Woodend Nursery

Day Care of Children

Glenburn Wing Cottages

Woodend Hospital
Eday Road
Aberdeen
AB15 6XS

Telephone: 01224 556008/9

Type of inspection:
Unannounced

Completed on:
7 August 2019

Service provided by: Service provider number:

NHS Grampian SP2003000363

Service no:
CS2003001768
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About the service

Woodend Nursery is provided by NHS Grampian Human Resources Service Centre for the benefit of NHS staff.
This service has been registered since 2002 and provides a day care of children service for a maximum of 47
children under primary school age.

The service operates from a converted, previously residential building within the grounds of Woodend Hospital.

Registration Conditions specify:

A maximum of 7 children under 2 years shall be cared for in Playroom 1 on the first floor.

A maximum of 7 children under 2 years shall be cared for in Playroom 2 on the first floor.

A maximum of 27 children aged from 2 years to under primary school age shall be cared for in the ground floor
playroom.

A maximum of 6 children under 2 years or a maximum o 8 children from 3 years to under primary school age
shall be cared for in Playroom 3 on the first floor.

The service will comply with the following staffing: Age of children /Ratio - Adults to Children: 0 to under 2 years
1:3. 2 to under 3 years 1:5. 3 years and over 1:8.

Two adults to be on duty at any one time. 100% of the manager's time will be supernumerary. During the
inspection an acting manager was in post.

The care service is provided from Monday to Friday between the hours of 6.45am and 6.00pm.

The main aim of the service was to provide a happy, caring, stimulating and safe environment for our children
which provides for the freedom to choose and develop at their own pace.

We carried out an unannounced inspection of Woodend nursery on the 6 and 7 of august 2019. During the
inspection we observed and talked with the children as they played. We spoke with parents, the management
team and staff, observed staff practice and checked documentation relevant to the inspection.

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.

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What people told us

There were around 30 children present at the time of the inspection aged from birth to under primary school
age. We observed the children and saw that they were relaxed and happy in the nursery. We talked with the
older children about their experiences and they told us:

"I am five and I am going to school after the summer holidays. I liked this nursery playing with my friends."

"Everyone here is friends."

"We go to the park and everything and do stuff."

"We go to Morningfield House in the hospital and we play games with them."

"And we do colouring in and stuff and take them pictures and read stories.'"

"I am Batman; he fights the baddies."

"I am a police officer; they take the bad guys away."

"I made an invitation for Max's birthday party."

"It's my mummy's birthday on Sunday and she is two threes and that's all."

Eight out of a sample of 21 parents returned completed care standards questionnaires to us before the
inspection. The responses indicated that they were very happy with the standard of care provided. Written
comments reflected:

'We have been consistently impressed by the friendly, relaxed atmosphere and dedicated staff. Staff were
understanding and empathetic about how difficult it is to trust your baby to someone else's care and have been
supportive by providing detailed feedback and reminding me that they welcome phone contact in the first few
difficult days. It has been a joy to see my child bloom in confidence and new skills thanks to their experiences at
Woodend.'

'The staff are great and we all feel part of the Woodend Nursery family. I love the new improvement tree at the
front door as it really gets the children involved with feedback; my daughter always asks if we can add a leaf
when there is a new question. Great links with Morningfield; my child is growing in confidence when interacting
with older adults.'

'My baby absolutely loves attending Woodend Nursery; she is always happy to go there in the morning and sad
to leave in the afternoon, which indicates she feels safe; supportive and happy to me as a mother. Wonderful
team.'

We also spoke with three parents as they dropped off and collected their children who were also very happy with
the service. Comments included:

"The nursery is a home-from-home experience. The staff are very good, they are open and willing to listen. The
feedback at the end of the day is brilliant. There have been more outdoor activities over the past year including
an outdoor day every week. A highlight is the engagement with the community, the children really look forward

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to it. Visiting patients in Morningfield has helped my child to be less afraid of elderly patients or those in
wheelchairs.'

"We get good information every day through the portal and the parent evening was helpful. We are confident in
the service because we enjoy the positive comments our child makes about staff, her friends and activities and
her learning and development.'

'Our child is engaged in the activities and learning new facts here all of the time. We were gardening and
planting at home and our child was able to make links with what they had been doing in nursery. Our child is
advanced with number, and ideas for extra stimulation at home were shared. On the whole a great experience.'

Self assessment
The service had not been asked to complete a self assessment in advance of the inspection. We looked at the
service own improvement plan and quality assurance processes. These demonstrated their priorities for
development and how they were monitoring the quality of the provision within the service.

From this inspection we graded this service as:

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

Quality of care and support

Findings from the inspection

Children were receiving a very good quality of care and support in the service.

All babies and children experienced attentive, responsive care from staff who knew them well. As a result,
children were happy contented and confident. Babies had secure attachments with staff and were nurtured
warmly. Babies were treated respectfully, for example; they were asked before care practices were carried out and
their views expressed through gestures and baby language were taking account of.

Children were making positive progress in their learning; supported through sound observation, assessment and
interaction from staff. Children listened well to stories, asked questions and noticed rhyming words. Many
children demonstrated highly developed mark-making skills and an interest in writing. Children's learning was
shared well with parents and they were able to contribute through the online interactive learning
diaries. Children's work was valued; framed and displayed beautifully on the stairs.

Curriculum planning varied across the nursery. Children's interests and choices were taken account of; 'What
would you like to learn today?' However now that the learning environment and resources have been refreshed
and were more accessible to children these plans for activities were not so useful. Keyworker's were recording
children's development well in interactive learning diaries and planning for children's next steps. Paper learning
journeys were shared with parents. The manager and staff now need to review the format of planning to reduce

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paper-work and bring systems together focussing consistently on how children's learning and skills are being
taken forward.

Where children needed additional support, staff worked in partnership with parents and developed detailed care
plans. Staff knew children well as individuals. The manager had made useful links with other agencies to get
help and support. For example; staff were learning Makaton; a sign language to support language
development. Procedures for protecting children and keeping them safe were well understood.

Children's health and wellbeing was promoted. Children enjoyed healthy snacks and lunches and were learning
good manners. All ate really well from their lunch choices. They participated in baking and making ice
cream. Shopping trips for snack contributed to their learning about healthy choices. Water was available to drink
at all times. Our observations at lunchtime were that where children are increasingly able they could have more
independence in making choices; perhaps self-serving their lunch.

Requirements
Number of requirements: 0

Recommendations
Number of recommendations: 0

Grade: 5 - very good

Quality of environment

Findings from the inspection

The quality of environment provided for children was very good.

The environment was well maintained clean and safe. The accommodation had been adapted well to provide
spacious, inviting playrooms and appropriate facilities to meet the needs of the children. Babies benefitted from
a calmly decorated sleep room equipped with proper cots; which meant babies slept safely and comfortably.
Hygiene was maintained through effective staff practice and promoted with the children through daily routines.

The provider, manager and staff had worked hard to refresh the playrooms for the children and make both the
indoor and outdoor environments more interesting and enabling for the children. New furnishings and
equipment made the playrooms more attractive and homely. Accessible storage helped children to make more
independent choices in their play. Children had fun as they developed their skills and understanding through a
wide range of activities. Staff working with the babies were providing more sensory play and meaningful outdoor
experiences.

Older children in the ground floor playrooms benefitted from free flow outdoor play and more interesting outdoor
opportunities. The extensive garden provided a variety of surfaces and different types of play. Children enjoyed
experimenting in their 'mud kitchen' and 'potion station'.

Positive links have been developed within the hospital community to extend the children's environment and
learning opportunities. Intergenerational activities with the residents of Morningfield House; a ward for older

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people had had positive outcomes for children as described by parents. Children collected food donations from
drop off points around the hospital and sorted them into parcels for a local food bank using pictorial lists,
helping to learn about the needs of others and become responsible citizens.

The access gate from the parking area opens directly into the outdoor play space for the youngest children.
While closed and secure from the inside, the gate was left unlocked for long periods of time. When staff and
children were outside the gate was monitored. However, any member of the public could have entered posing a
risk to children. When collecting children parents walked right through the gardens to get to their child's
department. The layout is historical however we have asked the provider, manager and staff to consider where
changes can be made to improve the safety of the environment for the children.

Requirements
Number of requirements: 0

Recommendations
Number of recommendations: 0

Grade: 5 - very good

Quality of staffing

Findings from the inspection

The quality of staffing caring for the children was very good.

A robust recruitment process within the organisation ensured staff suitability and contributed to protecting
children's safety. The staff team had good stability providing consistency of care for the children. There were very
good opportunities for training and self-development resulting in a broad range of experience and qualifications
across the staff team. Staff responding to our questionnaires felt supported by their acting manager and senior
posts within the team resulting in improved moral and positive changes.

Effective support from the acting manager had helped the staff to find out about and understand good practice
documents. Staff were well supported through team meetings and individual support sessions which had
enabled them to turn around practice and improve the experiences and outcomes for children. The manager's
'Wee thought for the week' was an inspiration.

Staff had completed relevant training courses and systematically evaluated their learning. Having gained new
ideas, the staff had worked hard to refresh the learning environment and resources for the children with a focus
on child led learning through play. Staff spoke positively about the acting manager and felt valued. Staff were
actively involved in putting forward their views and improving the nursery through their participation in focus
groups.

We found all staff to be highly motivated and confident in their role. They were skilled in working and interacting
with the children at different levels. Effective staff interaction supported children's development and learning. As
a result, children were progressing well.

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We saw that the staff communicated well with each other and worked effectively as a team. This ensured
children were well looked after and that the daily routines ran smoothly. Staff had built trusting relationships
with both children and families. Staff made time to talk to parents, made them feel welcome and worked in
partnership in meeting children's needs. Good working relationships contributed to a warm and nurturing
atmosphere for the children.

Requirements
Number of requirements: 0

Recommendations
Number of recommendations: 0

Grade: 5 - very good

Quality of management and leadership

Findings from the inspection

The quality of management and leadership was evaluated as very good.

An acting manager had been in post for a period of approximately six months. In this short period the acting
manager had worked extremely hard to address and meet all the recommendations from the previous inspection
and develop a relevant improvement plan resulting in significant change and improvement. The improvement
plan was focussed on aspects that were benefitting children's learning, strengthening partnerships and
developing children's creativity and skills.

An effective management approach; involving and valuing staff skills and ideas had resulted in a significant
change of culture, positive staff morale and increased motivation. A shared sense of purpose and sound
information were successfully shared through regular team meetings. Delegated responsibilities for projects was
helping to encourage leadership roles throughout the staff team.

A new system of appraisal helped staff with clear objective setting. Regular observations of practice and well-
judged feedback was supporting staff in their roles. The format was good; being based on the GIRFEC wellbeing
indicators. We discussed developing consistency of approaches across the senior team and having a more
focussed approach linking to evidencing the impact the improvement plan.

Information had been shared effectively with parents through regular, well presented and informative
newsletters and displays. Parents had been involved well in a variety of ways. Their feedback and ideas were
regularly sought verbally and by email. Parents had influenced the content of newsletters through their feedback.
They were invited to help and participate in improvements.

The manager had begun to involve all staff in systematic self-evaluation using recognised national indicators
which was helping them to become more reflective practitioners. The nursery was well placed to continue to
improve.

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Requirements
Number of requirements: 0

Recommendations
Number of recommendations: 0

Grade: 5 - very good

What the service has done to meet any requirements we made at

or since the last inspection

Previous requirements

There are no outstanding requirements.

What the service has done to meet any recommendations we

made at or since the last inspection

Previous recommendations

Recommendation 1

To improve the quality of children's experiences staff should be supported to reflect on their training and
implement the learning from training into practice.

This ensures that care and support is consistent with the Health and Social Care Standards which state that 'I
have confidence in people because they are trained, competent and skilled, are able to reflect on their practice
and follow their professional and organisational codes.' (HSCS 3.14).

This recommendation was made on 8 October 2018.

Action taken on previous recommendation

The manager had implemented a system to encourage staff to reflect on their training and evaluate their
learning. It was clear that staff had used their learning to refresh their practice with a positive impact for the
children.

The recommendation was met.

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Recommendation 2

To support children to progress and achieve staff should develop their skills, knowledge and understanding of
observation assessment and planning. These should be reviewed to demonstrate the progress and achievement
children are making in their learning.

This ensures that care and support is consistent with the Health and Social Care Standards which state that 'I am
supported to achieve my potential in education and employment if this is right for me.' (HSCS 1.27).

This recommendation was made on 8 October 2018.

Action taken on previous recommendation

Staff had attended training on observation and assessment and improved their practice. Children's interactive
diaries reflected relevant observations and identified next steps in children's learning which were taken forward
well by key workers. The impact was that children were clearly being supported to make appropriate progress in
their learning.

The recommendation was met.

Recommendation 3

The provider and management should implement effective quality assurance systems to ensure children receive
high quality care and early learning experiences.

This is to ensure that care and support is consistent with the Health and Social Care Standards which state: 'I
benefit from a culture of continuous improvement, with the organisation having robust and transparent quality
assurance processes.' (HSCS 4.19).

This recommendation was made on 8 October 2018.

Action taken on previous recommendation

Quality assurance systems had been developed and implemented effectively involving all staff and parents.
Progress notes evidenced that the quality indicators were regularly reviewed and showed positive developments.

The recommendation was met.

Complaints

There have been no complaints upheld since the last inspection. Details of any older upheld complaints are
published at www.careinspectorate.com.

Enforcement

No enforcement action has been taken against this care service since the last inspection.

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Inspection and grading history

Date Type Gradings

14 Aug 2018 Unannounced Care and support 4 - Good
Environment 4 - Good
Staffing 3 - Adequate
Management and leadership 3 - Adequate

2 Nov 2017 Unannounced Care and support 4 - Good

Environment Not assessed
Staffing Not assessed
Management and leadership 3 - Adequate

16 Apr 2015 Unannounced Care and support 4 - Good

Environment 4 - Good
Staffing 4 - Good
Management and leadership 4 - Good

26 Apr 2013 Announced (short Care and support 5 - Very good

notice) Environment 5 - Very good
Staffing 5 - Very good
Management and leadership 4 - Good

17 Jun 2011 Unannounced Care and support 4 - Good

Environment 4 - Good
Staffing 4 - Good
Management and leadership 4 - Good

19 Aug 2010 Unannounced Care and support 4 - Good

Environment Not assessed
Staffing Not assessed
Management and leadership 3 - Adequate

5 May 2009 Unannounced Care and support 5 - Very good

Environment 5 - Very good
Staffing 5 - Very good
Management and leadership 5 - Very good

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To find out more

This inspection report is published by the Care Inspectorate. You can download this report and others from our
website.

Care services in Scotland cannot operate unless they are registered with the Care Inspectorate. We inspect, award
grades and help services to improve. We also investigate complaints about care services and can 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.

You can also read more about our work online at www.careinspectorate.com

Contact us

Care Inspectorate
Compass House
11 Riverside Drive
Dundee
DD1 4NY

enquiries@careinspectorate.com

0345 600 9527

Find us on Facebook

Twitter: @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 cànain eile ma nithear iarrtas.

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