Perth College Nursery Day Care of Children Perth College Crieff Road Perth PH1 2NX Telephone:

Transcription

1 Perth College Nursery Day Care of Children Perth College Crieff Road Perth PH1 2NX Telephone: Inspected by: Arlene Cattigan Audrey Donnan Type of inspection: Unannounced Inspection completed on: 27 August 2012

2 Contents Page No Summary 3 1 About the service we inspected 5 2 How we inspected this service 7 3 The inspection 11 4 Other information 22 5 Summary of grades 23 6 Inspection and grading history 23 Service provided by: Perth College Service provider number: SP Care service number: CS Contact details for the inspector who inspected this service: Arlene Cattigan Telephone enquiries@careinspectorate.com Perth College Nursery, page 2 of 25

3 Summary This report and grades represent our assessment of the quality of the areas of performance which were examined during this inspection. Grades for this care service may change after this inspection following other regulatory activity. For example, if we have to take enforcement action to make the service improve, or if we investigate and agree with a complaint someone makes about the service. We gave the service these grades Quality of Care and Support 5 Very Good Quality of Environment 5 Very Good Quality of Staffing 5 Very Good Quality of Management and Leadership 5 Very Good What the service does well Staff had created a bright, warm and welcoming environment for the children and their families. Children were happy, confident and relaxed within the nursery setting. The extensive garden area provided a wide range of stimulating, innovative and fun learning experiences and was used effectively to extend children's learning and imagination. The nursery had been successful in retaining the Eco Schools green flag and had focused on energy, waste minimisation and litter over the past two years. Children and parents were provided with a variety of ways to participate in providing feedback about all aspects of the service. What the service could do better The management team agreed at the time of the inspection that they would: continue to seek creative ways to seek the views of children and parents and stakeholders; collate the information provided; provide feedback to children Perth College Nursery, page 3 of 25

4 and parents; and use the feedback gained to improve the overall quality of the service; ensure separate records were maintained for incidents (similar to those maintained for accidents) and provide parents with a copy of the record; ensure that safety checklists were completed consistently and dated. What the service has done since the last inspection We saw that since the last inspection: the outdoor area had been further developed; the nursery had been presented with a silver guilt award (Beautiful Perth Neighbourhood section) in relation to their Eco work; a self and peer assessment had been introduced for all staff. Conclusion Throughout the inspection, we saw happy and confident children, who were enjoying play in the nursery. We were pleased to note the very positive relationships between the children, families and staff. The nursery benefited from a strong management team. They demonstrated a commitment to service improvement and held a clear vision for the future of the nursery. Who did this inspection Arlene Cattigan Audrey Donnan Lay assessor: Not Applicable. Perth College Nursery, page 4 of 25

5 1 About the service we inspected The Care Inspectorate regulates care services in Scotland. Prior to 1 April 2011, this function was carried out by the Care Commission. Information in relation to all care services is available on our website at Perth College Nursery was previously registered with the Care Commission and transferred its registration to the Care Inspectorate on 1 April Requirements and recommendations If we are concerned about some aspect of a service, or think it needs to do more to improve, we may make a recommendation or requirement. - A recommendation is a statement that sets out actions the care service provider should take to improve or develop the quality of the service based on best practice or the National Care Standards. - A requirement is a statement which sets out what is required of a care service to comply with the Public Services Reform (Scotland) Act 2010 ("the Act") and secondary legislation made under the Act, or a condition of registration. Where there are breaches of Regulations, Orders or conditions, a requirement may be made. Requirements are legally enforceable at the discretion of the Care Inspectorate. The nursery is registered to care for a maximum of 56 children aged one year to those not yet attending primary school, which includes a maximum of ten children aged one to two years, a maximum of 17 children aged two to three years and, a maximum of 29 children aged three to five years. The nursery operates from detached, single storey, purpose built premises located in the grounds of Perth College UHI. Internally, the accommodation provides separate areas for children aged one to two years, those aged two to three years and those aged three to not yet attending primary school. There are cloakroom, toilet and changing facilities available for children's use. Externally, there is a fully enclosed and well resourced outdoor play area which is easily accessed from all nursery rooms. The nursery holds partner provider status with Perth & Kinross Council's Education and Children's Services. The nursery has a well written and informative policy statement detailing the aims and values. There are eight identified aims and these have been reviewed and updated since the previous inspection. The aims are as follows: Perth College Nursery, page 5 of 25

6 To provide a consistently excellent standard of child-care for both the student and local community. To offer a safe, caring environment for children in which they can learn, play and develop at a pace appropriate to their individual needs. To encourage children to acquire and practice skills and exercise independent, personal choice within their learning. To provide a wide range of quality equipment and materials to encourage children's growth and development. To encourage the development of children's skills in early literacy and numeracy. To consistently recognise parents as the primary educators of children and to work in partnership with them in the best interests of their children. Through the provision of a range of opportunities, to facilitate and encourage parental involvement in the on-going development and enhancement of the Nursery. To efficiently and effectively manage the service in a manner which demonstrates equality and fairness in its operation, and which supports excellent service provision and development. Based on the findings of this inspection this service has been awarded the following grades: Quality of Care and Support - Grade 5 - Very Good Quality of Environment - Grade 5 - Very Good Quality of Staffing - Grade 5 - Very Good Quality of Management and Leadership - Grade 5 - Very Good This report and grades represent our assessment of the quality of the areas of performance which were examined during this inspection. Grades for this care service may change following other regulatory activity. You can find the most up-to-date grades for this service by visiting our website or by calling us on or visiting one of our offices. Perth College Nursery, page 6 of 25

7 2 How we inspected this service The level of inspection we carried out In this service we carried out a low intensity inspection. We carry out these inspections when we are satisfied that services are working hard to provide consistently high standards of care. What we did during the inspection We wrote this report after an unannounced inspection on 27 August 2012 which took place between 9.10am and 1.15pm. The inspection visit was carried out by inspectors, Arlene Cattigan and Audrey Donnan. We gave feedback on our findings from the inspection, on the day of the visit, to the nursery manager and nursery depute. As requested by us, the nursery sent us an annual return. The nursery also sent us a self-assessment form. We provided the nursery with 20 questionnaires for parents and carers of children attending. We received 14 completed questionnaires from parents and carers prior to the inspection. We also spoke to one parent on the day of the inspection. In this inspection, we gathered evidence from various sources, including the relevant sections of policies, procedures, records and other documents, including: the most recent self assessment nursery information booklet displayed information for parents displays of photographs and topic work throughout the nursery staff photographs sample of newsletter displayed snack menus evidence of consultation with parents and children mind maps and talking and thinking books samples of children's profiles safety checklists risk assessments communications books staff meeting agenda and minutes for meeting of 23/04/2012 written record of staff weekly planning meeting in age group three to five years sample of staff self assessment and peer assessment records Perth College Nursery, page 7 of 25

8 staff training log service's own self evaluation for Perth College UHI strategic curriculum planning standards and quality report and improvement plan 2012 certificate of registration public liability insurance. Inspection report continued We also observed the service in operation and spoke with the manager, depute, staff, children and one parent. Grading the service against quality themes and statements We inspect and grade elements of care that we call 'quality themes'. For example, one of the quality themes we might look at is 'Quality of care and support'. Under each quality theme are 'quality statements' which describe what a service should be doing well for that theme. We grade how the service performs against the quality themes and statements. Details of what we found are in Section 3: The inspection Inspection Focus Areas (IFAs) In any year we may decide on specific aspects of care to focus on during our inspections. These are extra checks we make on top of all the normal ones we make during inspection. We do this to gather information about the quality of these aspects of care on a national basis. Where we have examined an inspection focus area we will clearly identify it under the relevant quality statement. Fire safety issues We do not regulate fire safety. Local fire and rescue services are responsible for checking services. However, where significant fire safety issues become apparent, we will alert the relevant fire and rescue services so they may consider what action to take. You can find out more about care services' responsibilities for fire safety at Perth College Nursery, page 8 of 25

9 What the service has done to meet any recommendations we made at our last inspection There were no recommendations made at the last inspection. The annual return Every year all care services must complete an 'annual return' form to make sure the information we hold is up to date. We also use annual returns to decide how we will inspect the service. Annual Return Received: Yes - Electronic Comments on Self Assessment Every year all care services must complete a 'self assessment' form telling us how their service is performing. We check to make sure this assessment is accurate. We received a completed self assessment document from the nursery. The nursery identified what they thought they did well, suggested areas for development and any changes they planned. The self assessment was supported by very helpful evidence folders at the inspection. Taking the views of people using the care service into account There was a maximum of 12 children present on the day of the inspection. This included three children who were spending time in the nursery as part of their planned settling in visits. We saw that all children were happy, settled and confident as they engaged in a variety of activities. Please see comments from some children below in response to specific questions we asked them during the inspection: 'I liked the snack today. It was grapes.' 'We had grapes and apple for snack. I helped cut the apple up. I like fruit.' 'I like bananas best.' 'We're dressing up and having a party.' 'We're going to dance to the music.' Perth College Nursery, page 9 of 25

10 'I like it best when we get outside. I play on the bikes and climb.' Taking carers' views into account 14 parents completed our questionnaires prior to the inspection. 11 of the 14 parents who responded 'strongly agreed' that they were happy with the overall quality of care their children received at nursery, and three parents who responded 'agreed'. We received written comments from parents in our questionnaire and we spoke to one parent on the day of the inspection. Specific comments received included: 'My son loves going to nursery.' 'My child enjoys nursery very much and looks forward to the days he is in nursery. Very happy with the safe, happy and stimulating environment provided.' 'Excellent service and quality of care. Using it for the second time and would recommend it to anyone in a second.' 'Nice welcoming atmosphere and enthusiastic staff.' 'My child is very settled, happy and looks forward to her nursery days. She has been stating the names of staff members fondly since a young age and this clearly appears to be a positive sign that she is looked after and is being taught well.' Perth College Nursery, page 10 of 25

11 3 The inspection We looked at how the service performs against the following quality themes and statements. Here are the details of what we found. Quality Theme 1: Quality of Care and Support Grade awarded for this theme: 5 - Very Good Statement 1 We ensure that service users and carers participate in assessing and improving the quality of the care and support provided by the service. Service strengths The nursery had a very good approach to involving children and families in assessing and influencing the quality of care and support provided to their children, the environment in which their children were cared for, the staff who looked after their children and the overall management and leadership of the service. The nursery had a wide range of methods in place to inform parents about the service their children received and these included: verbal discussion displayed notices, children's work and photographs children's profiles newsletters and letters planned meetings and events. Written evidence showed that parents were asked for their views verbally, through general questionnaires, at Stay and Play sessions, at meetings and social events, in home link initiatives and in children's profiles. This ensured that parents had the opportunity to make comment on the service they and their children received; and to make suggestions for further improvement. We noted that overall parents were very satisfied with the various aspects of the service they were asked about. We saw a written comment made by a parent about a Stay and Play session they had attended. They wrote, 'It was brilliant seeing X (child) receive his birthday cake. I enjoyed the stay and play session. I got a chance to meet some of his friends and see the nursery first hand. I will now be able to speak more about the toys and games at the nursery.' We noted that parents had provided written comments after the last parent's evening. Perth College Nursery, page 11 of 25

12 Comments included, 'I enjoyed looking at X's (child) work, seeing the areas where they play and learn. The chance to speak to his key worker about his progress and development before starting school was of a great benefit.' 'Very useful to get time with X's (child) group leader and appreciate the opportunity to schedule a one to one. Nice to get an outline of the new curriculum structure and then see examples of how it is being implemented. We had not realised that such detailed records were kept... Also useful to get an experience of the environment in which the kids are undertaking their learning.' As a result of questionnaire feedback, parents of children in their ante-preschool year were now asked along to the annual curriculum evening with parents of preschool children. The manager confirmed that parents were informed through the regular newsletter of the results of questionnaires and any action taken as a result of their feedback. We found evidence that children's views and suggestions were gathered through regular discussion and recorded on written lists, wall charts and displays, questionnaires and mind maps, and in talking and thinking books and their profiles. We saw that children in the age group three to five years had undertaken numerous projects including the Queen's Jubilee and the Olympics. Written evidence showed the children's learning journey in each of the topics. A parent wrote in our questionnaire, 'My child seems to enjoy doing a variety of activities provided by the nursery.' Areas for improvement At inspection feedback, we suggested to the management team that they should continue to put in place a range of different ways for parents and children to assess, feedback and influence the service they receive. For this particular statement the service should seek parents' and children's views on the care and support they receive. Grade awarded for this statement: 5 - Very Good Number of requirements: 0 Number of recommendations: 0 Inspection report continued Perth College Nursery, page 12 of 25

13 Statement 3 We ensure that service users' health and wellbeing needs are met. Service strengths We looked at a sample of children's individual files and we found that they included a range of useful information to help staff progress children's development and meet children's individual needs. We saw that parents were provided with settling in and progress reports which helped parents to keep up to date with their children's development and learning. Children benefited from the outdoor learning experiences provided which included physical and energetic play and caring for the environment; and we saw there was a variety of challenging activities to stimulate their curiosity. This meant children's health and wellbeing was being promoted. The newsletter reminded parents '... outdoor activities play an important part in the curriculum... please ensure your child has warm clothing.' The nursery provided large equipment to promote physical wellbeing indoors. As part of their Eco work children, parents and staff had worked hard to gain recognition for their work in caring for the environment. As a result they had retained their Eco Schools Green Flag and had also been presented with a 'silver guilt' award to show how well they done. We noted that healthy eating was being promoted and was incorporated into the snack menus. Children were provided with healthy snacks which included fresh fruit daily. We noted that staff encouraged children's independence as children chopped the fruit for snack and helped themselves to food and drinks at snack time. The menus were displayed for parents to see and were in line with the nursery's healthy eating policy and procedure which had recently been reviewed. We saw from children's questionnaires, written lists and the displayed wall chart that children were consulted about the menu. The manager told us and written evidence confirmed that when asked for their snack preferences, children mainly chose healthy options. Children's allergies were recorded and clearly displayed for staff information to ensure they were meeting children's individual needs. We found evidence that there were safe processes in place for the administration of medication. All medication was stored securely and out of reach from children. Areas for improvement At inspection feedback, the management team agreed to: Inspection report continued Perth College Nursery, page 13 of 25

14 issue new administration of medication permission forms to parents when updating information. This would ensure that accurate information was recorded; store nappies in covered containers to minimise the spread of infection. Grade awarded for this statement: 5 - Very Good Number of requirements: 0 Number of recommendations: 0 Perth College Nursery, page 14 of 25

15 Quality Theme 2: Quality of Environment Grade awarded for this theme: 5 - Very Good Statement 1 We ensure that service users and carers participate in assessing and improving the quality of the environment within the service. Service strengths Evidence gathered for quality statement 1.1 was also considered for this quality statement. Areas for improvement Please see the area for improvement under 1.1 and in particular the service should seek parents and children's views on the indoor and outdoor environment. Grade awarded for this statement: 5 - Very Good Number of requirements: 0 Number of recommendations: 0 Statement 2 We make sure that the environment is safe and service users are protected. Service strengths We found the service safe on the day of the inspection and children were protected. The environment was bright, welcoming and well lit with natural light. There was a secure nursery entrance to ensure there was no unauthorised entry to the nursery and children could not leave the building unnoticed. The garden was fully enclosed. Safety checklists and risk assessments were completed to ensure children's safety. Children's attendance registers were completed accurately in all rooms. This meant in the case of an emergency, staff had an accurate number of children attending at any one time. Children were encouraged to participate in infection control with good hand washing practices. We heard staff remind children to wash their hands before snack and lunch to minimise the risk of infection. Perth College Nursery, page 15 of 25

16 There was very good evidence to support the nursery's approach to child protection matters. The child protection policy detailed staff responsibilities and actions to take if concerns arose. Staff had been given training in child protection and we found that the staff we spoke to knew what to do if they had a child protection concern. Areas for improvement At inspection feedback, the management team agreed to: ensure separate records were maintained for incidents (similar to those maintained for accidents) and provide parents with a copy of the record; ensure that safety checklists were completed consistently and dated. The manager told us that the nursery was going to be redecorated in the future and new flooring was to be laid in the hall and two nursery rooms. We agreed that this would further enhance the overall environment. Grade awarded for this statement: 5 - Very Good Number of requirements: 0 Number of recommendations: 0 Perth College Nursery, page 16 of 25

17 Quality Theme 3: Quality of Staffing Grade awarded for this theme: 5 - Very Good Statement 1 We ensure that service users and carers participate in assessing and improving the quality of staffing in the service. Service strengths Evidence gathered for quality statement 1.1 was also considered for this quality statement. Areas for improvement Please see the area for improvement under 1.1 and in particular the service should continue to seek parents and children's views on staffing. Grade awarded for this statement: 5 - Very Good Number of recommendations: 0 Number of requirements: 0 Statement 3 We have a professional, trained and motivated workforce which operates to National Care Standards, legislation and best practice. Service strengths There was very good evidence to demonstrate that the nursery staff were professional, trained and motivated. Staff photographs and names were displayed in the nursery entrance and on the doors of each nursery room. This helped children and parents to easily identify the individual staff members. All childcare staff held a qualification appropriate to their role and responsibilities. Staff had undertaken a range of in-house and external training to further enhance their knowledge and skills. We saw that the nursery kept a training log of all training attended. Training included risk assessment, first aid, child protection, food hygiene, Pre-Birth to Three, Curriculum for Excellence, restorative approaches, cooperative learning and de-escalation. At the recent in-service day training was provided to the whole staff group on 'listening skills' and 'restorative practice'. The manager, depute and all early year's practitioners were registered with the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC). Perth College Nursery, page 17 of 25

18 There was an annual appraisal system, an interim review every six months and one to ones monthly for all staff to provide them with a regular review and support framework. These meetings provided a forum in which staff performance was reviewed, achievements recognised and training and development needs identified. The manager confirmed that the recognition of the good work carried out by the staff improved morale and work performance. The service had introduced self assessment and peer assessment for staff. The manager confirmed that this was working well and staff were becoming more comfortable with the process. This meant that staff had the opportunity to reflect and evaluate their own and their colleagues' work practices. Staff attended regular nursery meetings. The manager told us that each nursery room nominated a staff member to attend the regular staff meetings. The nominated staff member was responsible for gathering items for the agenda from her room colleagues and sharing the meeting discussion; staff confirmed that the minutes were distributed to all staff. Staff held regular planning review meetings and this provided opportunities to discuss planning and future learning experiences for the children. We heard staff regularly praising children for their achievements and they spoke with children in a kind and respectful manner. We saw that the achievements wall in the room for children aged three to five years recognised the good work carried out by children. We found that staff encouraged children to be independent and had worked hard to build positive working relationships with children and their families. One parent wrote in our questionnaire, 'Staff are very friendly and my child feels very secure and happy in the environment. I find very nice the fact that staff are interested in finding out words in other languages then English, as my child's first language is not English. ' We saw staff talking with parents when they spent time in the nursery settling their children. One parent told us that staff had been very welcoming and helpful to her and her child and that this had made the settling in experience much easier for them. We saw that children had been consulted about the staff in their most recent questionnaire. All children had been complimentary in their views and one even went as far to describe staff as '... so cool, fast, awesome and interesting'. Mainly all children said they liked the staff because they played games with them. Perth College Nursery, page 18 of 25

19 Areas for improvement The manager told us at inspection feedback that she intends to continue to develop opportunities for staff to undertake self and peer evaluations; and encourage staff to take leadership roles within the nursery. Grade awarded for this statement: 5 - Very Good Number of requirements: 0 Number of recommendations: 0 Inspection report continued Perth College Nursery, page 19 of 25

20 Quality Theme 4: Quality of Management and Leadership Grade awarded for this theme: 5 - Very Good Statement 1 We ensure that service users and carers participate in assessing and improving the quality of the management and leadership of the service. Service strengths Evidence gathered for quality statement 1.1 was also considered for this quality statement. Areas for improvement Please see the area for improvement under 1.1 and in particular the service should seek parents and children's views on the management and leadership of the service. Grade awarded for this statement: 5 - Very Good Number of requirements: 0 Number of recommendations: 0 Statement 4 We use quality assurance systems and processes which involve service users, carers, staff and stakeholders to assess the quality of service we provide Service strengths The manager had overall responsibility for the nursery and was supernumerary. She was supported by the depute who worked with the preschool and ante-preschool age group. The manager carried out the main quality assurance tasks within the nursery. She visited all nursery rooms daily to provide support and encouragement to the staff and held regular staff meetings to discuss and review the work of the nursery. The manager told us that she formally observed staff as they carried out their work and fed back her findings to the staff. We saw that written monitoring records were kept. The manager used her own organisational annual self evaluation, the strategic curriculum planner and the quality improvement plan to provide a focus for monitoring. She told us that these tools helped her to identify priority areas of work for the future. The nursery worked in partnership with the local authority and as part of the quality assurance process received regular visits from a support teacher and quality improvement officer. Feedback was provided with areas for improvement identified. Perth College Nursery, page 20 of 25

21 Effective and regular meetings between the manager and Perth College's Customer and Student Services Manager contributed to the efficient smooth running of the nursery as evidenced on the day of the inspection. Areas for improvement The nursery had auditing and monitoring systems in place. We need the manager to ensure that these cover the areas for improvement identified in this report as this will help to support and sustain the ongoing improvement of the nursery. The manager should also seek the views of other stakeholders (such as visitors to the nursery) to assess the quality of the service provided. Grade awarded for this statement: 5 - Very Good Number of requirements: 0 Number of recommendations: 0 Inspection report continued Perth College Nursery, page 21 of 25

22 4 Other information Complaints No complaints have been upheld, or partially upheld, since the last inspection. Enforcements We have taken no enforcement action against this care service since the last inspection. Additional Information There is no other information to be included in this report relevant to the inspection. Action Plan Failure to submit an appropriate action plan within the required timescale, including any agreed extension, where requirements and recommendations have been made, will result in SCSWIS re-grading the Quality Statement within the Management and Leadership Theme as unsatisfactory (1). This will result in the Quality Theme for Management and Leadership being re-graded as Unsatisfactory (1). Perth College Nursery, page 22 of 25

23 5 Summary of grades Quality of Care and Support Very Good Statement 1 Statement Very Good 5 - Very Good Quality of Environment Very Good Statement 1 Statement Very Good 5 - Very Good Quality of Staffing Very Good Statement 1 Statement Very Good 5 - Very Good Quality of Management and Leadership Very Good Statement 1 Statement Very Good 5 - Very Good 6 Inspection and grading history Date Type Gradings 16 Nov 2010 Unannounced Care and support 4 - Good Environment Not Assessed Staffing Not Assessed Management and Leadership Not Assessed 18 Mar 2010 Unannounced Care and support 5 - Very Good Environment Not Assessed Staffing 5 - Very Good Management and Leadership Not Assessed 2 Feb 2009 Unannounced Care and support 5 - Very Good Environment 5 - Very Good Staffing 5 - Very Good Management and Leadership 5 - Very Good Perth College Nursery, page 23 of 25

24 All inspections and grades before 1 April 2011 are those reported by the former regulator of care services, the Care Commission. Perth College Nursery, page 24 of 25

25 To find out more about our inspections and inspection reports Read our leaflet 'How we inspect'. You can download it from our website or ask us to send you a copy by telephoning us on This inspection report is published by the Care Inspectorate. You can get more copies of this report and others by downloading it from our website: or by telephoning Translations and alternative formats This inspection report is available in other languages and formats on request. Telephone: enquiries@careinspectorate.com Web: Perth College Nursery, page 25 of 25