Faith Montessori Nursery Ltd

Faith Montessori Nursery Ltd 262 - 264 Stanstead Road, LONDON, SE23 1DE

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 18/06/2014 18/06/2013

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 Previous inspection: 4 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

 Children settle happily and readily because they form strong attachments to staff who provide warm, nurturing care.  Staff prepare children well for the move to school because they have good links with local schools to support children effectively.  The management team has a strong drive for improvement and has set ambitious targets for the improvement of the nursery.  Children have good self-care skills. They regularly brush their teeth and wash their hands at appropriate times with clear understanding of the need for good personal hygiene.  Staff prepare children well emotionally for their move to a new room or their school.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Opportunities for children to practise their early writing skills in play situations are not fully developed.  Displays that children can interact with which are linked to different concepts are not widely available to assist learning.  On occasion, children sometimes wait too long for their lunch to be served. This leads to frustration.

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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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Information about this inspection

The provision is also registered on the voluntary and compulsory parts of the Childcare Register. This report includes a judgment about compliance with the requirements of that register.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector invited the manager to carry out a joint observation of an adult-led group activity.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed the interaction between staff and children in the indoor and outdoor environments.  The inspector tracked the progress of several children.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector sampled a range of documentation and held a discussion with the manager.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke to parents, children and staff and took their views into consideration.

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Information about the setting

Faith Montessori Nursery opened in 2004 and expanded in 2010. It is located in the Crawford, London Borough of Lewisham. The nursery operates from three floors of a large semi-detached house and there is a secure garden. The nursery follows the Montessori educational philosophy linked with learning through play. The nursery is registered on the early years and compulsory and voluntary Childcare Registers. It is open from 8.00am until 6.30pm for 51 weeks of the year, closing for Bank Holidays and one week at Christmas. There are currently 89 children in the early years range on roll. The nursery supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who are learning English as an additional language. Access to all areas may be difficult for disabled users due to the presence of three flights of internal stairs, however, access to the ground floor is suitable for wheelchair users. The nursery employs 20 staff, 18 of whom hold

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Information about the setting

appropriate early years qualifications. This includes one member of staff who has a degree in early years; two staff members hold level 4 qualifications; eight staff members who hold level 3 qualifications; four staff members who hold level 2 qualifications; and five staff members who are unqualified, three of whom are working towards early years qualifications.

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

 provide further opportunities for children to practise their early writing skills in play situations

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

 create interactive displays that reinforce children's learning of different concepts

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

 review lunchtime organisation to reduce the time that children wait for their meals.

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who attend

Staff provide a variety of stimulating, challenging activities in this organised, homely nursery. Children make good progress because staff base planning on children's skills and interests and on areas of learning. This helps to sustain children's interest in activities and presents suitable levels of challenge. Children freely create their own play from low level accessible resources. Their independence is also encouraged through the Montessori approach of self-selection of resources to suit different abilities. Staff provide balance to this with adult-led structured learning activities. Children move freely between the indoor and outdoor areas, which caters for children's different learning styles.

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who attend

Children skilfully draw around their hands using coloured pencils. Staff extend their learning by asking children to count the number of fingers on each hand. Children learn to recognise their names on their coat pegs and on name cards. This supports children's early literacy skills. Children use the name cards to practise writing their own names on completed artwork. Although there is a drawing and writing table with tools and materials, this is not very well used. Children use the role play areas well where they create imaginary stories and learn to negotiate roles. But there are no tools or materials in role play for children to practise their early writing skills in play situations. Staff teach children about the life cycle of plants by planting and growing seeds with the children. Children fill their watering cans to water their seeds and staff talk to the children about the things plants need to grow. Children volunteer suggestions, such as 'water' 'sunshine' and,

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who attend

astutely, 'air'. Although staff teach children different concepts, such as plant growth, there are no interactive displays linked to concepts to reinforce learning. Staff enable children to practise their hand eye coordination skills as they thread string through lacing number boards. Staff ask children to identify numbers and to find the number that matches their age. This makes numeracy learning more meaningful because it relates to children's personal experiences. Overall, children learn essential skills for later use in school.

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who attend

Babies practise their walking skills as they push along toys. Staff encourage babies by praising them for their efforts at walking. Staff talk to babies about different textures of materials that they explore. They teach them new words to describe the textures, such as 'smooth'. Babies enjoy singing songs with staff who teach them the names of different body parts in action songs. Babies learn to follow a sequence as they follow actions in songs. They enjoy pinching and rolling play dough which provides good opportunities for children to develop small muscle control. Babies operate simple technology by pressing buttons to create musical sounds on electronic toys.

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who attend

Children develop a good variety of physical skills in the stimulating outdoor area. They climb across frames, balance on scooters, and propel forwards on push bikes. Staff help children to develop physical coordination skills as they catching games with balls. Children move confidently in different ways, such as running and jumping. The outdoor environment provides a variety of learning opportunities. Children play hopscotch and recognise numbers as they play which supports their numeracy skills. Staff teach children about differences in sounds while they play percussion instruments. Children enjoy creating 'chocolate cake' in the mud area of the garden and this supports their imaginative development.

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who attend

Staff support children who learn English as an additional language effectively. They learn key words in a child's home language to support children's communication skills. Staff use visual resources, such as pictures of objects to teach children English names of objects. Staff work closely with community health professionals to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. These professionals provide support, advice and information in specialist areas so that children make good progress.

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who attend

Staff collect evidence of children's skills in the form of photographs, art work, and regular observations. Staff evaluate the evidence to inform children's next steps for learning, which they link well to planning. They keep parents well informed of their children's development. For instance, staff carry out progress checks for children aged two years and provide written summaries to parents. Staff meet with parents at formal parents' evenings to discuss children's progress, and talk to them informally each day. Parents are encourage to share their observations of their children with staff and this provides good opportunities for them to contribute to their children's learning.

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

Children have happy, warm relationships with staff who know them well. Staff find out about children's preferences and skills to provide activities that children enjoy. They readily incorporate babies' home care routines so that they settle happily. Staff greet children warmly with smiles when they arrive and this helps children to feel valued and welcome. Staff use visual timetables to help children to understand the nursery routine. This supports children's feelings of security.

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

Staff provide a cosy, bright and organised environment which supports children's well- being. Staff teach children how to be safe by showing them how to hold onto the low handrail as they use the stairs. Children know to walk indoors to prevent accidents. Staff teach children how to cross the road safely which helps children to be safe when outdoors. Staff encourage children's independence. Children brush their teeth and wash their hands independently and understand the reasons to maintain good personal hygiene. Children pour their own drinks and feed themselves independently. Children eat well because the nursery cook provides nutritious, balanced meals which cater for special dietary needs. They develop good eating habits because staff offer fruit and vegetable snacks. However, on occasion, children are left to wait too long for their meals which leads to frustration. Babies are happy and comfortable during nappy changes because staff change nappies in

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

Children behave in positive ways because staff use praise well to motivate children. Children are clear about staff expectations and know how to moderate their behaviour when needed. Staff are fair, calm and gentle with children and offer children reasons why some behaviour is not acceptable. Children learn to accept difference because staff celebrate various special events, such as Black history month where children learn about Black culture and famous Black people. Staff have very good links with schools to support children who transfer to school. For instance, staff compile photograph books of teachers and local schools which children browse through. This helps them to become familiar with school buildings and staff and enables them to settle readily. Staff support children who move to new group rooms at the nursery by spending time in the rooms. This enables children to become familiar with new environments and staff.

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provision

Management has implemented a good range of measures to help protect children from harm. Risk assessments cover all aspects of the nursery, including outings, which helps to keep children safe. Management carries out a series of checks on staff to assess suitability for their roles, which helps to protect children from harm. Staff record all accidents, treatment applied and notify parents in accordance with requirements. Children are in secure premises because there is an electronic intercom entry system and visitors book. This helps to prevent intruder access. Staff know procedures to follow should they be concerned about a child and this protects children further. Management has good understanding of its role and responsibilities in relation to the requirements of the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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provision

Management have good insight into the quality of assessments of children's progress and planning because it carries out spot checks and regular reviews. This highlights any inconsistencies so that appropriate action is taken. Staff are supervised at regular intervals where any issues of underperformance are addressed. Management offer staff support, information and advice to improve skills. Staff have their training needs readily identified because management carry out yearly appraisals of staff performance. This has led to staff attending a range of courses. For example, staff attended a course on caring for children with special educational needs which led to greater understanding of the external specialist expertise available to support children.

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provision

Management monitors the provision effectively. The manager carries out observations of staff and provides feedback to improve staff skills. Staff track children's progress and this provides good insight into the developmental stages of children. This helps to identify children operating below expected levels so that appropriate support is offered.

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provision

Staff have good links with others involved in children's care and learning. Staff work closely with local schools to support children who move to school. They keep parents informed of their children's progress and provide good opportunities for them to take part in their learning. Parents spoken to at the time of inspection expressed good levels of satisfaction with the nursery and were pleased with the progress of their children. They work well with the local children's centre by directing parents to a range of family services offered by the centre.

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provision

Management reflects deeply on the nursery provision and evaluates all aspects of its practice. This enables staff to have clear insight into the strengths and weaknesses of the nursery. For instance, management plans to develop children's experiences with technology so that they learn about and use simple technology. The nursery operates successfully and has good capacity to maintain this in future.

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The Childcare Register

The requirements for the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are Met The requirements for the voluntary part of the Childcare Register are Met

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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 EY278613 Local authority Lewisham Inspection number 963194 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 100 Number of children on roll 89 Name of provider Faith Montessori Nursery Ltd Date of previous inspection 18/06/2013 Telephone number 0208 291 8580

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Setting details

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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