Maynard Montessori - Stebbing

Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk This document may be reproduced in whole or in part for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that the information quoted is reproduced without adaptation and the source and date of publication are stated. Maynard Montessori - Stebbing Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY337575 Inspection date 24/06/2009 Inspector Gillian Walley

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Setting address School House, High Street, Stebbing, DUNMOW, Essex, CM6 3SH Telephone number 07811 441 615 Email michelle.wisbey@virgin.net Type of setting Childcare on non-domestic premises This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Introduction

This inspection was carried out by Ofsted under Sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of the registered early years provision. ‘Early years provision’ refers to provision regulated by Ofsted for children from birth to 31 August following their fifth birthday (the early years age group). The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children’s learning, development and welfare, known as the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Introduction

The provider must provide a copy of this report to all parents with children at the setting where reasonably practicable. The provider must provide a copy of the report to any other person who asks for one, but may charge a fee for this service (The Childcare (Inspection) Regulations 2008 regulations 9 and 10).

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Introduction

The setting also makes provision for children older than the early years age group which is registered on the voluntary and/or compulsory part(s) of the Childcare Register. This report does not include an evaluation of that provision, but a comment about compliance with the requirements of the Childcare Register is included in Annex B. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Description of the setting

Maynard Montessori Nursery has recently moved to new premises and was registered at the present site in May 2009. Maynard is the sister nursery school to Westwood Montessori Nursery in Thaxted. The nursery operates from a separate building within the grounds of the Stebbing Primary School. The nursery offers care to the children from the local and surrounding communities.

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Description of the setting

The nursery is registered to provide care for a maximum of 30 children, aged from two years to five years, at any one time. There are currently 59 children on roll. This includes 37 funded children. Staff have strategies in place to support children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities, and children who are learning English as a second language. There is disabled access for adults and children. Children attend for a variety of sessions. The nursery is open from 09.00 to 14.45 each week day during term time only. The nursery employs 11 members of staff. Nine members of staff including the manager hold relevant early years qualifications. Two members of staff are currently working towards appropriate qualifications. The setting receives support from the local authority. The setting is registered on Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. The nursery has recently received awards from the Montessori Evaluation

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Description of the setting

and Accreditation Board and the Pre-School Learning Alliance for its excellent practice.

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Overall effectiveness of the early years provision

This is an outstanding setting, which provides early years children with excellent opportunities for their learning and development. It is inclusive and able to support children who find learning more difficult because of outstanding leadership and management. Arrangements to ensure children’s welfare are excellent. The nursery has an outstanding capacity to continue to improve because of strong team work amongst the staff, and because of the manager’s thorough evaluation of the strengths of the setting, and an understanding of what could be improved further.

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further?

To further improve the high quality early years provision the registered person should consider:

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further?

 support children in their independent learning by displaying more print, numbers and letters in the indoor and outdoor environment.

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provision

The leadership and management of the nursery is outstanding. The nursery runs very smoothly on a day to day basis because the staff work as a strong and This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 cohesive team, and because there are excellent procedures and routines in place. The move from other premises has been seamless, and the additional space and resources have enabled the staff to improve the opportunities for the children to learn and develop, for example in the outdoor area.

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provision

There has been excellent improvement since the last inspection report. Planning has been completely overhauled so that it meets the needs of each child. The staff are all involved in reviewing the strengths of the setting and identifying what could be developed further. They are well qualified and very experienced, and bring a good knowledge of different philosophies about nursery education. The nursery has outstanding systems in place and excellent links with other agencies so that it can provide exceptional support for children who find learning more difficult, and for children who are learning English as a second language. Consequently, these children make good progress. The staff speak many languages and this helps them to welcome families who are learning to speak English. They also make good use of translation facilities at the primary school, and they visit the homes of children who may need more support, which gives families invaluable reassurance. The

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provision

nursery works extremely closely with parents, who speak highly of the setting and cannot think of anything which could be improved. There are meetings when parents can talk about their children’s progress and they receive written reports. Parents can also talk to staff whenever they wish and they feel that the manager values their suggestions. Parents and grandparents are welcome to come in at any time to help. Parents like the digital photo board at the entrance which shows them what their children have been doing that day, and tells them what they can talk to the children about. Parents are impressed by the progress their children make, particularly in their social skills, confidence and independence. Parents have the utmost confidence that their children are safe and secure.

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provision

The nursery has very good policies for protecting children and there are good procedures for responding to any accidents or incidents. Children practise fire drills and know to put on sun hats when they play outside in the sunshine. The accident log is analysed to see if there are any trends which would suggest that one area was less safe. There are thorough daily checks for every area of the premises and for every activity. When children are ready to move to primary school the nursery supports them well and this helps them to settle easily. There are very good links with the primary school.

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The quality and standards of the early years provision

The provision is outstanding. Children make very good progress because of the careful planning of activities. Staff involve the children in the planning because they want to provide rich opportunities for them to learn in the areas which interest them. They feel that the children will gain confidence by succeeding in areas they enjoy and this will then encourage them to try other activities they are less sure about. Children are observed while they play and these observations are used to plan the next steps in their learning. A daily planning sheet is produced for each child showing what opportunities they need in order to make further progress. All adults assess all the children, but it is the child’s key worker who records each observation so that she understands exactly what each child has This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 achieved. Children’s progress is monitored and evaluated in each area of learning

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The quality and standards of the early years provision

and it is tracked so that detailed reports, including photographs, can be produced for parents and for the primary schools children move on to. Children are involved in taking their own photos.

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The quality and standards of the early years provision

The nursery environment is extremely calm and well ordered, with excellent resources which are easily accessible by the children and which meet their needs well. There are good opportunities to write and resources which support the children in developing their reasoning and problem-solving skills. Provision for learning about the world around them is especially strong, for example, there are activities based on a tank of live caterpillars and a display board created by the children, and outside there are areas for growing plants from seeds. The children thoroughly enjoy being taken to an area of woodland in the school grounds where they learn more about living things. There are also many excellent resources for developing children’s fine motor skills, such as threading, assembling and dismantling. The outdoor area provides many outstanding opportunities for exploring and for understanding the natural world. The children can explain that

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The quality and standards of the early years provision

their sunflowers and beans will grow best if they have water every day and sunshine. They can explain what happens when they sieve sand which is a mixture of different sized particles. However, there are fewer opportunities for the children to see print, letters or numbers, for example on the walls of the classroom and this sometimes limits the independent learning of the older children.

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The quality and standards of the early years provision

Children understand the importance of a healthy lifestyle. At snack time they enjoy fruit and a drink. They asked that they be able to help themselves to their snacks and a cafe was set up. This is one of many examples of the ways children can become more independent. Lunch time is a calm, sociable time when children serve one another. Drinking water is always available. They understand personal hygiene and wash their hands before eating and after using the toilet. They know how to leave the building if they hear the fire bell.

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The quality and standards of the early years provision

Children’s behaviour is exemplary. They enjoy the wide choice of activities and have good attitudes to learning. Adults question them carefully to encourage them to think. The children make outstanding progress in their understanding of other cultures because they learn about special festivals throughout the year and because they learn about the customs of different countries. Parents and other visitors come in to talk to the children about special times and to show them artefacts and photographs, for example at Divali, Hannukah, and Chinese New Year. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Annex A: record of inspection judgements

The key inspection judgements and what they mean

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Annex A: record of inspection judgements

Grade 1 is Outstanding: this aspect of the provision is of exceptionally high quality Grade 2 is Good: this aspect of the provision is strong Grade 3 is Satisfactory: this aspect of the provision is sound Grade 4 is Inadequate: this aspect of the provision is not good enough

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of children in the Early Years Foundation Stage?

How well does the provision promote inclusive practice? 1 The capacity of the provision to maintain continuous improvement.

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Foundation Stage led and managed?

How effective is the setting’s self-evaluation, including the steps taken to promote improvement? How well does the setting work in partnership with parents and others? How well are children safeguarded? 1

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Years Foundation Stage promoted?

How well are children helped to stay safe? 1 How well are children helped to be healthy? 1 How well are children helped to enjoy and achieve? 1 How well are children helped to make a positive contribution? How well are children helped develop skills that will contribute to their future economic well-being?

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Years Foundation Stage promoted?

procedures set out in the guidance available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

The provider confirms that the requirements of the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are: Met

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

The provider confirms that the requirements of the voluntary part of the Childcare Register are: Met

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