Care service inspection report Quality themed inspection (day care for children) Stanley Primary School Nursery Class Day Care of Children Stanley Road Ardrossan Inspection completed on 01 June 2016
Service provided by: North Ayrshire Council Service provider number: SP2003003327 Care service number: CS2003016038 Inspection Visit Type: Unannounced Care services in Scotland cannot operate unless they are registered with the Care Inspectorate. We inspect, award grades and set out improvements that must be made. We also investigate complaints about care services and take action when things aren't good enough. Please get in touch with us if you would like more information or have any concerns about a care service. Contact Us Care Inspectorate Compass House 11 Riverside Drive Dundee DD1 4NY enquiries@careinspectorate.com 0345 600 9527 www.careinspectorate.com @careinspect page 2 of 14
1 About the service we inspected The Care Inspectorate regulates care services in Scotland. Information about all care services is available on our website at www.careinspectorate.com This service was previously registered with the Care Commission and transferred its registration to the Care Inspectorate on 1 April 2011. The Care Inspectorate is committed to improving the health and wellbeing of all children receiving a care service. We want to ensure they have the best start in life, are ready to succeed and live longer, healthier lives. We check services are meeting the principles of Getting it Right For Every Child (also known as GIRFEC). Set up by Scottish Government, GIRFEC is a national approach to working in a consistent way with all children and young people. It is underpinned by the principles of prevention and early intervention. The approach helps services focus on what makes a positive difference for children and young people - and what they can do to improve. Getting it Right for Every Child is being woven into all policy, practice, strategy and legislation that affect children, young people and their families. There are eight wellbeing indicators at the heart of Getting it Right for Every Child. They are: safe; healthy; achieving; nurtured; active; respected; responsible; and included. They are often referred to as the SHANARRI indicators. We use these indicators at inspection, to assess how services are making a positive difference for children. We carried out a 'themed' inspection. This targeted approach means that we looked at identified aspects focusing on children's experiences under each Quality Theme. For each Quality Theme we focused on being responsible and safe. Stanley Primary School Nursery Class is a daycare of children service located within the town of Ardrossan. The service is located at the top end of the town and is close to local parks, shops and bus routes. page 3 of 14
The service is provided by North Ayrshire Council and operates part day sessions throughout the school year. The service is registered to provide a care service to a maximum of 12 children aged 2 to under 3 years and 45 children aged from 3 years to those not yet attending primary school. Attendance numbers at our inspection were as follows: 31 May 2016-39 children were attending during the morning session. 31 May 2016-40 children were attending during the afternoon session. 1 June 2016-40 children were attending during the morning session. The service for children aged 2 to under 3 years had not yet begun at the time of this inspection. What we did during the inspection We wrote this report following an unannounced themed inspection which took place between the times of 8:30am and 4:30pm on Tuesday 31 May 2016 and between 10:40am and 2:20pm the following day. We gave feedback to the Head and Depute Head Teacher at the end of the second inspection day. As part of the inspection we took account of the completed annual return and self-assessment forms that we asked the provider to complete and submit to us. We sent the manager twenty questionnaires to give to parents/carers using the service. Eleven were completed and returned to us before the inspection took place. During the inspection process we gathered evidence from various sources including the following: We spoke with: - Children using the service - Eight parent/carers - The head teacher page 4 of 14
- The depute head teacher - The early years teacher - Seven staff members - A student on placement - Two speech and language officers - The home visiting teacher. We also looked at: - The variation to accommodate children aged 2 to under 3 years - Children's folders, personal plans and learning journeys - Mind-mapping and talking and thinking books - Sampled staff training folders - Staff and senior management meetings - Three staffing questionnaires returned to us - 2014/15 development plan evaluation - Senior management monitoring records - Accident, incident and medication records - Parent notice board. Taking the views of people using the care service into account Children arrived at the service eager to see their friends and have fun. Most of the morning children elected to play outdoors. Some enjoyed performing songs for staff on their pretend stage, while others had fun on bikes or playing with sand, water and paints. Some afternoon children also liked playing outdoors while a few helped a staff member to make play-dough. Children told us that they liked playing at nursery. Taking carers' views into account Carers include parents, guardians or relatives of the children attending the service. We sent out 20 care standards questionnaires to the manager of the service to distribute to parents/carers. Eleven were completed and returned to us. Of these, six respondents had recorded further comments. page 5 of 14
In addition we also spoke with eight parents/carers during the inspection visit. Feedback overall indicated that respondents were happy with most aspects of the service. Some questionnaire comments included: "Overall I am happy with everything Stanley School provides, my son loves going there every day. He has developed great relationships within Stanley with teachers and the other children." "All staff are pleasant both with kids & parents/carers." "My child loves nursery. His key worker is amazing in every way with him, couldn't ask for better." However one respondent commented on the significant staffing changes, "Feel almost every week there is a new face." Another respondent commented that staff are "Promoting independence" while her child is "Still at an age he needs assistance." We discussed these comments with the Head and Depute Head Teachers. We also provided them with a collated summary sheet of the responses to our questionnaire. 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 fully completed self-assessment document from the service provider. We were satisfied with the way the service provider had completed this and with the information they had given us. We used the information contained in this document, along with the returned staffing questionnaires to focus on areas for this inspection. We discussed the changes to the self-assessment document which would require to be completed in the future for themed inspections. page 6 of 14
2 The grades we awarded We grade the quality of care and support, quality of the environment, quality of staffing and quality of management and leadership. In each case, we award a grade on a scale from 1 to 6, where 1 is unsatisfactory and 6 is excellent. Quality of care and support Quality of environment Quality of staffing Quality of management and leadership 4 - Good 4 - Good 4 - Good 4 - Good 3 Quality of care and support Findings from the inspection We found that staff understood their roles and responsibilities in encouraging children to be independent while keeping them safe and protected from harm. They had established routines that children were confident in and familiar with, including; snack and hand washing. They had provided pictorial guidance to help children to recognise risks and to play safely, for example; safety procedures when using scissors. As a result children were mindful of risks and consequences. Staff used 'Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies' (PATHS) to help children to consider others. This promoted; fairness, turn taking, listening to what others had to say and offering compliments. Some afternoon children showed us gifts they had made for their friends. We observed that staff helped children to make choices and to organise their own play activities, for example; playing indoors or out, changing the pirate ship into a stage or helping to make play-dough. Although we did feel that staff could further support children to be independent and to do things for themselves. Parents/carers had been included in the development of children's personal plans. However, we felt that personal plans needed to better reflect the specific needs of individual children and be reviewed on a more regular basis. page 7 of 14
We also felt, that in some instances, individual risk assessments would better support staff in meeting children's specific needs. Grade The quality of care and support is graded 4 - Good Requirements Number of requirements - 0 Recommendations Number of recommendations - 1 1. Staff should, where appropriate, establish individual specific processes to better support and meet the developmental and learning needs of each individual child. National Care Standards for Early Education and Childcare up to age 16. Standard 6: Support and Development. 4 Quality of environment Findings from the inspection The Head Teacher and staff ensured that practical arrangements to protect children were maintained, including; a controlled entry system to ensure that only those authorised persons had access to the premises. Parents/carers who spoke with us considered the environment to be safe. We observed children confidently follow their arrival routine of self-registration in their small groups. They were aware of visual and sound cues, for example; the sad face at the outdoor play door and the tidy-up bell which children greeted and participated in enthusiastically. Children's toilets accessed directly from the playroom, supported children to be independent in their personal care routines. page 8 of 14
Children had direct access to an enclosed outdoor area which they used on a daily basis. They could freely choose to play indoors or out. Staff had established measures to protect children while playing outdoors, for example; applying sun cream, providing sun hats and positioned traffic cones to mark out safe boundaries for bikes. There was however little shade to protect children from the sun. Senior managers told us that the nursery were awaiting delivery of a wooden playhouse for the outdoor area. While an accident/incident recording systems was in place, we found some instances where these had not been recorded. Grade The quality of environment is graded 4 - Good Requirements Number of requirements - 0 Recommendations Number of recommendations - 1 1. Staff need to ensure that all incidents are fully recorded. National Care Standards for Early Education and Childcare up to age 16. Standard 14: Well-managed Service. 5 Quality of staffing Findings from the inspection Staff interacted positively with the children. They listened to what children had to say and supported them in making choices. As a result, children had formed positive relationships with staff, confident that their needs would be met. There had however been significant staffing changes over the past year, some on temporary appointments. We observed that some staff were more familiar and confident in their roles than others. Senior managers told us that further permanent members of staff would be appointed in the near future. page 9 of 14
The temporary deployment of the early years teacher was having a positive impact on, leading improvements and children's experiences. Staff told us that they appreciated this guidance. Permanent and experienced staff members were leading on particular areas of interest, for example; PATHS, working with parents, communication. They were very enthusiastic about developing these roles. They had attended a range of training to support them in this work and also in their work with children and their families. However they had identified training in particular aspects of health and safety that they felt was needed for them to effectively support children's diverse needs. Management should ensure that staff are supported and appropriate training is provided. Grade The quality of staffing is graded 4 - Good Requirements Number of requirements - 0 Recommendations Number of recommendations - 1 1. Staff should have access to specific training to help them to confidently and effectively support the diverse needs of all children in the service. National Care Standards for Early Education and Childcare up to age 16. Standard 12: Confidence in Staff. 6 Quality of management and leadership Findings from the inspection The senior management team were familiar faces in the service and we saw that children warmly greeted them when they visited. Senior managers did however acknowledge that recent visits had been somewhat less frequent due to staffing shortages within the Nursery and Primary School. page 10 of 14
A range of systems were used to evaluate the work of the service. This had included; some senior management monitoring visits and team evaluation of the previous development plan. In both instances reflection had taken place on what was working well and where improvements could be made. We discussed how evaluations could focus more on outcomes for children. Management agreed that more frequent and systematic monitoring was needed. Annual Performance & Personal Development (PPD) process had provided further opportunities for management and staff to discuss strengths and areas for personal development. We could see clear links between this and the areas of interest staff were leading on, for example; communication, including the primary 6/7 buddy scheme and nurture. Grade The quality of management and leadership is graded 4 - Good Requirements Number of requirements - 0 Recommendations Number of recommendations - 1 1. A more systematic monitoring system should be developed to monitor the quality of the service provision and to support staff in developing the service. National Care Standards for Early Education and Childcare up to age 16. Standard 13: Improving the Service. page 11 of 14
7 What the service has done to meet any requirements we made at our last inspection Previous requirements There are no outstanding requirements. 8 What the service has done to meet any recommendations we made at our last inspection Previous recommendations There are no outstanding recommendations. 9 Complaints No complaints have been upheld, or partially upheld, since the last inspection. 10 Enforcements We have taken no enforcement action against this care service since the last inspection. 11 Additional Information There is no additional information. page 12 of 14
12 Inspection and grading history Date Type Gradings 14 May 2013 Unannounced Care and support 5 - Very Good Environment 5 - Very Good Staffing 5 - Very Good Management and Leadership 6 - Excellent 4 May 2010 Unannounced Care and support 5 - Very Good Environment Not Assessed Staffing Not Assessed Management and Leadership 5 - Very Good 25 Sep 2008 Unannounced Care and support 4 - Good Environment 4 - Good Staffing 4 - Good Management and Leadership 4 - Good page 13 of 14
To find out more This inspection report is published by the Care Inspectorate. You can download this report and others from our website. You can also read more about our work online. Contact Us Care Inspectorate Compass House 11 Riverside Drive Dundee DD1 4NY enquiries@careinspectorate.com 0345 600 9527 www.careinspectorate.com @careinspect Other languages and formats This report is available in other languages and formats on request. Tha am foillseachadh seo ri fhaighinn ann an cruthannan is c?nain eile ma nithear iarrtas. page 14 of 14