Pillar Box Montessori

Pillar Box Montessori Nursery 107 Bow Road, Bow, London, E3 2AN

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 19/12/2014 03/02/2011

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early years provision

This inspection: 3 Previous inspection: 3 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 build close relationships and bonds with children that helps them to settle well into the nursery and provides them with a sense of well-being.  Staff have a suitable understanding of safeguarding children and the procedures to follow if they are concerned about a child's welfare.  Successful partnerships with other early years professionals help to ensure that children with identified additional needs are well supported.

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It is not yet good because

 Monitoring of staff and the educational programmes are not sufficiently robust to prevent inconsistencies in practice. This means that children are not always effectively supported in their development and learning.  Documentation relating to the effective management of the nursery is not always available for inspection.  Staff do not always provide good quality facilities and opportunities for children to play and extend their learning in the outdoor environment.  Parents do not consistently receive encouragement to contribute observations about their children's learning at home or to become involved in setting learning goals for their children.

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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 compulsory part 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 observed staff interaction with children.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with the manager, staff and children, toured the nursery and viewed the outdoor area.  The inspector carried out a joint observation with the manager.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of parents' views by speaking with them on the day and by reading parents' feedback.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector sampled a range of documents including policies and procedures, staff suitability records, risk assessments and children's progress records

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Information about the setting

Pillar Box Montessori Nursery opened in 1995. It is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory part of the Childcare Register. It operates from a number of rooms in a five storey Victorian house situated in Bow in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. The premises are used solely for childcare. The nursery follows the Montessori method of teaching. The nursery also has a reception area, kitchen and toilets and there is an enclosed area for outdoor play. The nursery employs six members of child care staff, including the manager. Of these, five hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 3 and above. The nursery also employs a cook and cleaner. The nursery opens Monday to Friday for 49 weeks of the year. Sessions are from 8am until 6.55pm. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 24 children attending who are in the early years age group. The nursery provides funding for free early education for children aged three

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Information about the setting

and four years. The nursery supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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must:

 ensure that monitoring of the educational programmes and teaching is consistently robust to enable all children to thrive in their learning and development

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must:

 ensure all required documentation is easily accessible and available for inspection.

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

 extend partnerships with parents by providing opportunities for them to contribute observations of their children at home and help to plan for their continued progress in the nursery

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

 improve the use of the outdoor area to allow children opportunities to explore a wide variety of activities that support all the areas of learning in safety and comfort.

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who attend

Children generally make suitable progress towards the early learning goals because staff provide activities that reflect all the areas of learning within their various classrooms. Staff follow the Montessori method of teaching and they are all familiar with the learning and development requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. Staff observe, assess and plan for individual children's development and provide interesting and challenging activities to support their learning. For example, children are excited to be involved in rehearsing their performance of a nativity play. Staff question children skilfully to check their knowledge and understanding of the story. Children are confident to speak individually in a group and recite the words they have learned. This supports children's development in communication and language, and promotes their personal, social and emotional development.

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who attend

Staff evaluate the effectiveness of their planning and take into consideration children's likes and dislikes. They gather information from parents when children first join the nursery to help them to understand children's starting points and use this information to ensure children continue to make progress. Staff ensure that parents are fully informed of their children's progress through regular meetings and daily discussions. However, they do not encourage parents to become fully involved in their children's learning by contributing their own observations of their children's activities and experiences at home. Staff effectively identify where children do not make rapid progress in their learning and discuss their assessments with parents. Staff obtain parental permission to seek early interventions from appropriate professionals. This ensures that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities receive the support they need to progress in their

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who attend

Staff understand children's individual needs and provide activities that are suitable for their age and stage of development. For example, younger children who do not want to engage in the rehearsals choose to play with sand in an adjoining room. Staff follow their lead and sit with them. They help to extend children's self-directed play by introducing new vocabulary and encouraging them to explore. Children listen intently as their sand falls through a sieve onto a plastic sheet, making an interesting sound. This also promotes children's physical development, which staff further promote when they take them out for walks in the local community. Children regularly access the nursery garden where they use a variety of equipment to practise their physical skills. However, the garden does not currently reflect all the areas of learning and therefore does not support children's development in all areas. Older children learn skills they will need when they start school,

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who attend

such as waiting for others to finish what they are saying before they speak and they learn to listen well.

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

Key persons help children to settle into the nursery. They are kind and considerate, and comfort children if they feel upset. Staff understand the importance of enabling children to build secure attachments to promote their emotional development. They gather information from parents about children's individual routines and preferences, which enable them to respond to children's individual care needs appropriately. Staff talk to children about their homes and how they will spend the Christmas holidays. Staff listen patiently and they give children plenty of time to answer. Staff make sure that every child has an opportunity to talk about their home and family and this helps all children to feel valued. Staff prepare children well for their outing to the community centre to perform their nativity. They talk to children about keeping themselves safe when crossing the road. They ask them to remember and recite the ground rules for behaviour on outings, giving

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

children time to respond to demonstrate their understanding.

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

Children have daily opportunities to exercise in the fresh air. Staff carry out, and record, risk assessments of the outdoor area before children go outside to enable them to minimise any hazards. The garden is spacious and there is an area for children to grow plants. However, the garden surface is uneven, making it difficult for children to run around without tripping. In addition, the sandpit has been damaged by the weather making it unfit for children to use. These aspects have been identified by staff and currently, the children are not using these areas as a result. Children learn to be independent as they dress themselves ready for their rehearsal. They are happy to be taking part in the play and confident to speak their well-rehearsed words. Staff praise them for their good performance which boosts their self-esteem. Children manage their own personal care needs according to their age and stage of development. They learn the

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

skills of independence they will need for the future and this gives them confidence when it is time for them to move on to other settings and to school.

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

The provider ensures staff promote children's health and a healthy lifestyle appropriately. Children wash their hands before eating, feed themselves and pour their own water to drink. The nursery cook provides nourishing and appetising food for the children, which she cooks using fresh ingredients. Children enjoy fresh fruit for their snack and dessert and this promotes their good health. After eating their lunch, some of the children need to sleep, and staff prepare beds using the children's own individually named bedding. Staff complete daily diary sheets to inform parents of the children's routines and activities throughout the day. The staff work closely with another setting owned by the same provider. Younger children move on to the nursery from the other setting when staff feel they reach an appropriate age and are ready for more challenge in their learning. An experienced member of staff cares for the younger children together to ensure they settle

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provision

The manager of the nursery is new to his post. He is working hard, in partnership with his staff, to promote successful outcomes for the children. He is suitably qualified and has a secure understanding of the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. The manager carries out supervision meetings with individual staff and regular full team meetings where planning for individual children's development is discussed. However, evaluation and monitoring of the educational programmes and staff teaching is not currently robust enough. This means that the quality of teaching is variable at times. The manager works closely with the staff to secure improvements to the nursery. An experienced and senior member of staff is currently acting as a deputy manager until a new deputy arrives in post in the New Year. Staffing arrangements help to ensure that children are supervised adequately and ratios are met.

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provision

Children are protected in the nursery as the manager and staff have undertaken appropriate safeguarding training. Staff understand what they need to do if they are concerned about the welfare of a child and when and where to report concerns. The manager has a valid first-aid qualification, which means that he is able to deal with any minor accidents and injuries should they occur and other staff are about to renew their first-aid qualifications. Regular training helps staff to improve their practice and supports their ongoing professional development. The nursery has safe recruitment procedures and all staff who work in the nursery, including the cook and the cleaner, are appropriately vetted to ensure they are suitable to work with children. The manager ensures that all new staff and students receive a thorough induction into the nursery's policies and procedures. The safeguarding policy contains information for staff should an allegation be

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provision

made against them and there are procedures in use for restricting the use of mobile phones on the premises.

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provision

The nursery premises are secure and staff follow risk assessments and daily checks to help keep children safe. There is a reception area where the manager has his office and there is only one secure entrance, protected by an intercom system. The manager works closely with parents and other professionals to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Although he works closely in partnership with parents and they have provided some positive feedback, there were also some concerns. These were in relation to the turnover of staff and the condition of the garden. The new manager is aware of the weaknesses of the nursery, and of its strengths. He has clear plans for improvements, which address his identified weaknesses, which he discusses with the provider and staff. The manager and staff share information with teachers from the local schools where older children will attend to ensure they possess all the skills they will need

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provision

when it is time to move on to the next stage in their learning.

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The Childcare Register

The requirements for the compulsory 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. We re-inspect nurseries and pre-schools judged as requires improvement within 12 months of the date of 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

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Grade Judgement Description

is not meeting the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. It will be monitored and inspected again within six months of the date of this inspection. Met There were no children present at the time of the inspection. The inspection judgement is that the provider continues to meet the requirements for registration. Not met There were no children present at the time of the inspection. 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 119603 Local authority Tower Hamlets Inspection number 1000681 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 42 Number of children on roll 24 Name of provider Pillarbox Nurseries Limited Date of previous inspection 03/02/2011 Telephone number 020 8980 0700

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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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