Elms Montessori School & Day Nursery

Elms Montessori School & Day Nursery 2 Elm Lane, Lower Earley, Berkshire RG6 5UF

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Inspection date 20 March 2019 Previous inspection date 22 November 2018

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3

Effectiveness of leadership and management Requires improvement

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3

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

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3

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Requires improvement

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3

Outcomes for children Requires improvement

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This is a provision that requires improvement

n Staff do not always use information from assessments of what children know and can do, to plan suitably challenging and stimulating activities. Consequently, children do not always make the best possible progress in their learning. n The quality of teaching is variable. Some staff's teaching does not fully engage children, or fully extend their critical thinking and communication skills. n The organisation of some routines, such as the lunchtime routine, does not meet children's needs. For example, toddlers spend significant amounts of time waiting for their meals and are not engaged in worthwhile activities. n Staff do not consistently provide a wide range of exciting and engaging activities outdoors, to support children across all areas of learning, particularly for the pre-school and toddler children.

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It has the following strengths

n Partnerships with parents are positive. Parents receive regular updates about their children's daily care and developmental progress. Parents report that they are very happy with the care provided to their children. n The manager has made some improvements to the provision since the last inspection. She has worked with the local authority to provide staff, individually and as a team, with various training opportunities to improve their knowledge and practice. n Staff are particularly attentive and responsive towards the needs of babies. As a result, babies settle well and are happy and confident to explore their environment.

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

To meet the requirements of the early years foundation stage and Childcare Register the provider must: Due date improve the use of observation and assessment to consistently provide challenging and stimulating activities to help all children to make good progress 28/06/2019

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

continue to support staff to develop their teaching skills so that the quality of teaching is consistently good or better. 28/06/2019

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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

n review routines of the day, such as the lunchtime routine for toddlers, to make sure children are engaged in worthwhile activities and do not become bored and restless n develop the provision of outdoor activities for toddler and pre-school children, so that they are provided with a wider range of stimulating activities across all areas of learning.

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

Inspection activities n The inspector observed the quality of teaching and the impact this has on children's learning indoors and outdoors. n The inspector held a meeting with the manager, and spoke to staff at appropriate times during the inspection. n The inspector carried out a joint observation with a senior member of staff. n The inspector spoke to parents during the inspection and took account of their views and comments. n The inspector looked at a range of documentation, including policies and procedures, accident records, and records of children's learning and development.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management requires improvement

Safeguarding is effective. The manager has addressed the weaknesses linked to staff's knowledge of safeguarding at the last inspection. Staff are clear about the process to follow if they have concerns about a child's welfare. Senior staff are starting to monitor and evaluate the quality of care and teaching across all areas of the nursery more effectively. They are steadily working to address identified areas for improvement. However, it is too early to see the impact that these changes have had on practice. Staff work well with parents and other agencies to support children who have additional learning needs. For example, they keep up to date with assessments undertaken by other agencies. Staff act upon any recommendations to support those children with their learning while they are at the nursery.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment requires improvement

Staff complete regular assessments of children's achievements and have a clear picture of what they know and can do. However, they do not consistently use this information to support the next steps for some children's learning. Some planned activities do not fully engage children or meet their needs. For example, toddlers become frustrated and quickly lose interest during creative activities, as they wait too long to use the equipment and resources. Staff generally support children's communication skills well. They talk to children and ask them some open-ended questions during play. However, they do not always interact purposefully to challenge them sufficiently in their learning. For example, on occasions, staff do not allow children enough time to think and respond to questions, or they ask questions which are too complex for their stage of development.

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare require improvement

Staff do not consistently organise the indoor and outdoor environments so that they are stimulating for children, particularly for the toddler and pre-school children. As a result, children are not always consistently motivated and interested in their play. On occasions, such as during the lunchtime routine, there are long periods when children are not engaged in meaningful activities. This sometimes has an impact on their behaviour as they become restless and bored. Generally, staff are warm and caring towards children. They congratulate children on their achievements, which builds their self-esteem. Older children are starting to learn independence skills in readiness for school. For example, they serve themselves during lunch and take off their coats and shoes when they come in from outdoors.

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Outcomes for children require improvement

Children are making typical progress for their age and stage of development. They are generally happy during their time at the nursery and have plenty of opportunities for physical exercise. Babies have fun while developing early physical skills. For example, they concentrate as they stack boxes on top of each other, and make marks on paper as they grip different coloured chunky pens. Older children develop their social skills and play imaginatively in the role-play area while they pretend to cook and serve food to each other. They talk about the colours and shapes of different fruit and vegetables as they prepare meals.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY537446 Local authority Wokingham Inspection number 10091928 Type of provision Childcare on non-domestic premises Registers Early Years Register Day care type Full day care Age range of children 1 - 4 Total number of places 52 Number of children on roll 35 Name of registered person Swans Day Nurseries Ltd

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reference number

Date of previous inspection 22 November 2018 Telephone number 01184676743

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reference number

Elms Montessori School & Day Nursery registered in 2016. The nursery opens each weekday from 7.30am until 6pm, for 50 weeks of the year. There are seven members of staff, five of whom have full and relevant recognised qualifications, including the owner/manager.

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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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procedures 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 . 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 and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, 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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