training and development, which underpins their knowledge and skills effectively to support the children. Planning is linked to the early learning goals and identifies what the children are to learn from planned activities. However, information from children's assessments is not always used to influence planning to provide sufficient challenge for some children.
Helping children make a positive contribution
The provision is good. Children arrive at the setting happy and confident. The children are welcomed as they self register and eagerly look forward to the day activities. Children are given clear guidelines, know the routines well and are sensitive to the needs of others, readily sharing toys and resources. Children with special educational needs are well supported in all areas and due to this they are able to achieve their full potential.
Children develop a positive attitude to others through varied images displayed around the setting. Children receive good opportunities to visit the local community, as well as welcoming visitors from the community into the setting. Thus, further developing a secure knowledge of the wider world. This positive approach fosters children’s spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.
Partnership with parents and carers is good. Parents and carers are well informed by staff. They share relevant background information, play activities and discuss children's specific needs. Informative notice boards with relevant up to date business information and current project work are accessible to all parents. Children benefit from the open door policy and two way sharing of information, with opportunities for parents to speak to staff on a daily basis. Parents receive regular opportunities to contribute to the assessments made on their child and are encouraged to be involved in their learning. As a result, parents and carers have a sound understanding of their child's progress.
Organisation
The organisation is good. The provision for the quality of leadership and management is good. At most times, staffing levels are good and the large majority of staff hold early years qualifications and have relevant experience. As a result, they support children’s well being and education. Staff demonstrate a good understanding of their designated roles and responsibilities. Policies and procedures form part of the staff induction and help to ensure consistent provision for the children. The manager provides good opportunities for staff to undertake external and in-house training thus promoting their personal development. This is used to help develop staff skills in organising provision that meets the individual needs of the children. The play and education provision is organised and monitored well to ensure children have access to the full range of activities.
Children's care is enhanced by the setting’s effective organisation. Staff observe children's development and learning and keep records that help them to meet their needs. Children's records are openly shared with parents. Staff understand and follow the settings policies and procedures to take appropriate steps to protect children, promote their well-being and support their development. Regular meetings are held, when staff are able to share their views and contribute to the organisation of the nursery.
The manager of the setting monitors and evaluates the provision in a constant process through the openness of the staff. They clearly know the strengths and weaknesses of the provision and work hard to ensure staff work effectively and have the relevant skills and qualifications to carry out their role.
Improvements since the last inspection
Not applicable.
Complaints since the last inspection
There have been no complaints made to Ofsted since registration.
The provider is required to keep a record of complaints made by parents, which they can see on request. The complaints record may contain complaints other than those made to Ofsted.
THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION
On the basis of the evidence collected on this inspection:
The quality and standards of the care are good. The registered person meets the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding.
The quality and standards of the nursery education are good.
WHAT MUST BE DONE TO SECURE FUTURE IMPROVEMENT?
The quality and standards of the care
To improve the quality and standards of care further the registered person should take account of the following recommendation(s):
The quality and standards of the nursery education
To improve the quality and standards of nursery education further the registered person should take account of the following recommendation(s):
Any complaints about the inspection or the report should be made following the procedures set out in the leaflet Building better childcare: Compliments and concerns about inspectors' judgements which is available from Ofsted's website: www.ofsted.gov.uk
