Starting Point Child Care Centre

Inpsection Report for Early Years Provision

Introduction

This inspection was carried out by Ofsted under Sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of the registered early years provision. 'Early years provision' refers to provision regulated by Ofsted for children from birth to 31 August following their fifth birthday (the early years age group). The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children's learning, development and welfare, known as the Early Years Foundation Stage.

The provider must provide a copy of this report to all parents with children at the setting where reasonably practicable. The provider must provide a copy of the report to any other person who asks for one, but may charge a fee for this service (The Childcare (Inspection) Regulations 2008 regulations 9 and 10).

The setting also makes provision for children older than the early years age group which is registered on the voluntary and/or compulsory part(s) of the Childcare Register. This report does not include an evaluation of that provision, but a comment about compliance with the requirements of the Childcare Register is included in Annex B.

Description Of The Setting

Starting Point Child Care Centre is managed by the Governing Body of South Cheshire College. It opened in its new premises in 2008 and operates from five designated rooms on the ground floor of the Administration centre of the college in Crewe, Cheshire. There is an outdoor play area available for the children's use.

The nursery and out of school care is registered for a maximum of 76 children in the early years age group. The setting is open five days a week from 08.00 to 18.00 all year round.

There are currently 114 children on roll aged from three months to eight years. This provision is registered by Ofsted on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the childcare register. The setting supports children with learning difficulties and disabilities and there are currently a number of children who speak English as an additional language on roll.

The setting employs 16 members of staff including the manager. One member is qualified to NVQ level 4, six members of staff are qualified to level 3 in early years, four members to NVQ level 2, three members have an NNEB and two members NAMCW. The setting liaises closely with other providers and schools and they receive support from the local authority.

Overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is good. The provider meets all requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage(EYFS). Children are making good progress within the (EYFS) and observation and assessment systems clearly identify the next steps in their learning. Management identify clear goals and demonstrate a very strong commitment towards achieving continual improvement. Self-evaluation systems have recently been implemented to identify strengths and weaknesses. The effective partnership with parents, carers and other agencies creates an inclusive environment where children are fully safeguarded and their welfare requirements are well met. The completion of risk assessments for all outings is an area for improvement.

What steps need to be taken to improve provision further?

To further improve the early years provision the registered person should:

• ensure a written risk assessment is carried out and reviewed before embarking on each specific outing.

The leadership and management of the early years provision

The strong management team are actively involved within the nursery and eager to achieve the highest service standards for the local community. The whole staff team is highly motivated towards providing good quality care and education for children. Staff are committed towards their involvement in the self evaluation documents in order to bring about improvement. They ensure that the learning environment and resources are available to all children and strive to provide an inclusive and welcoming service. Staff are well qualified and experienced and annual appraisal systems are in place to support staff and identify future training needs. Staff meetings are held on a regular basis to further enhance staff development and their roles and responsibilities have been clearly established. Consequently, staff work effectively as a team because they feel valued and involved within the setting.

Robust recruitment, employment and induction procedures and comprehensive risk assessments are in place to protect children. However, risk assessments have not been completed for the nursery children for spontaneous outings, such as, walks into the local community. Required policies and procedures are available and reviewed on a regular basis to ensure that they are effective and inclusive for children and their families. Management are currently seeking to obtain their policies and procedures in other languages to further promote inclusion. Staff are fully aware of the policies and know who the nominated person with responsibility for child protection is. Good procedures are followed and effective relationships with support agencies and parents ensure that the individual needs of children with learning difficulties and disabilities are met. Parents value the friendly, informal relationships they share with staff and feel involved and included in the nursery and out of school. Regular information and notices ensure that parents are kept informed about changes and improvements within the setting. Parents evenings are planned and the daily exchange of information ensure parents are kept well informed about their child's progress and achievements in their learning and development. Staff have strengthening links with other providers within the EYFS to promote the integration of education and any extended services.

The quality and standards of the early years provision

Management and staff have a good knowledge and understanding of the underlying principles of effective early years practice. They have embraced changes to the EYFS and have successfully implemented key aspects to enhance children's learning. Staff have devised a system for identifying starting points and effective assessment procedures are clearly established and monitored to record children's progress and individual learning. These are used effectively to plan for the next steps in children's individual learning. Parents are invited to record their own observations on their child's progress and can freely observe their child's learning journal. The introduction of home to nursery sheets enhance the communication between the child's key person and parents on the learning and development of their child. Weekly observations are used to plan activities for the following week and focus activities are evaluated to continually improve practice enabling the development of individual children's progress.

All children develop a strong sense of belonging within the nursery and out of school. Examples of their work, photographs and posters are displayed to create an inviting and stimulating environment. A balanced range of suitable resources are available for children across the age ranges. They are organised to promote children's independent learning with, for example, low-level sand and water trays or treasure baskets for babies and toddlers. Children have great fun as they examine the bubbles in the water tray and the babies and toddlers touch and feel various materials, showing expressions of delight. Older children confidently help themselves to writing materials, count items or choose a book to look at in the quiet area.

Children enjoy daily outdoor adventures, for example, they put on warm clothes, waterproofs and wellingtons to play in the rain. Toddlers enjoy playing in their outdoor area using various outdoor toys and equipment to develop their physical skills. All children throughout the nursery benefit from fresh air and exercise each day. They improve their large physical skills as they learn to negotiate the climbing and balancing apparatus. Older children enjoy music and movement sessions where they sing, dance, move and use a variety of musical instruments. A good balance of adult directed and child led activities are provided. Babies and children are offered interesting challenges to extend their experiences with time to explore, practise and apply their learning. They have fun exploring and experimenting with different construction kits. Language and communication skills are developed as children join in lively action songs or share stories. Letter sounds and word patterns are regularly reinforced in daily activities and signs, pictures and symbols are used to enhance children's language.

Children share warm relationships with staff, as babies and toddlers enjoy lots of hugs and cuddles from their carers. Children happily share, take turns, play together cooperatively and are considerate towards adults and each other. They are encouraged to understand and respect boundaries as the older children walk through the different rooms in the nursery. Children are polite and well-behaved and staff act as positive role models. Children are helped to consider and value diversity. They have access to an excellent range of resources, play opportunities and activities which reflect diversity and acknowledge cultural differences. Children's artwork and designs created to celebrate Chinese New Year form an attractive display of lanterns, fans, Chinese calendar and dragons which they proudly reflect on.

Children's safety is given a high priority with areas checked on a daily basis to identify potential hazards and risks. Children are encouraged to consider and recognise potential risks and dangers as they start to accept responsibility for their own safety. The promotion of a healthy lifestyle is given a high priority throughout the setting. Good hygiene practices are actively promoted and incorporated into the daily routines to encourage children to care for themselves. Babies' and children's personal care needs and routines are recognised and followed, providing an environment consistent with home. Meals are well balanced, nutritious and freshly cooked on the premises each day. Menus are displayed for parents to view and all dietary requirements are appropriately met. Meal times are relaxed, social occasions which children clearly enjoy. Independence skills are actively promoted when older children confidently use cutlery and toddlers learn to use spoons to feed themselves.

Annex A: Record of inspection judgements

Overall Efectiveness

Leadership and management

Quality and standards

Annex B: The Childcare Register