Christchurch Montessori Nursery

Christchurch Montessori Nursery 247 Fairmile Road, Christchurch, Dorset, BH23 2LH

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 22 June 2017 14 May 2014

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Effectiveness of the leadership and management Requires improvement Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement Personal development, behaviour and welfare Requires improvement Outcomes for children Requires improvement

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This provision requires improvement. It is not yet good because:

 The provider has not made sure that all staff are clear of their roles and responsibilities, especially for the younger children, to ensure they receive consistently good support.  Staff do not regularly assess younger children's development to enable them to focus on individual children's learning needs so they receive appropriate challenges based on their next steps of learning. Not all children make as good progress as they could.  Staff do not make the best use of play spaces and resources for the younger children, to offer a range of play experiences that keep them interested and engaged.  The provider's self-evaluation is not strong enough to help identify all areas where improvement is needed to provide good-quality care for children.

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It has the following strengths

 Staff interact with children in a warm and caring manner, helping them build secure and trusting relationships.  Partnerships with parents are strong. Ongoing sharing of information about children's care and development, along with more formal meetings, actively involves the parents in their children's learning.  Children enjoy being active outdoors and developing their physical skills, which helps to support their good health.  The older children play together cooperatively. For example, they happily take turns with one another to try their skills on the obstacle course they have created together.

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

To meet the requirements of the early years foundation stage the provider must:

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Due Date

 make sure that all staff are clear of their roles and responsibilities, to enable them to support the individual needs of all children well 03/08/2017

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Due Date

 improve the use of assessment to identify where children are in their learning, and use the information gained to plan challenging activities that are geared to children's individual learning, in particular for the younger children. 31/08/2017

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Due Date

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

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Due Date

 review and improve the organisation of the play spaces and resources, in particular for the younger children, to provide activities that keep children interested and occupied  develop self-evaluation further to ensure it is effective in identifying all areas that require improvement, to raise the quality of the provision to at least good.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed activities indoors and outdoors, interactions between the staff and children, and looked at the play equipment and resources.  The inspector completed a joint observation with the manager after viewing activities to discuss the impact of teaching.  The inspector spoke with the co-owner, the manager, staff and some parents. She also talked with the children at appropriate times.  The inspector looked at documentation, including a sample of children's records and staff suitability records.  The inspector discussed the systems used to evaluate the nursery.

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Effectiveness of the leadership and management requires improvement

Self-evaluation is not used rigorously to include all aspects of the provision. Although the management team has identified some areas for development, including staff training needs, it has not ensured all staff are clear of their roles and responsibilities. Recent staff changes in the younger children's room mean there are inconsistencies in the quality of teaching and learning. Staff are deployed effectively and move between the rooms to ensure the required ratios are maintained. Safeguarding is effective. There are clear recruitment and vetting procedures to check the suitability of staff to work with children. Staff know the procedures to follow when taking the children on outings and what to do if they have any safeguarding concerns. They supervise children appropriately to help keep them safe. Staff complete daily risk assessments of the premises and take suitable action to address any issues identified.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment requires improvement

Overall, staff assess and track children's progress in their learning. However, they do not do this consistently for younger children to enable them to plan sufficiently challenging learning opportunities. Older children use their imagination well. For example, they have fun making cakes and building volcanos in the sand. Staff get involved to encourage the children's conversation and incorporate mathematical language to extend their learning. Children's physical skills are supported well. For example, they carefully manoeuvre their bicycles round the play space and change direction to avoid obstacles. Younger children show developing confidence as they balance and climb on the outdoor play equipment.

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare require improvement

Staff provide a welcoming environment for children. However, they do not consistently use the resources effectively, especially for the younger children, to offer them purposeful play experiences. Children are happy and settled. The staff's friendly and caring interactions help support children's emotional well-being. Children learn to respect others. They understand the importance to share and take turns, for example, older children listen well to each other during the group discussions. Staff make sure that children wear sun hats, have sun cream on, and can access drinking water, to help protect them during the sunny weather.

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Outcomes for children require improvement

Although children enjoy their time at the nursery, they do not all make the best possible progress in their learning. At times, activities do not engage the younger children well enough. Children explore their environment with confidence, and the younger children are reassured an adult is nearby. Older children receive support to prepare them for moving on to school, for example, they link sounds to letters to support their early literacy skills.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY373992 Local authority Dorset Inspection number 1100698 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 0 - 8 Total number of places 36 Number of children on roll 68 Name of registered person Christchurch Montessori Partnership

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reference number

Date of previous inspection 14 May 2014 Telephone number 01202461127

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reference number

Christchurch Montessori Nursery registered in 2008 and is privately owned. It is in Christchurch, Dorset. The nursery opens each weekday from 8am to 6pm, for 48 weeks of the year. The nursery receives funding for the provision of free early education for children aged two, three and four years. The nursery employs 13 members of staff. Of these, two hold early years professional status, three staff have a Montessori qualification at level 4, six staff hold early years qualifications at level 3, and one staff member holds an early years qualification at level 2. The nursery follows the Montessori approach.

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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

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

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