Grace Montessori School

Grace Montessori Nursery REGENT ESTATE COMMUNITY HALL, 60 Brougham Road, London, E8 4PD

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 23/07/2014 Not Applicable

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early years provision

This inspection: 3 Previous inspection: Not Applicable 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 3 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 3

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This provision requires improvement

 Staff have a secure understanding about safeguarding, including the use of risk assessment. Consequently, risks to children are effectively identified and minimised.  Staff promote children's independence well and, as a result, children are developing self-care skills.  Staff support children's early literacy skills in a range of ways.

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It is not yet good because

 The manager failed to notify Ofsted of a change to the ages of children she was caring for. This is a breach of the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage.  Staff do not provide a regular choice of technology resources so that children can develop their skills in this area.  At times, children lack enthusiasm for learning and choosing activities from the range of resources available.  Some small group sessions are too long for some children, who become distracted.  Staff do not always provide a varied range of activities in the outside areas.

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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 conducted a joint observation with the manager.  The inspector observed activities in the main room and the outside play area.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with children, parents, staff and the manager at various times during the day.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector sampled documentation including policies, children's developmental records and staff files.

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Information about the setting

Grace Montessori Nursery registered in 2013 and is run by a private provider. It operates from a community hall in Hackney in the London Borough of Hackney. There is access to a secure outdoor play area. The nursery provides a service for children from the local community. It is open each weekday from 8.45am to 4.30pm during term times only. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register. There are currently 11 children on roll in the early years age range. The nursery is in receipt of funding for the provision of free early education to children aged three and four years. Children attend for a variety of sessions. Systems are in place to support children who are learning to speak English as an additional language. The nursery employs four staff members. Of these, three hold appropriate early years qualifications with one holding Qualified Teacher Status. The nursery follows the Montessori educational philosophy.

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must:

 improve the programme for understanding the world, with specific reference to technology, so that children can explore equipment and make choices as they play

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must:

 ensure that children are challenged in their play by providing stimulating activities that appeal to their curiosity.

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

 review the length of small group activities for some children, so that they are fully engaged in the learning experiences

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

 extend the range of activities provided in the outside area to give children more choices in their play.

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who attend

The nursery is bright and clean, and children arrive happily. Overall, staff have a suitable knowledge of the Early Years Foundation Stage; however, children cannot freely choose activities to cover all areas of learning. For example, although staff occasionally provide equipment for children to develop their skills in technology, children cannot choose to experiment with this equipment. The manager sometimes provides remote-controlled cars and a music player so that children can learn about cause and effect relationships but opportunities for this type of play are limited. This means that the nursery is not successfully planning for this area of learning and therefore not fully meeting the learning and development requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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who attend

Learning is variable across the nursery. Staff encourage children to choose from the range of activities available, and children generally enjoy their choices. However, certain activities lack suitable challenge to engage some children and, as a result, some wander with no purpose for short periods, showing little enthusiasm for choosing a different activity. Staff are aware of the children who need support with making choices in activities, and make some plans to engage these children.

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who attend

Children enjoy learning about the life cycle of butterflies; however, some small group activities are too long for some younger children and staff do not always provide alternative choices for these children. Older children engage well with these group activities. Staff encourage them to count and describe what they can see on picture cards. This helps all children to develop early mathematics and literacy skills. Staff further support literacy skills as children use name cards around the setting to begin to recognise their names. Some children are beginning to sound out letters and are learning to write their names on their pictures, which they are pleased to do. This approach to early literacy supports the next steps in children's learning. Children are learning about shapes and sizes as they arrange blocks in order of size to create large structures. Their mathematical skills are further supported as staff teach children about the names of different shapes and

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who attend

encourage counting at registration times.

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who attend

Staff have a sound knowledge of children's levels of development. They complete progress reports for all children and discuss these at regular meetings with parents. These highlight the next steps in children's learning and staff plan suitably for most areas of development.

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

Children are learning about the needs of others as staff encourage them to share and take turns in all activities and routines. For example, staff encourage children to play cooperatively with a range of equipment and resources. Children's behaviour is good. They consider each other's needs in small group activities, helping each other to look at photographs and other resources. When younger children become slightly upset, staff are calm and ask children to explain their difficulties. A cuddle from a member of staff comforts children as they calm down.

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

Children have clearly learned the routines of the nursery. They follow these routines with gentle support and encouragement from staff. The routines encourage children's independence skills well. Children are learning how to choose snacks and pour their own drinks from small jugs of milk and water. After outside play, children change into their indoor shoes and slippers, and this helps them to understand how to care for their inside environment. In the large outside area, children develop physical skills on a range of equipment. They play catch with balls and bean bags, and enjoy running around in the large space. Children play role play games outside to develop their creative and imaginative skills. They pretend to buy and sell ice creams to each other, building close friendships as they play. Staff have developed a growing area in a corner of the garden and children enjoy talking about and watering the plants. This enhances their knowledge of their environment and

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

encourages them to take care of living things; however, there is scope to extend these activities to cover all areas of learning, so that children have more choices in their outside play. Snacks are healthy and children choose confidently from the varied range of fruits available. Hygiene routines are fully embedded and children explain that they are washing their hands before they have their snack.

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

Staff are vigilant in their health and safety checks of the premises to minimise risks to children's safety. They carry out daily safety checks on the rooms and outside area, and explain that these are particularly necessary as the premises are shared with other users. This demonstrates staff's awareness of how to provide a safe environment. Staff have a clear understanding of the robust procedures to follow if they have concerns about children in their care. They confidently explain these procedures and explain how to contact support services within the local authority if this is needed.

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provision

The provider is registered on the Early Years Register to care for children within the early years age range. However, on the day of the inspection, some children who were being looked after were older than this age range. The provider, who is the manager of the setting, is aware that she was looking after children without being registered on the correct register. The care of children was not compromised during this time; however, the manager failed to notify Ofsted of the change to the care arrangements in the nursery, which is a breach of the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. Ofsted will not take any further action on this occasion and the provider now understands the requirement to advise Ofsted of significant changes and events.

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provision

The manager is embedding procedures in the nursery to evaluate practice and make improvements. She reviews sessions with staff to make any necessary changes to future activities. Along with supervision and appraisal sessions with staff, these reviews help to identify areas of strength and weakness in staff practice. This means that the manager can provide additional training and support where needed. The manager plans to make further observations on staff so that she can further enhance their practice. The manager has a sound understanding of the areas of learning and currently reviews all children's development.

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provision

The manager has plans to improve the nursery in other ways. She works closely with the committee who manage the building and has organised changes to the construction of the main door, so that staff can see visitors before opening the door to them. Recruitment procedures are robust and the manager checks the suitability of all staff with Disclosure and Barring Service checks before they are left unsupervised with children. The manager obtains references for all staff and requires staff to sign a declaration to ensure that they understand their responsibility to advise her if their suitability status changes. These actions demonstrate that the manager gives a high priority to safeguarding children in her care.

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provision

Partnerships with parents are sound. Parents complete questionnaires and are comfortable to make suggestions to the manager about the nursery. For example, parents have suggested that a web site would be a good addition to the nursery, to provide further information for parents. The manager has made plans for this for the coming term, demonstrating how she is aware of the importance of working in partnership with parents. The manager works well with the advisor from the local authority and is beginning to make useful links with other professionals in the local area. These professionals are a source of support and the manager confidently explains how she works with them to enhance her practice and knowledge.

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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 EY471003 Local authority Hackney Inspection number 949269 Type of provision Sessional provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 2 - 5 Total number of places 30 Number of children on roll 11 Name of provider Shamim Mulla Date of previous inspection not applicable Telephone number 07512 410002

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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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