Fledglings Montessori Pre-School Group

Fledglings Montessori Pre-School Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 137297 Inspection date 05/01/2012 Inspector Denys Rasmussen

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Setting address The Friends Meeting House, Ravensbourne Road, Bromley, Kent, BR1 1HN Telephone number 07900150040 Email Type of setting Childcare - Non-Domestic to 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. You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as

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you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way.

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T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk 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.

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Introduction

Please see our website for more information about each childcare provider. We publish inspection reports, conditions of registration and details of complaints we receive where we or the provider take action to meet the requirements of registration. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Description of the setting

Fledglings Montessori Pre-school registered in 1991. It is on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It operates from the Friends Meeting House, located in the centre of the London Borough of Bromley. The group have use of the main hall, a side room, premises facilities and an outside play space. Fledglings is registered to provide care for 32 children aged from two years to under five years. There are currently 42 children on roll, including children in receipt of funding for nursery education. The pre-school is open Monday to Friday, term time only. Sessions are from 9.15am to 12.30pm. The pre-school supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who speak English as an additional language. There are five staff working directly with the children. All staff have relevant early years qualifications, including a qualified early

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Description of the setting

years teacher with Early Years Professional Status (EYPS) and three qualified Montessori teachers. The pre-school follow the Montessori philosophy of education.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is outstanding.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Rigorous systems to evaluate practice lead to a continually improving service which has enabled the pre-school to reach a very high standard of care and education. Exemplary partnerships with parents, other settings and professionals create an inclusive environment overall, enabling children to get the support they need to make excellent progress. The sensitive and motivated staff are highly productive and have created a safe, stimulating and secure environment. The ambitious and experienced leadership have facilitated an enabling environment where children flourish.

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further?

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

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further?

 developing the routine use of sign language to further promote confidence and inclusivity in children's communication skills. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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the early years provision

Safeguarding has high priority. A robust vetting procedure checks the suitability of staff thoroughly and new staff are monitored closely during induction. Designated staff fully understand their responsibilities and the procedures to follow if concerned about a child's welfare. Children are safe because of the close vigilance of staff and detailed risk assessments that help minimise the risk of accidental injury. All the required records are well maintained along with comprehensive policies and procedures. Staff clearly understand the policies which reflect the high quality practice.

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the early years provision

Exceptional organisation enables the pre-school to offer an extensive range of play resources. These are varied and depict positive imagery supporting children to embrace differences. The visual daily timeline on display helps all children to see and understand the routine and structure of the day. Parents and children are welcomed in a variety of languages and photographs enable all children to understand the routine and make choices in their play. For example, photographs as well as speech are used when explaining something to a child with English as an additional language. The staff update their skills and knowledge through regular training and use this knowledge to reflect on and improve their practice. For example, after attending a course about how best to support boys' learning they provided more creative means of mark-making outdoors. Staff are also beginning to use sign language, although this practice is not yet fully developed in the pre-

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the early years provision

school to enable it to be used by all routinely.

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the early years provision

The staff use self-evaluation extremely well through rigorous monitoring, seeking the opinions of parents, children and others. This has enabled them to identify what they do well and what needs to improve. Improvements are well targeted and have had an outstanding impact in bringing about sustained improvement which has enabled the setting to provide high quality care and education. The pre- school works extremely well in partnership with parents, other settings and professionals and takes a lead role in establishing effective working relationships. The well-established links with local primary schools support the smooth transition from pre-school to school. The pre-school liaise with external agencies and services to ensure that all children get the support they need to successfully promote their learning and development.

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the early years provision

The staff have fostered highly positive partnerships with parents. They provide individually tailored games and instructions for the children to take home, helping parents to support their child's learning. Parents are very well informed about all aspects of their child's achievement, well-being and development. Parents are very happy with the pre-school and particularly appreciate the ideas they are given to support early reading and writing skills. Parents report their children are making significant progress particularly in confidence and social skills. Parents comment that the staff are very approachable. They appreciate the enthusiastic feedback about their child's achievements and state that their children are eager to attend. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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and outcomes for children

Assessment through high quality observation is used very effectively to guide the planning. This results in rich, varied and imaginative experiences that meet the needs of all children exceedingly well. Children have control over what they want to participate in which increases their motivation, making them eager to learn. Children play a dynamic role in their learning, offer their ideas and respond to challenges with enthusiasm. The exceptional organisation of the play resources offers children many choices in their play. This is further enhanced by the free-flow between the three indoor play areas and outdoors. Children are eager to attend the pre-school and show high levels of curiosity and concentration. Relationships are excellent and the staff are sensitive and highly skilled in their management of the children, which results in exemplary behaviour. Children play well together, sharing equipment and interacting in a positive and polite manner. For example, a

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and outcomes for children

child says 'we are doing team work' when he is drying up with his friend. Children have autonomy in the pre-school and are extremely independent. They choose activities and tidy them away unprompted when they have finished playing. Children confidently handle tools safely because they have been given guidance and practise this frequently. Visitors to the pre-school such as the fire-fighters teach children valuable safety skills and children learn how to evacuate the premises calmly when practising the fire drill. Staff promote excellent hygiene practice with regular routines such as hand washing. This, coupled with the pre- school's clear sickness policy, reduces the risk of the spread of infections. The management team attended a healthy snacks course which has supported the development of snack time considerably. Children are offered healthy choices and are encouraged to prepare their own snack. For example, they spread the cream

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and outcomes for children

cheese on their pitta bread. Daily free access to an enriching well-resourced outdoor play area effectively promotes children's physical health and overall learning and development.

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and outcomes for children

The practical life activities effectively support children's self-care skills. For example, a child proudly managed to button up her cardigan after practising this on the button board. Children are given excellent opportunities for problem solving and reasoning. They learn about volume and capacity when transferring rice from egg cups to a jug and squeezing water out of a sponge and soaking it again. They are knowledgeable about shape and look for triangles and circles in the collage area to stick on their artwork. The sensorial activities support their knowledge of shapes, sizes and patterns. Practical life activities also support children's knowledge and understanding of the world, increase their dexterity and promote counting, sorting and matching skills. For example, unscrewing lids off of different sized bottles, matching them up and screwing them back on again. Children learn about life cycles and play matching games to understand the sequence of events

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and outcomes for children

and experiment with natural objects. They match animals to their country of origin when playing the atlas game and search for mini beasts when visiting the park. The staff sit with children and guide their learning, asking them questions to make them think and supporting them to complete a task. Children take great pleasure This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 in looking at books and listening to stories, participating with enthusiasm. They have favourite books and enthusiastically tell the story to their friends. Children learn excellent listening skills through innovative games and activities and notice sounds in the environment. Children embrace technology and use it routinely, for example, playing a game with a remote control toy. The knowledgeable and skilful staff are highly effective in supporting all children to make very good progress towards the early learning goals, using a Montessori approach. This equips children

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and outcomes for children

with the skills they need to secure future learning. 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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children in the Early Years Foundation Stage?

The capacity of the provision to maintain continuous improvement

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Early Years Foundation Stage

The effectiveness of leadership and management in embedding ambition and driving improvement The effectiveness with which the setting deploys resources 1 The effectiveness with which the setting promotes equality and diversity The effectiveness of safeguarding 1 The effectiveness of the setting’s self-evaluation, including the steps taken to promote improvement The effectiveness of partnerships 1 The effectiveness of the setting’s engagement with parents and carers

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Stage

The quality of the provision in the Early Years Foundation Stage 1

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Stage

The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning 1 The extent to which children feel safe 1 The extent to which children adopt healthy lifestyles 1 The extent to which children make a positive contribution 1 The extent to which children develop skills for the future 1

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Stage

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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