Brighton & Hove Montessori School

Brighton and Hove Montessori School Independent school progress monitoring inspection report

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DfE registration number 846/6023 Unique Reference Number (URN) 133348 URN for registered childcare EY345611 Inspection number 365502 Inspection dates 26 November 2010 Reporting inspector Michael Best achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work-based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk No. 090137 Independent school progress monitoring inspection report

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Purpose and scope of the inspection

This inspection was carried out by Ofsted under Section 162A of the Education Act 2002, as amended by schedule 8 of the Education Act 2005. 1,2

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Purpose and scope of the inspection

The inspection was conducted at the request of the Registration Authority for independent schools in order to monitor the progress the school has made in implementing its action plan following the previous inspection.

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Information about the school

Brighton and Hove Montessori School is an independent, non-selective, day school for boys and girls aged between two and 11 years. Opened in 1985, it is located in two buildings; a community hall and several rooms in a house. An after-school club caters for children from the school and for some local children, aged from three to 11 years. There are 54 children between the ages of two and seven years attending full time or part time, with the very large majority of these being in the Early Years Foundation Stage. Forty five children are funded under the Nursery funding scheme.

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Information about the school

The aims of the school are ‘to create and continually develop a learning community where respect for oneself, respect for others and respect for the environment is a reality’. For the individual child, the school aims to ‘develop a sound academic base and learning skills for life’.

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Context of the inspection

When the school was inspected by Ofsted in June 2010, most regulations were met. In order to address the shortcomings identified in the inspection report, the school drew up an action plan which was evaluated and accepted in September 2010. The purpose of this visit was to monitor the progress made by the school in addressing the action plan.

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action plan

The inspection in June 2010 found that, while the curricular provision and teaching were satisfactory, teaching was not consistently well informed by assessment. Target setting and the tracking of pupils’ progress were areas for improvement identified at the previous inspection in 2007 and the school acknowledged that it had not fully addressed them.

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action plan

1 www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2002/ukpga_20020032_en_14#pt10-ch1-pb4-l1g162 2 www.opsi.gov.uk/ACTS/acts2005/ukpga_20050018_en_15#sch8 Independent school progress monitoring inspection report The school submitted an action plan to address these shortcomings which was evaluated and accepted in September 2010. Consultants are supporting the implementation of the plan, including members of the local authority Early Years Foundation Stage advisory team who are helping the school to implement and develop lesson planning, assessment procedures and the curriculum. Evidence from this visit shows that improvements in teachers’ termly, weekly and daily plans are established and becoming embedded. The school has put a baseline assessment in place and plans to refine this further. Teachers’ planning and assessment opportunities link the Montessori curriculum with the appropriate age-related national expectations for children in the Early Years Foundation Stage and the National

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action plan

Curriculum for pupils in Years 1 and 2. Daily observations are made and records kept of individual pupils’ interests and progress, and participation in whole-group activities. The school recognises that refining these observations to highlight the next steps in pupils’ learning would strengthen the effectiveness of its assessment practice. The school now meets the requirements of this standard and the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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action plan

The inspection in June 2010 found that staff, particularly the proprietor as the named child protection officer, had not kept up to date with the required training in child protection. This situation had not been adequately addressed since the previous inspection in 2007; in addition, the school did not comply with the safeguarding requirements of the Childcare Act 2006. The school submitted an action plan to address these shortcomings which was evaluated and accepted in September 2010. The proprietor attended higher-level child protection training in September 2010 and has provided training for all staff, new and established. All staff are now undertaking further training, some at the higher level. In addition, the proprietor and bursar have undertaken safer recruitment training. The school’s child protection policy now meets requirements; it includes the requirement for update training to be attended every

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action plan

two years by the designated persons and every three years by all other staff. All safeguarding requirements of this standard and the Childcare Act 2006 are now met.

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action plan

When the school was inspected in June 2010, fire safety records did not show whether identified faulty emergency lights had been replaced. In addition, checks on portable electrical appliances had not been made. The school submitted an action plan to address these shortcomings which was evaluated and accepted in September 2010. Fire records are now up to date and the emergency lighting is now operational. Portable appliance checks were undertaken and documented by a contractor in November 2010. The requirements of the standard are now met.

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action plan

The inspection in June 2010 found that the school had not checked a member of staff’s right to work in the United Kingdom. The school submitted an action plan to address this shortcoming which was evaluated and accepted in September 2010. This visit found that the school has revised its recruitment procedures and checklist and ensured that the necessary information is entered on the single central register. The requirements of the standard to make and record these checks are met. Independent school progress monitoring inspection report

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Compliance with regulatory requirements

The school has made good progress and now meets all regulatory requirements. Independent school progress monitoring inspection report

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School details

Type of school Montessori Primary and Nursery

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School details

Number on roll (full-time pupils) Boys: 5 Girls: 4 Total: 9

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School details

Number on roll (part-time pupils) Boys: 14 Girls: 17 Total: 31

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School details

Number of children aged 0–3 in registered childcare provision Boys: 4 Girls: 10 Total: 14

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School details

Number of pupils with a statement of special educational needs Boys: 0 Girls: 0 Total: 0

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School details

Number of pupils who are looked after Boys: 0 Girls: 0 Total: 0

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School details

Address of school 67 Stanford Avenue, Brighton BN1 6FB

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School details

Email address info@brighton-montessori.org.uk

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