Busy Bees @Halbeath Day Care of Children Carnegie College Halbeath Dunfermline KY11 8JH Telephone: 01383 844640
Inspected by: Morag Skinner Type of inspection: Unannounced Inspection completed on: 3 November 2014 Inspection report continued
Contents
Page No Summary 3 1 About the service we inspected 5 2 How we inspected this service 7 3 The inspection 12 4 Other information 31 5 Summary of grades 32 6 Inspection and grading history 32
Service provided by: Busy Bees Nurseries (Scotland) Limited
Service provider number: SP2003002870
Care service number: CS2003044254
Contact details for the inspector who inspected this service: Morag Skinner Telephone 01383 841100 Email [email protected]
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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 The nursery has improved methods of consultation with children, parents and carers. We saw that the systems for consulting with parents were easy for parents to complete quickly as they moved around the nursery. The nursery provides a caring, stimulating, nurturing environment for the children within each playroom. Good settle in procedures help to build strong relationships with the families from an early stage which are supported by enthusiastic, dedicated members of staff, committed to providing quality childcare and very good outcomes for the children.
What the service could do better The provider must ensure that the kitchen is included in the quality assurance systems, as it was not being kept clean and standards were not being maintained in line with the rest of the nursery. When children attend the nursery with a specific additional support need, then staff should be trained to meet that need, especially when one within the team has training which could be passed on to others.
What the service has done since the last inspection We saw many improvements throughout the nursery and all requirements and recommendations had been met. This impacted on outcomes for the children, particularly showing that staff are providing a nurturing, challenging environment where children are happy, interested and engaged in a wide range of activities.
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The new management team are providing a supportive environment for the parents, staff and children with strong leadership skills. They value the staff and their qualities and are building strong staff teams who are recognising a trusting relationship which is building between management and staff. Since the last inspection there has been greater investment in staff training and staff take advantage of the opportunities to build on their skills and knowledge. Increased parental involvement has developed richer partnerships between nursery and home.
Conclusion The nursery is being led by a strong management team who is supporting a dedicated, enthusiastic team of staff. They are working in partnership with parents and families to keep children safe, healthy, achieving, nurtured, active, respected, responsible and included.
Management had very good methods in place to monitor and evaluate the service and this was helping to promote further improvements.
Who did this inspection Morag Skinner
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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 www.careinspectorate.com.
This service was previously registered with the Care Commission and transferred its registration to the Care Inspectorate on 1 April 2011.
Requirements and recommendations
If we are concerned about some aspect of a service, or think it could do more to improve its service, 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 but where failure to do so will not directly result in enforcement. - A requirement is a statement which sets out what is required of a care service to comply with the Public Services Reforms (Scotland) Act 2010 and Regulations or Orders made under the Act, or a condition of registration. Where there are breaches of the Regulations, Orders or conditions, a requirement must be made. Requirements are legally enforceable at the discretion of the Care Inspectorate.
The nursery vision stated that "by working in partnership with our parents, families and staff we will endeavour to * Believe in using a holistic approach to learning * Embrace individual needs in all we do * Empower staff and support professional development * Build on communication links * Continue to develop our gardens to reflect our inside environments."
The service is part of a national chain which operates a large number of similar services throughout the UK.
The service may be provided to a maximum of 107 children from the age of 6 weeks upwards, but not yet attending primary school, of whom no more than 36 may be under 2 years of age. Alternatively, during school holiday periods only, the care service may be provided to a maximum of 107 children from the age of 6 weeks upwards, but not exceeding 8 years of age, of whom no more than 36 may be under the age of 2 years and of whom no more than 16 may be of an age to attend primary school up to the age of eight years. The care service will operate between the times of 7.30am - 6.15pm, Monday - Friday. Children will not be permitted access to the kitchen, utility and staff rooms.
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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 www.careinspectorate.com or by calling us on 0345 600 9527 or visiting one of our offices.
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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 on 24 July 2014 and 31 October 2014 between 7.30am and 3.30pm. There were 41 children in attendance on the morning of the second day of the inspection. Feedback was given to the manager, deputy and the care and curricular advisor on Monday, 3 November.
During the inspection we gathered evidence from various sources, including relevant sections of policies, procedures, records and other documents including:
• Children's records and Personal Learning Plans (PLPs) • Newsletters • Parent survey • Staff training records • Minutes of meetings • Standard and Quality Report 2013 and Improvement Plan 2013 - 2016 • Certificate of Registration • Medication storage and recording • Floor books • Monitoring calendar • Room Managers' Impressions Reports • CPD reflections • Focused observations • Profile checklists.
We also gathered evidence through:
• Discussion with the manager, deputy manager, care and curricular advisor, most staff on duty, approximately twelve of the children using the service • Discussions with approximately ten parents and carers • Observation of the premises outside and inside • Observation of the equipment used within the service • Observation of staff interaction with children and parents
Busy Bees @Halbeath, page 7 of 34 Inspection report continued • We sent out 20 questionnaires and received back five completed questionnaires prior to writing the report. Some of the comments are included in the report.
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 www.firelawscotland.org
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What the service has done to meet any requirements we made at our last inspection
The requirement The provider must support staff to develop their practice so that they are effective in identifying and meeting children's development and learning needs. This is to comply with Scottish Statutory Instrument 2011/210 Regulation 15(b)(i) Timescale : within six months of receipt of this letter
What the service did to meet the requirement Management were seen to be supporting staff in their practice and were meeting children's development and learning needs.
The requirement is: Met - Within Timescales
The requirement The provider must develop and implement effective quality assurance processes to ensure that regular and in-depth audits of the service take place with regard to staff training, Planning for Learning and one to one sessions. This is to comply with Scottish Statutory Instrument 2011/210 Regulation 3 Timescale : within six months of receipt of this letter
What the service did to meet the requirement We saw very effective quality assurance processes in place which ensured that regular in depth audits of the service took place with regard to staff training, Planning for Learning and one to one sessions.
The requirement is: Met - Within Timescales
Busy Bees @Halbeath, page 9 of 34 Inspection report continued 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 self assessment document. We saw that it had been completed with information about the areas which the service thought that they did well and highlighting the areas which they felt they could do better.
Taking the views of people using the care service into account Children's comments to the inspector during the inspection included:
"I'm having cornflakes orf breakfast." "Look at the gingerbread man on the computer. You just press this black button and the wolf eats him up!" "I will show you our pumpkin and we got seeds from it. It's heavy but not for me to pick up cos look at my muscles." "We're splashing in the puddles." "My daddy's coming for me." "Look at my lovely picture. It is blue and red and green and yellow." "We went to the shops. I saw all the fish."
Taking carers' views into account The following representative comments were included from discussions with the parents during the inspection: "I wouldn't bring him if I wasn't happy. I'd find somewhere else and I've been coming for four years. I've never had a problem." "I'm trying to move house but I don't want to move nursery, it's so good." "They plan for my child's individual needs. He has a really good relationship with his keyworker." "Transitions have been really good. They've kept me well informed. The paperwork supports the moves." "His PLP (Personal Learning Plan) is always up to date and everything is based round him which is as it should be." "Staff's friendly. They've got loads for the kids to do." "Mine's a bit fussy but he will try the meals."
Busy Bees @Halbeath, page 10 of 34 Inspection report continued "I'm happy with everything." "Transitions between home and nursery and nursery to school were well planned." "My kid enjoys coming here. He's happy coming and happy coming home." "The times for parents' evenings are good. It's one of the better nurseries. They tell you the menu for the month. My child eats anything. She gets hot food and doesn't need tea at home. They get fruit on the way out and she takes an apple to eat every day. We've never had any concerns." "It's brilliant." "Staff report back. Staff have helped. They put charts in to help with his behaviour and put rewards in to help him."
Comments on the Care Inspectorate questionnaires included: "My child was quite shy when he started nursery but going to Busy Bees has really improved his confidence. I like that the staff are very caring and interact well with the children. It is also good that there is a mix of male members of staff. My child really enjoys nursery and is upset at the weekend when he can not go!" "Happy with the environment, activities and staff." "My only concern is over the size of preschool rooms as these have grown considerably. There's a big age range in these rooms and the needs of a just turned 3 year old are very different from those of a 5 year old. My worry would be that because of how many children are now in these rooms, these needs might not always be met."
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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 We found that the service provided very good evidence of how they met this Quality Statement.
All new children starting in the nursery were given the opportunity to come for a few sessions to settle in and parents were welcomed into the new parents' area. This also gave parents and carers a chance to get clear information about the service before their children took up a place and a space to wait whilst their children began to settle.
Many notices on a variety of notice boards in the hallway gave information to parents about the keyworkers and about which children were in each group, activities the children had taken part in and what was available to them within the community. This meant that parents could keep up to date with happenings in and around the nursery. We found that the notice boards were up to date and the information they contained was meaningful for parents. This provided useful links between home and nursery and helped make the families feel included. We saw that parents were kept informed through a variety of different media. The weekly newsletter was sent out by email and was available as a paper copy. Regular emails gave information and reminders about forthcoming events such as Grandparent's Afternoon Tea, Open Day, Summer Fair, Father's Day Breakfast and Mother's Day Afternoon Tea. This helped keep families well informed and parents said that they liked this form of communication.
During the inspection we saw good examples of staff talking to parents when dropping off and collecting children and sharing information about their children.
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Parents' comments to the inspector included: "The staff are really friendly." "You get a good handover."
We saw that there were many ways that parents and carers were asked for their views on certain aspects of the service provided and this helped them feel included in the life of their nursery. Some were collated and were fed back to parents usually in newsletters or on boards in the entrance hall in order to further improve the provision for the children at Busy Bees @ Halbeath. We saw examples of where the comments from parents had been used to improve nursery practice. This showed parents that their views were respected and used to influence the service. For example, a parent had suggested classical music and reduced lighting in the entrance hall early in the morning for children arriving creating a calming atmosphere and this had been introduced for the benefit of all.
We saw a selection of floor books on display in the hallway. Parents' and children's views were recorded in the GIRFEC Book (Getting it Right for Every Child). GIRFEC was embedded throughout the nursery in the work of the staff. Parents, staff and children were encouraged in their understanding of this through their involvement in participating in the floor book. Staff had asked children what the nursery did to help them stay safe. One child had said that he felt safe when he got hugs, one said that she felt safe when collected from nursery, another when he got a sticker when he had fallen and hurt himself at nursery. A parent said "when the children are happy to leave you, you know they are safe."
The nursery had asked children what the nursery did to help them stay healthy. Comments included: "outside running" "brushing my teeth makes me healthy" "if we didn't wash our hands we'd be sick". This helped illustrate that staff were encouraging children to learn about healthy lifestyles. Staff asked parents what opportunities they had to be involved in decisions regarding the care of their children and their responses included: "Sheets for when children move rooms." "Care plans." "Questions on floor plans." "Parents' evenings." "Rooms questions." "Suggestions box."
We saw an Improvement Floor Book from which the nursery was learning from the parents' comments. It asked how many parents were aware of the Improvement Plan and where to access it (20 parents). How many were aware of it but didn't know where to access it (11 parents) and how many were unaware of it (20 parents).
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On realising this, management decided to raise the profile of the Improvement Plan, moving it to become more accessible to parents and promoting it at the forthcoming parents' night.
We saw a Quick Question Book in the hallway for parents. Questions for parents and carers included: "What do you think of the newly decorated nursery?" Comments included: "Looks very smart and clean." "Fab, nice and fresh."
Comments received from parent questionnaires in 2013 led to the introduction of increased settle in periods for new children joining the nursery. The positive responses to all the questions on the October 2014 questionnaires asking "How did your child settle into nursery?" indicated that the nursery had responded well to parents' comments. Responses included: "Very well, learning every day, speech a lot better." "I think he settled in great. I've noticed a massive improvement in confidence." "Very well, enjoys nursery and is always sad to leave at the end of the day."
The results of a parent survey undertaken by an independent organisation were fed back to parents by newsletter and text included the following comments: "I feel my child is well looked after in a safe and friendly environment. I think the staff are great, always friendly and my child thoroughly enjoys going to nursery."
We saw that parents' nights were available to parents to discuss their children's development. We saw that individual appointment times were being offered to parents throughout the evening at the forthcoming event. Parents told us: "Parents' nights are helpful. They slot me in at different times as they don't suit me in the evening. I can come in my lunch break instead." "They're a chance to sit down with the keyworker and go through the PLP to discuss the child's development."
We saw that staff took many opportunities to consult with children and seek their views. Children's interests helped to inform the planning. A wall display entitled "Look what we did at the weekend" helped staff get to know the children and their interests. Comments included: "I made a plane." "I went to the swimming pool with my daddy." "I went to the shops."
Another display depicted "What I love about nursery." Staff used this to help monitor which areas were most popular to support children's learning and which needed to be restructured to make them more exciting and interesting for the children.
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We saw children in pre school enjoying circle time together and this provided an opportunity for them to be consulted about their interests, which were then fed into the plans and to spontaneous activities with the children. Children chose the stories and songs and we saw children making up songs with the staff. We saw children involved in the evaluation of the planning and in evaluating the activities in which they had taken part which encouraged them to be reflective and responsible. We heard that they used a variety of methods of voting including smiley faces and tally charts, ensuring that all children's voices were heard in making democratic decisions within the nursery. Throughout each day of the inspection we saw many opportunities for the children to make choices as they chose what to play with, whether to play indoors or out, what colour of paint to make, whether to make the sand dry or wet, to play alone or in a group.
Throughout the inspection we saw the staff interacting extremely well with the children, demonstrating an ongoing responsive relationship and contributed to the overall ethos of respect within the service.
We saw that the service was working with outside agencies to provide support to families whose children required additional support. Staff knew the children and families well, recognising when additional support was required and following the nursery procedures working with other agencies such as speech and language therapists, teacher of the deaf and the Child Development Centre at High Valleyfield. We saw that the professionals were working together to try to agree strategies and monitor progress. Areas for improvement The nursery was trying to set up a Parent Partnership Group for parent consultation within a small group setting, helping with nursery events and to encourage their further involvement in the life of the nursery.
By encouraging parents to complete Two Stars and a Wish we saw that a parent was concerned: "Please make sure that the number of children is kept much lower than last session as despite the best efforts of staff the room often seemed chaotic. I don't think that the children had enough space, quiet and attention to be able to settle or to get the best of nursery experience and curriculum." In response to this, we had been shown that the nursery was soon to be opening a second separate pre school room as numbers were increasing. This meant that children would have their own dedicated space, rather than all playing and working together in such a large group.
Busy Bees @Halbeath, page 15 of 34 Inspection report continued Grade awarded for this statement: 5 - Very Good Number of requirements: 0 Number of recommendations: 0
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Statement 3 We ensure that service users' health and wellbeing needs are met. Service strengths We found that the service provided very good evidence of how they met this Quality Statement.
As part of this inspection we also focussed on how this service had promoted children's health and wellbeing through infection prevention measures.
We saw that healthy meals were provided by a dedicated chef using fresh local ingredients and taking into account any allergies, preferences and cultural beliefs. The chef was supported by a dedicated Catering Team based at the National Support Centre. Children were encouraged to try new foods and although the menu was set centrally they could make choices which could influence the menu at a local level. We saw children enjoying their breakfast of cereal and lunch of home cooked hot food as well as snacks throughout the day. We 'finished our starter so no pudding today' they told us on our first day of the inspection.
In order to ensure that the children remained well hydrated throughout the day, we saw that fresh drinking water was available at drinking stations in each room for the children to serve themselves, encouraging their independence and responsibility.
Most staff were trained in first aid, which meant that the parents could be reassured that the staff should be able to cope with minor ailments and accidents within the nursery setting.
We saw that an interesting range of indoor activities was offered to children throughout the inspection days and these promoted active play encouraging their health and wellbeing. All children went outdoors regularly, with free flow play being available from most rooms throughout most of the day. This encouraged staff to respect children's right to choose. Babies were taken out for regular walks in their buggies, where they benefitted from fresh air and the experience of learning from the outdoor environment within the community.
As children played, we saw that they were mostly confident and sociable as they interacted with other children and with adults as they contributed to adult led group activities and child led activities with their friends. We saw the children problem solving and co-operating with one another. In the pre-school room, children told us about their Learning Wall. A child had told staff that in some countries some children have to walk for 30 miles to get clean water each day. On the Learning Wall we saw children's responses to "what happens if you drink dirty water?" They told us that "you get sick" and "you need a doctor". We saw that the Learning Wall was contributing to a dynamic, responsive and interactive learning environment.
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We saw that there was a good balance between the active pastimes and quieter activities within the nursery. Staff were responsive to the children's needs, reading to the children when they were interested in stories and at a level which stretched their enquiring minds. Staff made good use of explanations and questioning and listened well to the children's responses, ensuring that each child was engaged and absorbed in the content of what was being read or discussed.
We saw many examples of the staff talking gently with individual children and they took time to chat about the children's experiences. This nurturing experience helped promote attachment within the nursery setting.
The children were confident and comfortable in the setting. Staff were observed to have a responsive relationship with the children and this contributed to the overall ethos of respect within each of the rooms. The staff demonstrated a genuine fondness for the children of all ages and we could see that the children felt confident and secure in their care. We saw staff nurturing the younger children, cuddling them and responding to their needs, providing comfort and support in a loving caring manner.
Parents' comments included: "Staff are lovely. The thing I like best is staff are really caring. Staff give a cuddle. I like to know staff will take my place if I'm not here." We saw that attachements were encouraged with consistent approaches to room routines and effectively adapting to children's individual needs. We saw that staff knew each child well.
We saw pictorial guidance on the walls to remind children to wash their hands properly and we saw very good practices within the nursery throughout the inspection days. Children in each age group washed their hands on returning from playing outside and before eating, as well as after using the toilet. Staff were vigilant and, without fuss, gently reminded children encouraging good routines to become established. This helped promote the children's independence and responsibility for their own health and wellbeing.
Children took part in the National Tooth Brushing Programme. This meant that they were encouraged to clean their teeth at nursery from a very early age.
We saw that each child had a PLP. We examined a selection of these for children of different ages and found that these held information to help staff meet the children's individual needs. Photographs of the children at play and regular observations of the children demonstrated that the staff had a very good understanding of the developmental stage of each child and of the interests of each of their key children. We saw that the achievements of each child were recognised and celebrated encouraging more involvement in the setting and a sense of pride in their successes.
Busy Bees @Halbeath, page 18 of 34 Inspection report continued Through the completion of the PLPs with the children it meant that staff could take an individualised approach to meet the social and emotional needs of each child.
All staff had undertaken basic child protection training including Getting it Right for Every Child (GIRFEC) and we saw that they were encompassing the SHANARRI indicators in all their work with the children. As a result, the children attending this safe, nurturing, inclusive environment were ably supported by staff who effectively contributed to the promotion of positive outcomes for children.
The manager had a sound knowledge of child protection and each staff member we spoke to said that they had confidence in taking orf ward any concerns, and knew who to take them to even in the unlikely event of management not taking them forward.
We saw that each child was marked in on the register with the time of their arrival, so an accurate attendance register was being maintained. Areas for improvement A staff member had been identified and trained by Busy Bees to support children with additional support needs. We heard that she received support from management to ensure that the children got the help they required. However, we saw that a child had moved rooms several months ago and no staff had been trained to communicate effectively with the child. The new manager had identified the need orf some staff training. See recommendation 1 statement 1.3
On the second day of the inspection, when we saw the Tweenies enjoying outdoor play splashing in the puddles with their wellie boots on, we realised that they would benefit greatly from all weather splash suits. Staff told us that they did not have any to offer the children but of course had not wanted to restrict the children's fun. As it was a cold November day they could not let them play outside for very long without the appropriate clothing. Consideration should be given to accessing some such playsuits for the children.
We heard that one staff member had been on Beach Training and had rolled it out to other staff members who were keen to participate and had come in voluntarily on a Saturday to learn more about it. Another staff member had identified that she would like to attend Forest Kindergarten training, with a view to extending outdoor learning in the nursery into the woodlands around the nursery. It is hoped that the beach and the forest will become a regular feature within the curriculum for the children.
We were worried about a comment from one parent. "My child is struggling with the new healthy Winter menu - pilchards and tuna he can't eat and so ends up with a cheese sandwich every day and he's hungry when he gets home. He struggles with the different flavours."
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On speaking to management they said that this should not happen and that an alternative hot meal should be offered. They agreed to address the concern and put their policy and procedure into practice, ensuring that no child went home hungry and that each child was offered a varied nutritious daily diet.
Grade awarded for this statement: 5 - Very Good Number of requirements: 0 Number of recommendations: 1
Recommendations 1. It is recommended that staff are appropriately trained to meet the individual needs of each child in their care. National Care Standards for Early Education and Childcare up to the Age of 16: Standard 12 Confidence in staff Standard 14 Well managed service
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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 See statement 1.1 Areas for improvement See statement 1.1
Grade awarded for this statement: 5 - Very Good Number of requirements: 0 Number of recommendations: 0
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Statement 2 We make sure that the environment is safe and service users are protected. Service strengths We found that the service provided very good evidence of how they met this Quality Statement
As part of this inspection we also focussed on how this service had promoted children's health and wellbeing through infection prevention measures.
The nursery was purpose built in the grounds of Fife College. It was clean, well decorated and extremely well maintained. The recent addition of wooden flooring in the entrance hall had greatly enhanced its appearance. The dimmed lighting and low level music had created a calm relaxed at various times of the day as parents, children and staff moved around the nursery.
We saw that a parents' waiting area had recently been created within the entrance hall. This, we were told, was particularly useful for new parents when leaving their children for short periods whilst settling them in. It was inviting and welcoming and well resourced with the policies and procedures for the nursery, useful literature about the keyworker and buddying system, how parents could become involved in the life of the nursery and information about what was available to parents within the local community.
A display in the hallway of the Three Billy Goats Gruff was entirely of the children's work and promoted the Night Sacs which the children were proud to present and encouraged the parents to borrow to read with the children after leaving the nursery.
We felt that the bright, new room layouts had contributed to an improved learning environment. The equipment was easily accessible to children within each of the rooms, which meant that the children could select freely to meet their needs as they played. On speaking to the staff on duty, we soon realised that they were keen to do their best and they were proud of the bright, challenging and stimulating environment which they had created within each age group for the children with which they were working. The quality of the environment encouraged children to respect it and continue to care for it as they played.
We saw that the table and wall displays were bright, fresh and clearly linked to the children's interests. This meant that the children were proud of their achievements and were keen to show us what they had made. Children were being encouraged to respect the resources with staff withdrawing torn books and damaged toys to encourage this. Everything we saw was in a very good state of repair. We saw an interesting black and white sensory area which staff had set up in the baby room.
Busy Bees @Halbeath, page 22 of 34 Inspection report continued Staff told us that they were concerned that the babies were not enjoying it. With the addition of some red items and photographs of the babies, it had sparked more interest and we saw the babies exploring and having fun.
Tweenie parents had given their written comments on floor books after the recent changes to the layout of the room and and these included: "Sensory areas are stimulating for the children enriched with resources and photos for them to explore."
Babies could sleep peacefully within a separate sleep room adjacent to the playroom. We saw one baby sound asleep in a cradle bed within the playroom where staff could see her whilst supervising others at play. This meant that parents could choose where they preferred their babies to sleep.
Children were encouraged to care for their environment and be respectful of others and this also helped instil independence. We saw them being praised for caring for the nursery environment as they all helped tidy up when they finished playing with items in the playrooms. Each room was well furnished with an interesting range of equipment and resources suitable for the age and stage of the children using the playgroup. We saw that all staff were striving towards improved experiences and outcomes for the children and families using the service. The new management team were working closely with the staff to continue to develop their knowledge to promote a challenging environment for children of all ages.
On the first day of the inspection, we saw that all the children were happily engaged in play outside with a few of the very young ones heading out in prams for a walk. Staff told us that they walk regularly to Dobbies to see the fish, to the pet shop in the retail park opposite and for walks in the woodland behind the nursery. We saw challenging opportunities for the children outside and a range of interesting activities set up indoors for the children if they preferred to be indoors or when they returned inside. We heard that staff took each opportunity to take the children's learning outside. On the second day of the inspection, when it was cold and had been very wet, we saw children jumping in puddles, climbing in and out of tyres and exploring in the garden which was interesting and exciting for them. They had been planting turf to make roundabouts like the ones they had seen when out and about in the community in Dunfermline and had been enjoying the mud kitchen.
We saw that a secure entry system was in place, with a security code known to parents and carers. CCTV cameras were positioned on the perimeter of the building for additional security and to promote children's safety. We saw that staff were vigilant throughout the day and staff / child ratios were maintained.
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Areas for improvement We saw that the kitchen had not been included in the manager's quality assurance system. The kitchen environment was not as clean as the rest of the nursery. When this was pointed out, a deep clean was booked with an outside agency and a system put in place to ensure that standards were maintained thereafter. We saw that dry goods which had been opened, such as flour, had not all been decanted into sealed containers and that others had been decanted without clear dates indicating either the dates which they had been opened or when they should be used by. See requirement 1 statement 2.2
Grade awarded for this statement: 5 - Very Good Number of requirements: 1 Number of recommendations: 0
Requirements 1. The provider must ensure that the infection prevention and control procedures are correctly implemented by staff and monitored by management. These should include: (i) Reviewing cleaning schedules to ensure they cover all necessary areas of the kitchen and ensuring these are followed rigorously; (ii) Appropriate storage of foods to ensure they are kept in a fresh condition; (iii) Putting labels on storage boxes containing foods which are not in their original packaging and noting on the label what the box contains and the 'use by' date - these dates should be checked before use and out of date items disposed of. This is in order to comply with: The Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland (Requirements for Care Services) Regulations 2011 SSI 2011/210 Regulation 4(1)(a)&(d) Welfare of users. Timescale for implementation: within seven days of receipt of this report.
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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 See statement 1.1 Areas for improvement See statement 1.1
Grade awarded for this statement: 5 - Very Good Number of requirements: 0 Number of recommendations: 0
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Statement 3 We have a professional, trained and motivated workforce which operates to National Care Standards, legislation and best practice. Service strengths As part of this inspection we also focussed on how this service had promoted children's health and wellbeing through infection prevention measures.
All practitioners were registered with the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) except for two new members of staff who were awaiting registration, within the prescribed timescale. We saw that all staff were qualified orf the positions they were employed to perform. The service encouraged the staff team to work towards life long learning, showing a commitment to ongoing training in line with their registration with SSSC.
We saw that there were regular development opportunities for staff. All staff had attended a wide range of training, including in-house and external training which has included planning, Pre-Birth to Three, Curriculum for Excellence, child protection including GIRFEC and infection control during the past year. We saw the impact in the nursery of the introduction of more wooden materials and different types of play dough as one member of staff told us enthusiastically of learning about these on a course recently about "Learning Through Play". Staff told us how they evaluated their learning following the courses and shared it with their colleagues telling them how they would use what they had learned in their day to day practice on returning to the nursery.
Ongoing in-house training delivered by the care and curricular advisor helped staff gain a deeper knowledge and understanding of the current frameworks and curriculum leading to better outcomes for the children linked to the Quality Audit.
Staff told us that there was a comprehensive induction programme for new staff and that a useful 'buddy' system was in place for them to be supported by a more experienced staff member when they first started. neO new member of staff told us that she loved to meet up for coffee with her buddy outwith work and chat about new ideas to make sure that the children had fun at nursery. This showed how committed they both were to improving outcomes for the children and to each individual in their care.
We saw that staff were motivated and cheerful throughout the inspection. They had all pulled together and worked hard to improve standards since the last inspection, moving forward, building strong teams and becoming more proactive in achieving improvements within the nursery.
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A new management team was in place and we saw that they had successfully gained the trust and confidence of the teams in the nursery. Staff told us that the manager had an open door policy which meant that she wanted them to take any worries or concerns to her at any time. This was in addition to her Wednesdays and Fridays which were "Monkey Days" - special days for taking concerns to her! Staff said that they liked this approach.
The manager had undertaken "one to ones" with all staff members for supervision to try to get to know them all when she started in the summer and to discuss any concerns. More recently she had handed out forms for staff to complete and had started to undertake the annual appraisals highlighting staff's strengths, agreeing areas for further development and trying to identify training needs and allowing them to develop skills and follow their individual interests where possible.
We saw that specific staff had been identified orf specific olesr within the nursery to support staff, based on their skills and experiences. One showed particular enthusiasm, having attended her first training session since being appointed as curriculum co-ordinator. By linking with her opposite number within the other Busy Bees nurseries and benefit from the peer support opportunities and of networking within the company, she would further develop her role contributing to improved outcomes for the children. She spoke of furthering her knowledge of recent publications on Setting the Table and Building the Ambition to share her knowledge with her colleagues.
We saw from minutes of meetings that staff attended regular monthly staff meetings where they consulted with one another and shared best practice.
One member of staff told us that she enjoyed visiting other nurseries within the group as she always learned from their practice. She also described how, on her last visit, the other nursery had sought her help following her success with making floor books and how this had contributed to the sharing of best practice within the group.
Areas for improvement The service should continue to promote training for staff to build on what staff already know and to ensure that they keep up to date with changes in legislation and best practice guidance.
Grade awarded for this statement: 5 - Very Good Number of requirements: 0 Number of recommendations: 0
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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 See statement 1.1 Areas for improvement See statement 1.1
Grade awarded for this statement: 5 - Very Good Number of requirements: 0 Number of recommendations: 0
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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 We found that the service provided very good evidence of how they met this Quality Statement.
The management team provided support to the staff in their work and we heard from staff they felt very well supported by them. One staff member said: "You make them feel welcome, they talk to you and they're absolutely brilliant. We see x lots (the Care and Curricular Advisor) - every month, at least twice or three times this month and you can ask her anything."
Regular audits were carried out by management and staff. These were focussed on improving the quality of learning and teaching and assessment. We saw that all staff were committed to maintaining improvements and quality experiences for the children.
The nursery provided many opportunities for parents involvement in quality assurance using different methods such as questionnaires. The management team responded to parents' suggestions wherever possible.
A monitoring calendar helped ensure that management carried out two Quality Audits per year, listened to child and staff views regularly and carried out Learning Intention/Focused observations monthly. The calendars also ensured that planning and Personal Learning Plans (PLPs) were monitored monthly, ensuring that children's progress was tracked and that the Improvement Plan was continuously monitored to improve practice.
We saw that detailed focused observations had been undertaken at unannounced support visits from the Childcare and Curriculum Advisor and by managers supporting staff to ensure high standards were maintained within each area of the nursery, pointing out deficiencies where appropriate and linking them to action plans for improvement. The Childcare and Curriculum Advisors Audit also highlighted areas of good practice which encouraged staff as they always wanted to show her how well their practice was impacting on the outcomes for the children in their care.
We saw that the regional director had completed a Nursery Audit covering the period July - December 2013 and that this had highlighted strengths and areas for further development. In addition to this, the regional director carried out a snapshot audit approximately three times per year to help maintain high standards within the nursery. The manager told us that she felt her monthly one to one with the regional director provided her with an additional support network which she appreciated.
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From examining samples of Room Managers Impressions Reports, we saw that detailed comments helped staff to further improve their practice. From examples of the Planning Monitoring Sheets, we saw that they were used to ensure that all children were featured in the planning, that the planning was linked to their Next Steps in learning and taken from the observations of the children at play. Room managers had been completing Profile Checklists and this helped ensure that high standards were maintained. Staff told us that they saw these checks as helpful and welcomed the feedback to support their professional development.
Staff were encouraged to evaluate their own work and room seniors evaluated tasks to see if staff could improve on practice. As a result, we saw that staff were becoming more confident in evaluating the service they provided and in evaluating the practice of others enabling them to provide better quality experiences for the children, learning through their own peer evaluations.
The nursery was in partnership with Fife Council. They had received ongoing support from Fife's quality improvement officer to improve the outcomes for the children.
We saw that the staff had been working with management on the Improvement Plan, some of the outcomes had already been achieved and that they were working towards achieving those still outstanding.
Discussions in feedback showed that management were very keen to seek new opportunities and ways to further develop the service, in order to further improve outcomes for the children.
We saw that the outcome of the management team's range of auditing was that they were monitoring the nursery very well.
Areas for improvement The service should continue to develop systems to monitor and evaluate the service in order to continue to improve outcomes for children.
Grade awarded for this statement: 5 - Very Good Number of requirements: 0 Number of recommendations: 0
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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 the Care Inspectorate re-grading a Quality Statement within the Quality of Management and Leadership Theme (or for childminders, Quality of Staffing Theme) as unsatisfactory (1). This will result in the Quality Theme being re-graded as unsatisfactory (1).
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5 Summary of grades
Quality of Care and Support - 5 - Very Good
Statement 1 5 - Very Good
Statement 3 5 - Very Good
Quality of Environment - 5 - Very Good
Statement 1 5 - Very Good
Statement 2 5 - Very Good
Quality of Staffing - 5 - eryV Good
Statement 1 5 - Very Good
Statement 3 5 - Very Good
Quality of Management and Leadership - 5 - Very Good
Statement 1 5 - Very Good
Statement 4 5 - Very Good
6 Inspection and grading history
Date Type Gradings
8 Nov 2012 Unannounced Care and support 3 - Adequate Environment 4 - Good Staffing 4 - Good Management and Leadership 3 - Adequate
27 Apr 2011 Unannounced Care and support 3 - Adequate Environment Not Assessed Staffing Not Assessed Management and Leadership 3 - Adequate
19 Aug 2010 Unannounced Care and support 4 - Good Environment 4 - Good Staffing 4 - Good Management and Leadership 3 - Adequate
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27 Oct 2009 Unannounced Care and support 3 - Adequate Environment 3 - Adequate Staffing 3 - Adequate Management and Leadership 3 - Adequate
4 Dec 2008 Unannounced Care and support 3 - Adequate Environment 3 - Adequate Staffing 4 - Good Management and Leadership 3 - Adequate
All inspections and grades before 1 April 2011 are those reported by the former regulator of care services, the Care Commission.
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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: www.careinspectorate.com or by telephoning 0345 600 9527.
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