Cotswold Montessori School

Cotswold Montessori School Unit 3, Home Buildings, Great Barrington, Burford, Oxon, OX18 4UR

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 25 January 2018 Not applicable

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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

 The dedicated, passionate and knowledgeable owner/manager supports staff superbly to maintain their high standards of teaching. They receive extremely responsive training, support and guidance to develop their professional skills. For example, staff use their extensive training to support children's independence and build their self- esteem very effectively throughout the nursery.  The management team and staff use excellent methods to evaluate the provision. They work exceptionally closely with parents and other professionals to provide high-quality outcomes for the children.  Staff provide an exceptional learning environment where children benefit from the vast range of high-quality, stimulating resources. All children select and choose independently from the exceptionally well displayed resources.  Children are extremely happy, motivated to learn and become completely absorbed in their well-chosen activities. They form strong bonds with each other and their key

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This provision is outstanding

person. Children have an excellent sense of belonging.  Staff know the children extremely well. They use precise assessments to plan challenges and focus on children's next steps in learning. Children make exceptionally rapid progress from their starting points.

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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

 continue to further develop and enhance the already excellent partnerships with other early years settings that children attend.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed activities and staff interactions with children.  The inspector had a meeting and carried out a joint observation with the owner/manager.  The inspector spoke to the staff, children and parents at appropriate times during the inspection.  The inspector checked evidence of the suitability and qualifications of staff working with children and looked at the provider's improvement plan.  The inspector sampled a range of documentation, including children's records, safeguarding procedures and other written policies and procedures.

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Effectiveness of the leadership and management is outstanding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. The management team and staff have a very secure knowledge of what they need to do if they have any concerns about a child's welfare. They monitor children's non-attendance closely. There are rigorous recruitment and induction procedures to ensure staff suitability. The owner/manager tracks children's progress extremely well through precise analysis and comparison of the children's development. Staff build very strong partnerships with parents and involve them in their children's learning and development in the provision. For example, following feedback from parents, the manager installed a noticeboard outside the front door to help inform parents before they collect their children what they have been doing that day. The use of online systems informs parents about their children's progress and enables them to work extremely closely together with the staff. The setting has strong partnerships with some of

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Effectiveness of the leadership and management is outstanding

the early years settings that children attend. Staff are now considering how to further develop the excellent links with these settings.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is outstanding

Staff use their exceptional teaching skills to support, develop and challenge children's ideas and learning. Staff develop children's mathematical understanding extremely well. For instance, when some children say they would like two coins, others would like a third and one would like two thirds, staff carefully explain what a third is using bricks, and the children quickly grasp the concept. Children have excellent communication and language skills. Staff talk to children clearly and give them time to answer.

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare are outstanding

Children behave exceptionally well. They have an excellent understanding of what staff expect of them. For example, children work extremely well together as they build blocks on the floor and make the sea with a blue mat and the land. Children are calm and show exceptionally high levels of concentration as they complete tasks. They show excellent levels of independence, carrying out tasks on their own, such as washing their hands, helping themselves to fruit and a drink for a snack and sitting to eat. They then put away their dirty crockery with no prompting from staff.

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Outcomes for children are outstanding

Children make rapid progress and they gain excellent skills for their future learning. Older children challenge themselves extremely well. For example, children enjoy building pyramids with blocks using diagrams with the sizes, number of blocks needed and instructions. They work exceedingly well together as they build the pyramid. Children enjoy stories and taking part in songs that help develop their concentration skills very well.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY497719 Local authority Gloucestershire Inspection number 1035737 Type of provision Sessional 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 30 Number of children on roll 37 Name of registered person Ailsa Antonia Margaret Monk

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reference number

Date of previous inspection Not applicable Telephone number 01451 844350

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reference number

Cotswold Montessori School registered in 2012 and re-registered at its new premises in 2016. The provision offers care from 9am to 3pm during term time and wraparound care from 8am to 9am and from 3pm to 6pm on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. It also offers a holiday club for eight weeks a year on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 8am to 6pm for children aged up to eight years. The owner/manager holds an international diploma in Montessori teaching at level 4 and one member of staff has achieved early years teacher status. Three members of staff hold relevant level 4 childcare qualifications and one holds a relevant level 3 childcare qualification. The setting receives funding for free early education for two-, three- and four-year-olds.

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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

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

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