West Kilbride Village Nursery Day Care of Children West Kilbride Community Centre Corse Street West Kilbride KA23 9AX Telephone:

Transcription

1 West Kilbride Village Nursery Day Care of Children West Kilbride Community Centre Corse Street West Kilbride KA23 9AX Telephone: Inspected by: Margaret Speirs Type of inspection: Unannounced Inspection completed on: 21 September 2011

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 20 5 Summary of grades 21 6 Inspection and grading history 21 Service provided by: The Committee of West Kilbride Village Nursery Service provider number: SP Care service number: CS Contact details for the inspector who inspected this service: Margaret Speirs Telephone enquiries@scswis.com West Kilbride Village Nursery, page 2 of 22

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 6 Excellent Quality of Environment 5 Very Good Quality of Staffing Quality of Management and Leadership N/A N/A What the service does well The service provides a varied range of opportunities for parents/carers to be involved both within the nursery and at home. Feedback and suggestions made by parents/ carers and children are welcomed and used to inform future developments. Staff work well together and are aware of their roles and responsibilities within each playroom. They know the children as individuals and competently cater for their individual needs and preferences. Management support staff very well and take positive steps to adapt the operations of the service to meet the changing needs of families in the community. What the service could do better Management and staff should continue to maintain and develop the service they provide. They should continue to identify areas for improvement as they have been doing. What the service has done since the last inspection Management and staff continue to evaluate the quality of service they provide. They recognise the importance of continuous development and updating their skills and knowledge through on-going training opportunities. West Kilbride Village Nursery, page 3 of 22

4 They have reviewed how they gain feedback from parents/carers and children. Questionnaires have been adapted and extended to include additional feedback on the wrap around service and play days. Conclusion West Kilbride Village Nursery provides children with a safe, stimulating environment in which to explore and learn. Management and staff are professional and welcoming and have built up positive relationships with the families using the service. Who did this inspection Margaret Speirs West Kilbride Village Nursery, page 4 of 22

5 1 About the service we inspected West Kilbride Village Nursery is situated in the West Kilbride Community Centre. The service is provided by a voluntary committee who employ a manager and staff team to deliver the service. Before 1 April 2011 this service was registered with the Care Commission. On this date the new scrutiny body, Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland (SCSWIS), took over the work of the Care Commission, including the registration of care services. This means that from 1 April 2011 this service continued its registration under the new body, SCSWIS. The service offers child care for a maximum of 67 children between 2 years and those not yet attending primary school. The service aims and values are; "To provide a safe, secure and stimulating environment where children are motivated to achieve their aspirations through exploratory play." "To ensure staff support the individual child and their family to learn through challenging and quality experiences within and beyond the nursery setting." "To enable the children to become independent, respectful and responsible citizens and to become aware of different environments in the world around them." "To ensure our children, parents, carers and staff are treated with respect and in a fair and just manner, and diversity is recognised, valued and promoted in the nursery." "To ensure our parents and carers are enabled to participate as equal partners in their child's learning and care." "To maintain effective partnerships with the wider community." "To take responsibility for identifying and maintaining continuous professional development of every staff member employed at West Kilbride Village Nursery." Based on the findings of this inspection this service has been awarded the following grades: Quality of Care and Support - Grade 6 - Excellent Quality of Environment - Grade 5 - Very Good Quality of Staffing - N/A Quality of Management and Leadership - N/A West Kilbride Village Nursery, page 5 of 22

6 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. West Kilbride Village Nursery, page 6 of 22

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 following an unannounced inspection that took place between 9.30am and 16.15pm on 21 September This inspection was carried out by SCSWIS Inspector M Speirs. We sent twenty four of our questionnaires for the service to give to parents/carers. Seventeen were completed and returned to us before the inspection took place. In this inspection we sampled evidence from various sources, including the following: - Supporting evidence from the most recent self assessment - Newsletters - Returned Care Standards questionnaires - Service parent and children's questionnaires - Daily communication records - Parental involvement calendar - Notice boards information - Individual letters to parents - Talking/thinking books - Improvement plan - Parent/carer plan - Children's folders - Parent handbooks - Committee newsletters - Risk assessments - Policies and procedures - Artwork displays - Photographs - Accident/incident records - Registration and Insurance certificates - Discussions with the manager, staff members and some of the children - Observations of the environment, resources and staff/children interaction West Kilbride Village Nursery, page 7 of 22

8 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 report continued 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 West Kilbride Village Nursery, page 8 of 22

9 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 fully completed self assessment document from the service provider. We were satisfied with the way the service provider had completed this and with the relevant information they had given us for each of the headings that we grade them under. The service provider identified what they thought they did well, some areas for development and any changes they planned. The service provider told us how the people who used the care service had taken part in the self assessment process. Taking the views of people using the care service into account Thirty one pre-school, ten ante pre-school and nine children aged 2-3 years were being cared for during our visit. All were observed to be settled and happy in their surroundings. Staff were caring and attentive and ably catered for the children's differing needs. A varied and interesting range of activities were available for the children to take part in both indoors and out. Taking carers' views into account Seventeen parents/carers completed and returned our Care Standards questionnaires. Sixteen strongly agreed and one agreed that, overall, they were happy with the quality of care their children received. In the main, responses were very positive. Comments made included: "The nursery is staffed with committed and talented individuals who know how to work as a team on behalf of the children. The service is a beacon of excellence in Ayrshire" "This is the second child of mine to use this nursery and I would encourage anyone to use this nursery in the future" West Kilbride Village Nursery, page 9 of 22

10 "West Kilbride Village Nursery is a fantastic set up. The quality of the staff is what makes it so exceptional" Further comments are included within this report. A few parents indicated that they didn't think the service made good use of resources in the community. We discussed this with the manager who agreed to make parents/ carers more aware of the range of activities which did take place out with the nursery premises. West Kilbride Village Nursery, page 10 of 22

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 Overall grade awarded for this theme: 6 - Excellent 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 grade awarded for this Quality Statement at the previous inspection on 3 September 2010 was 6 - Excellent. The evidence we sampled at this inspection maintained this grade. We concluded this after we read what parents and children had written. We also spoke to the manager, depute manager and staff and observed the children present during the visit. We looked at how the children and their families were routinely involved in assessing the quality of care and support and found that the service did this by: - holding discussions with parents and children on a daily basis, exchanging information to assist in meeting individual children's needs; and - providing families with a range of written information about the service including regular informative newsletters, individual letters, parent handbooks and a parent involvement calendar of events they could participate in - seeking feedback and asking where improvements could be made to the service through providing questionnaires to parents. Responses from these were collated and fed back to the parents. Any action being taken was also communicated to them. Feedback from parent evenings and workshops was also used to inform service development - involving the children in completing simple questionnaires asking them what makes them happy/sad. Talking/thinking books were used to good effect to gain suggestion and ideas from the children - operating a parent/carer plan which involved them in extending learning at nursery into the home West Kilbride Village Nursery, page 11 of 22

12 Management and staff provided further opportunities for parents/carers to be involved in the service, for example; - meetings with their child's key worker to discuss their progress - supporting staff in the running of the weekly lending library - organising 'play days' for them to be involved in activities along with their children - taking part and assisting with fundraising events The service had identified through self assessment to: "Provide service users and carers with a questionnaire in relation to our new wrap around service". The service had developed these and intended to issue these to parents/carers using the extended service. Of the seventeen parents/carers who returned our questionnaires sixteen felt they were involved in developing the service. One indicated that this was not applicable to them. All were happy with the quality of care their children received. Additional comments made included: "When I enrolled (child's name) for the village nursery I intended moving her to the school nursery for her pre-school year. However, I have been totally impressed with how the village nursery has been run, to an extremely high standard, both in terms of the staff and in the development of my child" "Staff supported me in getting specialist help, then went on to implement the techniques advised" "The nursery caters for my two year olds needs and allows my child the space to develop freely at her own pace" "We remain very satisfied with the quality of care, education and support at West Kilbride Village Nursery. Our children are nurtured and cared for well by the staff who are consummately professional and yet so friendly, approachable and down to earth" Areas for improvement Management and staff should continue with their excellent practice of providing various opportunities for parents/carers and children to be involved in and to develop the service provided. Grade awarded for this statement: 6 - Excellent Number of requirements: 0 Number of recommendations: 0 Statement 4 Inspection report continued West Kilbride Village Nursery, page 12 of 22

13 We use a range of communication methods to ensure we meet the needs of service users. Service strengths Inspection report continued The grade achieved for this statement was 6 - Excellent. We concluded this after sampling the wide range of communication methods the nursery had in place to keep parents informed and up to date. Management and staff communicated very well with parents/carers and children using the service using a variety of methods. Notice boards situated outside each of the four playrooms displayed a variety of information including for example: - service policies - SSSC Codes of Practice - most recent newsletter - weekly activities - service aims and values - previous inspection report - insurance and registration details - snack menus - wrap around care information - letter inviting all parents to forthcoming committee meeting Further information on activities and the curriculum were displayed within the playrooms along with examples of children's artwork. Key worker information was readily available to inform parents which group their child was in and which member of staff was responsible for that group. The parental involvement calendar outlined various events throughout the year where information sharing could take place. These took place on a weekly, termly, bi-annual or annual basis and included: - play dates - lending library - newsletters - progress meetings - progress reports - transition documents - individual learning plans - Xmas song rehearsals The service operated an open door policy and staff made themselves available on a daily basis to hold discussions with parents when dropping off/picking up their children. West Kilbride Village Nursery, page 13 of 22

14 All the children attending had their own profile folder tracking the progress they were making. These were readily available for parents to view. A digital photo frame outside the two - three year old playroom also showed parents the variety of activities their children had taken part in. The service had identified through self assessment that "We are in the process of setting up a web site which will inform parents of useful information etc" this website is now up and running, providing parents/carers with a range of useful information on the service. Communication sheets were available for use with children with additional support needs. These were not required to be in use at the time of our visit. We discussed the additional use of communication sheets for the parents/carers of children in the two year old playroom. The manager advised that parents were happy with the current communication methods in use. Please see Quality Statements 1.1. for further ways the service used to involve parents / carers and children and additional communication methods. Responses from parents confirmed that they were happy that they were kept well informed about what was happening in the service. Areas for improvement The service had identified through self assessment: "We are looking at ways to finance the provision of little Record of Achievement books for our two year old group" Grade awarded for this statement: 6 - Excellent Number of requirements: 0 Number of recommendations: 0 West Kilbride Village Nursery, page 14 of 22

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 The grade awarded for this Quality Statement at the previous inspection on 3 September 2010 was 5 - Very Good. The evidence we sampled at this inspection maintained this grade. Please see Quality Statement 1.1 for examples of how the service involved children and their families in assessing the quality of their service. In addition the service: - displayed a wide range of information to inform parents and keep them up to date. Notice boards were situated outside each of the four playrooms; and - displayed colourful photographs of the children taking part in various activities and events - displayed the children's own artwork throughout the nursery - invited parents to donate bulbs, seeds etc to assist in developing a 'garden centre' theme in the nursery - consulted parents regarding fundraising events to allow the nursery to purchase new pieces of equipment to enhance the children's experiences Parents/carers who made up the management committee were fully involved in decision making on any environmental developments. The service operated an 'open door' policy where parents/carers were welcome. Parental responses regarding the environment were positive. Some comments made included: "Despite having to self-fund, the nursery has good resources and a really bright, cheerful environment that my daughter loves" "The staff do everything in their power and with the resources available to make every child's experience of pre-school education as enriching, safe and fun as possible. My children love going and feel part of a community" West Kilbride Village Nursery, page 15 of 22

16 "Colourful, well made and thoughtful displays for the two year old group" Areas for improvement The service had identified through self assessment: "To gain Bronze award for our Eco project" The service could further develop methods of gaining feedback and suggestions for improvement from parents with regards to the 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 The grade achieved for this statement was 6 - Excellent. We concluded this after viewing all the areas the children had access to, security arrangements and sampling relevant documents. The service shared accommodation within the community centre and had put appropriate measures in place to ensure the safety of the children and staff. A secure door entry system to both corridors where the playrooms were situated had been installed. The manager controlled access to these areas from her office therefore was aware of all visitors to the nursery. Fire exit doors had been alarmed to alert staff if these doors were to be opened by any of the children. Safety measures were in use within the individual playrooms such as radiator guards and socket covers. Doors into the rooms were fitted with double handles and finger guards. The toilets were for sole use of the nursery children and thermostats had been fitted to the sinks to control the water temperature. The garden play area was fully enclosed providing a secure space for outdoor play activities. On the day of the inspection it was raining and we observed staff members talking to children about possible hazards prior to going out into the play area. Risk assessments were carried out daily by staff in each of the rooms. These included the playrooms, corridors, resources, equipment and garden area. The accommodation and resources were clean and in a good state of repair. Cleaning rotas and records were in place. Furnishings, equipment and resources were suitable for the different ages of children attending. Feedback we received from parents indicated their overall satisfaction that the service West Kilbride Village Nursery, page 16 of 22

17 was safe and secure. They were confident that there was always enough staff and that they would protect their children from harm. Areas for improvement The service should continue to maintain high standards ensuring the children attending and staff members are safe and protected. We asked the manager to consider putting in place a signing in/out procedure for visitors as a safety record in the event of the centre being evacuated. She advised that she would also discuss this with the caretaker in day to day charge of the community centre. Grade awarded for this statement: 6 - Excellent Number of requirements: 0 Number of recommendations: 0 Inspection report continued West Kilbride Village Nursery, page 17 of 22

18 Quality Theme 3: Quality of Staffing - NOT ASSESSED West Kilbride Village Nursery, page 18 of 22

19 Quality Theme 4: Quality of Management and Leadership - NOT ASSESSED West Kilbride Village Nursery, page 19 of 22

20 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 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). West Kilbride Village Nursery, page 20 of 22

21 5 Summary of grades Quality of Care and Support Excellent Statement 1 Statement Excellent 6 - Excellent Quality of Environment Very Good Statement 1 Statement Very Good 6 - Excellent Quality of Staffing - Not Assessed Quality of Management and Leadership - Not Assessed 6 Inspection and grading history Date Type Gradings 3 Sep 2010 Unannounced Care and support 5 - Very Good Environment Not Assessed Staffing Not Assessed Management and Leadership 5 - Very Good 2 Mar 2009 Unannounced Care and support 5 - Very Good Environment 5 - Very Good Staffing 5 - Very Good Management and Leadership 5 - Very Good All inspections and grades before 1 April 2011 are those reported by the former regulator of care services, the Care Commission. West Kilbride Village Nursery, page 21 of 22

22 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 SCSWIS. 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@scswis.com Web: West Kilbride Village Nursery, page 22 of 22