The Children's House Montessori Nursery

The Children's House Montessori Nursery 57 Railway Approach, EAST GRINSTEAD, West Sussex, RH19 1BT

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 05/02/2014 25/11/2009

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 Previous inspection: 2 How well the early years provision meets the needs of the range of children who attend The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children 2 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 2

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This provision is good

 Staff are caring, supportive and friendly and this results in children feeling a strong sense of belonging and contentment.  Children make good progress towards the early learning goals as staff extend their learning as they play.  Staff actively promote children's independence and this prepares them well for school.  Staff form good partnerships with parents that contribute to children's continuing well- being and development.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Babies and very young children have many opportunities to develop their sensory skills but staff are not making full use of the room and low-level displays to help support this.  The occasional use of pre-drawn colouring sheets does not foster children's imaginations as effectively as other creative activities provided.

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Information about this inspection

Inspections of registered early years provision are:  scheduled at least once in every inspection cycle – the current cycle ends on 31 July

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Information about this inspection

 scheduled more frequently where Ofsted identifies a need to do so, for example where provision was previously judged inadequate  brought forward in the inspection cycle where Ofsted has received information that suggests the provision may not be meeting the legal requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage or where assessment of the provision identifies a need for early inspection  prioritised where we have received information that the provision is not meeting the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage and which suggests children may not be safe  scheduled at the completion of an investigation into failure to comply with the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed activities in all of the play rooms.  The inspector carried out a joint observation with the manager.  The inspector held meetings with the management team.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector sampled children's learning records, planning and other relevant documentation.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of the views of parents spoken to on the day and from information included in the nursery's own parent survey.

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Information about the setting

The Children's House Montessori Nursery is a privately run nursery that opened in 1992. It has been run by Greenfields Educational Trust since 2005. It operates from a converted building in the centre of East Grinstead, West Sussex. The premises consist of a large play room, a baby room, sleep room, office, kitchen and a toilet area. The nursery opens five days a week all year round. Opening times are from 8am to 6pm. All children share access to enclosed outdoor play areas.

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Information about the setting

The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register. There are currently 62 children on roll in the early years age range. The nursery is in receipt of funding for the provision of free early education for children aged two, three and four years. Children come from a wide catchment area. The nursery currently supports a number of children who learn English as an additional language.

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Information about the setting

The nursery employs 11 staff. There are eight staff, including the manager, who hold appropriate early years qualifications. There are three staff who are working towards a recognised qualification. The nursery uses the Montessori method of teaching.

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To further improve the quality of the early years provision the provider should:

 extend the opportunities for children to represent their own ideas through art activities

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To further improve the quality of the early years provision the provider should:

 develop further the organisation of the baby room so that it is a more homely space where young children can explore and investigate using their senses.

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who attend

Staff work closely with parents to settle children in. They gain plenty of helpful information from parents about children's interests, abilities and routines. This enables staff to provide activities and resources that reflect children's interests. As a result, children quickly settle and enjoy the activities. Staff have good systems for observing and assessing individual children. They make effective use of the assessments to identify learning priorities and plan challenging activities that meet children's learning needs. Staff keep parents well informed about their children's progress by daily feedback and more formal termly meetings. They actively involve parents in consolidating children's learning at home. Staff plan and provide a good range of stimulating activities that cover all areas of learning successfully. Children are well motivated and concentrate for long periods of time. Staff provide good support to children and extend their thinking. They talk to children as they

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who attend

play and ask questions that effectively promote their language skills. Babies and young children benefit from good interaction from adults. For example, staff get the 'washing line' pictures down for them and young children confidently name the objects. Staff reinforce children's language by using singing and action songs which children enthusiastically join in with. They cuddle up with adults to look at books together and develop good early literacy skills. Children learning English as an additional language make good progress. Their key persons are well focused on promoting children's spoken English. As a result, these children also become confident and fluent speakers.

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who attend

Older children enjoy simple science activities such as creating volcanoes. They develop good problem solving skills as they play with various challenging resources that staff make easily accessible. Staff help children develop a good awareness of letter sounds as they do floor puzzles together. Overall, staff provide a good variety of crafts and art materials for children to choose from. Children spend a long time painting at the easels and creating pictures. They develop strong creative skills and show good imaginary skills. However, the occasional use of some pre-drawn colouring sheets and templates is slightly less effective at promoting children's creativity.

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The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children

The key person system works effectively as every child has a special person they build a strong emotional bond with. As a result, children show a strong sense of safety, security and confidence. They become active independent learners who happily explore and investigate. Children also show they feel secure enough to go to adults for help when they need it. Staff successfully prepare children for moving on to other groups within the nursery and to school.

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The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children

Staff create a safe environment where children confidently make choices and decisions about their play. The use of low-level storage greatly contributes to children's independence. Overall, the rooms are set out well and organised effectively to create different play areas and quiet areas. There is a good range of stimulating and challenging resources in each room that are used well by staff to support children's learning. Babies explore their room freely and develop good physical skills as they crawl around to investigate. However, staff have not fully developed this as a homely room with low-level displays to interest very young children.

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The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children

Staff actively promote children's well-being. They successfully promote children's self- esteem as they listen to children and praise their achievements. Children behave well and benefit from plenty of encouragement from staff. They develop a good awareness of the need to share and respect others. Staff gently reinforce safety rules with children that help them develop a good understanding of how to stay safe. Staff use effective strategies for managing children's behaviour positively and sensitively. This results in children developing a good understanding of what is acceptable behaviour. Staff work closely with parents to provide consistency in the way they support children and manage their behaviour. They keep parents well informed about any incidents that occur.

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The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children

Staff encourage parents to bring healthy food items for their children. This helps to promote children's good health. Staff make effective use of activities and discussion to help children learn what is good to eat. Children take part in regular cooking activities where children's understanding about healthy eating is reinforced by staff. They adopt good personal hygiene practices such as hand washing before cooking and after using the toilet. Staff encourage older children to see to their own personal needs but stay nearby to give support when needed, for example, when children are going to the toilet. Staff promote very young children's health by providing sleep times that meet their home routines. These children sleep in comfort and safety in a dedicated room. All children get plenty of fresh air and exercise and this contributes to their good health and well-being.

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provision

The management team has a good knowledge and understanding of the legal safeguarding and welfare requirements. There are robust recruitment and induction procedures that help ensure staff are suitable to work with children. Good systems are in place for promoting the ongoing professional development of all staff. For example, staff have regular supervision and appraisals where any training needs are identified. They are encouraged to attend further training to improve their knowledge and skills and benefit the children. All staff complete safeguarding training so are fully aware of what to do if they have a child protection concern. Staff supervise children well throughout the indoor and outdoor areas. They also carry out daily safety checks and rigorous risk assessments. These practices help staff successfully promote children's safety.

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provision

Staff have all the required documentation in place to support and promote children's safety and welfare. The records, which include accident and complaint logs, are well maintained and shared with parents. This enables them to work successfully together to meet children's needs. Parents give very positive comments about the nursery. They say they like the 'small, intimate' setting and the friendly staff. Parents say they get plenty of helpful feedback about their children both on a daily basis and at the formal meetings. They state that their children have developed well since they have started at the nursery. Staff also form positive relationships with agencies and other settings. They work closely together to support individual children and provide continuity of care and education.

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provision

The management team shows a good understanding of how to meet the learning and development requirements. They regularly review and monitor the educational programme and assessment system to make sure they are effectively meeting children's learning needs. For example, the manager has been reviewing the provision for boys. As a result of this evaluation, staff have increased the outdoor activities for boys. This has resulted in improved concentration in boys at activities. The management team is making increasing use of self-evaluation to successfully identify areas for development to benefit children. They have been making positive changes as a result, such as making the outdoor area a more stimulating learning environment. The management and staff team show a strong capacity to continue to make improvements to outcomes for children.

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Grade Judgement Description

Grade 1 Outstanding Outstanding provision is highly effective in meeting the needs of all children exceptionally well. This ensures that children are very well prepared for the next stage of their learning. Grade 2 Good Good provision is effective in delivering provision that meets the needs of all children well. This ensures children are ready for the next stage of their learning. Grade 3 Requires improvement The provision is not giving children a good standard of early years education and/or there are minor breaches of the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. It will be monitored and inspected within twelve months of the date of this inspection. Grade 4 Inadequate Provision that is inadequate requires significant improvement and/or enforcement action. The provision is failing to give children an acceptable standard of early years education and/or is not meeting the safeguarding and welfare requirements of

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Grade Judgement Description

the Early Years Foundation Stage. It will be monitored and inspected again within six months of the date of this inspection. Met The provision has no children on roll. The inspection judgement is that the provider continues to meet the requirements for registration. Not met The provision has no children on roll. The inspection judgement is that the provider does not meet the requirements for registration.

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Inspection

This inspection was carried out by Ofsted under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of provision that is registered on the Early Years Register. The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children’s learning, development and care, known as the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY391898 Local authority West Sussex Inspection number 940096

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 5 Total number of places 28 Number of children on roll 62 Name of provider Greenfields Educational Trust Date of previous inspection 25/11/2009 Telephone number 07970637414

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Type of provision

set out in the guidance ‘Complaints procedure: raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted’, which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk.

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Type of provision

For the purposes of this inspection the following definitions apply:

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Type of provision

Full-time provision is that which operates for more than three hours. These are usually known as nurseries, nursery schools and pre-schools and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. They are registered on the Early Years Register and pay the higher fee for registration.

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Type of provision

Sessional provision operates for more than two hours but does not exceed three hours in any one day. These are usually known as pre-schools, kindergartens or nursery schools and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. They are registered on the Early Years Register and pay the lower fee for registration.

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Type of provision

Childminders care for one or more children where individual children attend for a period of more than two hours in any one day. They operate from domestic premises, which are usually the childminder’s own home. They are registered on the Early Years Register and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Type of provision

Out of school provision may be sessional or full-time provision and is delivered before or after school and/or in the summer holidays. They are registered on the Early Years Register and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. Where children receive their Early Years Foundation Stage in school these providers do not have to deliver the learning and development requirements in full but should complement the experiences children receive in school. 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,

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Type of provision

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Type of provision

T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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