Ofsted Inspection Report For Early Years Provision

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 NURSERY EDUCATION

On the basis of the evidence collected on this inspection:

The quality and standards of the nursery education are outstanding.

WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

Central Newcastle High School is an independent school for girls which opened in 1895. The nursery was established in 1999 and is based in the junior department of the school, the site of which is in Gosforth, Newcastle upon Tyne. This is an area with good transport links and a wealth of shops, restaurants and other leisure facilities. Most girls who attend the nursery live locally. There are 27 girls aged three and four years old currently on roll, all of whom receive funding for nursery education. Nursery pupils are accommodated in two large classrooms and have access to a fully enclosed area for outdoor play. The nursery is open Monday to Friday in term time only between 08.30and 15.00 for 36 weeks of the year. A qualified teacher and two other appropriately qualified and experienced staff members work directly with the children, support staff are also available.

THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE PROVISION

Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is outstanding.

The quality of teaching and learning is outstanding and provides huge scope for children to have fun and enjoy themselves. Highly skilled and intuitive teaching methods allow the children to see the potential of ordinary but versatile resources. As a result, the children use yellow blankets to represent sand in the desert and pretend that boxes are containers full of precious objects. In doing so, the children use their imaginations to the fullest then express their creativity by making pictures and models of their ideas using the wealth of craft materials freely available throughout the day.

Relationships between children and teaching staff are excellent. The children receive the staff's complete attention and so they are confident, happy and secure. Planning is of a very high standard. Based on observation of the children's individual abilities, preferences and interests, it keeps the children constantly busy and completely engaged in exciting activities that motivate them and promote the development of new skills. Staff's knowledge of the Foundation Stage is excellent and they are already very well prepared for the forthcoming Early Years Foundation Stage.

The opportunities for children to develop communication, language and literacy skills are first-class. They are spellbound when favourite tales, such as The Three Bears, are read to them and they are keen to ask questions that are pertinent and relevant to the story. This increases the children's listening skills and develops their ability to identify key themes. The children make impressive attempts at writing, both in planned and self-initiated activities. Many letters are perfectly formed and almost all of the children recognise and pronounce both the letter name and sound,  demonstrating their increasing awareness that text carries meaning. The children talk animatedly and articulately to express their thoughts and opinions and they demonstrate their burgeoning vocabulary as they do so, for instance, when they talk about landscape or portrait photographs.

The daily routine is very well balanced with an excellent mix of busy and quiet times and indoor and outdoor play. Well organised play areas allow the children to move around freely and comfortably so they learn how to negotiate space safely and sensibly. All resources are readily accessible to the children to encourage them to make choices. The availability of rulers, tapes and scales enables children to weigh and measure in spontaneous situations like role play, while excellent intervention from staff prompts them to use mathematics in practical and meaningful situations, such as when they count how many beakers are needed at snack time.

Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is outstanding.

Children's spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is fostered. Highly effective behaviour management techniques teach the children boundaries and help them to distinguish right from wrong. Acts of kindness and thoughtfulness are recognised and rewarded with praise from teaching staff, which promotes the development of these and other positive personal qualities.

All children are treated with equal concern and genuine regard and they are fully included in every activity. The children begin to understand diversity through handling and looking at an excellent range of resources. These consist of books, jigsaws, small world characters and wall posters that reflect positive images of people from different cultures and countries, people with disabilities and people engaged in tasks traditionally associated with specific genders. The festivals that are relevant to the children on roll are celebrated with great enthusiasm in a joint effort between nursery and home to encourage the children to become aware of and take pride in their heritage.

Partnership with parents and carers is outstanding. Very good quality written information is given to prospective parents before their children begin attending while regular newsletters, a dedicated noticeboard, frequent parents evenings, electronic communication and face to face daily discussion are some of the many methods employed to keep parents and staff informed of the children's recent experiences. Parents have very positive views of the staff and describe them as 'caring' and 'friendly'. They rate the provision for nursery education as 'excellent' and particularly value how confident and happy their children are while they are at the nursery.

Organisation

The organisation is outstanding.

The leadership and management of the nursery provision is outstanding. Key personnel have a very clear vision of the direction in which the nursery provision should go and they work extremely hard to put in place the measures needed to achieve this goal. They have direct contact with the children most days so each child is known as an individual, which helps to foster in the children a sense of belonging and security.

Staff hold qualifications that are appropriate to their role and they participate in frequent further training to keep practice fresh and up-to-date. Documentation is impeccable and extremely well organised overall, this underpins the smooth and efficient way in which the nursery operates from day to day. Frequent consultation with parents and a total commitment to providing the best service possible allows staff to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the service then build or improve upon them as necessary.

Staff work very well as a team. The quality of leadership means they have a clear understanding of their roles and responsibilities, which produces a focused and productive teaching approach that strives to help children reach their full potential. They are enthusiastic and dedicated and keep the welfare, happiness and education of the children at the heart of their work.

Overall, the provision meets the needs of the range of the children for whom it provides.

Improvements since the last inspection

At the last inspection the provider was asked to make some improvement to documentation. As a result, the records that monitor children's progress are clear and easy to understand. They enable teaching staff to plan in a highly effective way that helps children to make very good progress in all areas of their development.

Complaints since the last inspection

Since the last inspection there have been no complaints made to Ofsted that required the provider or Ofsted to take any action in order to meet the National Standards.

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 NURSERY EDUCATION

On the basis of the evidence collected on this inspection:

The quality and standards of the nursery education are outstanding.

WHAT MUST BE DONE TO SECURE FUTURE IMPROVEMENT?

The quality and standards of the nursery education

No recommendations for improvement are made because the quality and standards of nursery education are outstanding.

Any complaints about the inspection or the report should be made following the procedures set out in the leaflet Complaints about Ofsted Early Years: concerns or complaints about Ofsted's role in regulating and inspecting childcare and early education (HMI ref no 2599) which is available

from Ofsted's website: www.ofsted.gov.uk