First Steps Montessori Nursery

First Steps Montessori Nursery Hawkley Village Hall, Hawkley, Liss, Hampshire, GU33 6NE

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 27 April 2017 8 June 2015

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This inspection: Outstanding 1

Effectiveness of the leadership and management Outstanding 1

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This inspection: Outstanding 1

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Outstanding 1

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This inspection: Outstanding 1

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Outstanding 1

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This provision is outstanding

 All children make excellent progress in their learning and development. Children are highly engaged and exceptionally well-motivated to play and learn. The quality of staff's interactions with children are consistently exceptional.  The quality of teaching is outstanding. Staff use highly effective assessment systems to track the progress of individuals and groups of children. Teaching is extremely responsive to children's interests and changing needs to provide challenge.  Children are extremely happy and settled. They are deeply absorbed in learning and their behaviour is excellent. Staff share their expectations with children and motivate them to behave well, for example, praising them for positive efforts.  Staff teach early literacy skills to children superbly. For example, they teach letters and their sounds very skilfully. Some older children learn to read simple words and write their own names.

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This provision is outstanding

 Staff have highly successful links with parents and other professionals to support children's learning. Staff provide excellent ways for parents to keep completely up to date with children's achievements and how to support their learning at home.  The management team monitors children's progress and teaching meticulously. It is highly reflective and consistently aims to improve outcomes for children. Action plans focus on continuous improvement and maintaining the excellent quality of teaching.

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

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

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

 build further on staff's understanding of how to deepen and extend older children's early scientific skills and understanding.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed the quality of teaching during indoor and outdoor play and assessed the impact this has on children's learning.  The inspector held meetings with the provider, and spoke to staff and children.  The inspector sampled a range of documentation, including children's records, safeguarding procedures, written policies and procedures.  The inspector spoke to a number of parents during the inspection and took account of their views.  The inspector viewed all parts of the premises used by children.

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Effectiveness of the leadership and management is outstanding

Safeguarding is effective. Staff have extensive knowledge and understanding of the procedures to follow in the case of any concerns about children's welfare. The management team rigorously monitors the nursery. For example, it thoroughly checks staff observations and reviews planning to ensure children's needs are met exceptionally well. Staff have exceptional knowledge about teaching children of all ages. They benefit from highly effective support and regular training, such as enhancing the excellent quality of communication with younger children. Staff recognise the need to provide additional opportunities for older children to deepen their learning about how things work.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is outstanding

Staff are exceptionally skilled at developing children's creativity and thinking. For example, older children imaginatively created various rhythms and sounds as they used different fabrics to muffle drums. Staff give children exceptional opportunities for problem solving. For example, when young children made boats, their excellent questioning prompted children to think about how people would get on to their boats. Staff stimulate children's vocabulary and understanding extremely well. For example, using describing words during an excellent physical activity while children excitedly moved and acted like different beans, including jelly beans, runner beans and frozen beans.

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare are outstanding

Staff cherish each child as an individual and form highly nurturing and strong relationships with them. Children have impeccable manners and their behaviour is exemplary. Staff are extremely successful at extending children's ideas. For example, children created highly imaginative pretend food after staff moved the modelling dough closer to the play kitchen area. Children have a wealth of opportunities to do things for themselves. From a young age, children learn to use tools, including scissors, with great skill and care. They have excellent opportunities to develop their physically agility, for example when playing chase and tackling outdoor climbing and balancing equipment.

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Outcomes for children are outstanding

Children are extremely well prepared for their future learning, including their move to school. They are very confident communicators and wonderfully eager to learn and explore. They make exceptional progress in developing their mathematical skills. For example, older children accurately count up 20 while young children easily count out pizzas they have created with modelling dough. They recognise how heavy items are while lifting them with the toy pulley in the outdoor area. From an early age, children develop a love of books and enjoy making marks with a range of items, such as brushes and pencils.

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Setting details

Unique reference number 109821 Local authority Hampshire Inspection number 1089049 Type of provision Full-time provision Day care type Childcare - Non-Domestic Registers Early Years Register, Compulsory Childcare Register, Voluntary Childcare Register Age range of children 2 - 4 Total number of places 20 Number of children on roll 19 Name of registered person Jane Mary Fisher

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reference number

Date of previous inspection 8 June 2015 Telephone number 0777 5517185

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reference number

First Steps Montessori Nursery registered in 1996. It operates from the village hall in Hawkley, Hampshire. The nursery opens during term time only on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday from 9am to 3pm, and on Tuesday and Friday from 9am to 1pm. The provider receives funding for the provision of free early education for children aged three and four years. There are four members of staff and of these, three hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 3 and one is qualified to level 2. The nursery operates in line with the Montessori educational philosophy.

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reference number

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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reference number

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

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reference number

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reference number

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reference number

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

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