Apple Tree Montessori Nursery School

Inspection of Apple Tree Montessori Nursery School The Village Hall, Park Road, Rottingdean, Brighton BN2 7HL

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Not applicable

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The provision is good

Children arrive happy and confident. They are keen to seek out their friends to explore the resources and equipment available. Children have positive attitudes towards their learning. They demonstrate high levels of concentration when participating in self-chosen activities. Children persist until they achieve the result they desire. For example, children practise using needles and yarn to thread beads or pasta quills to make their own jewellery. They show good physical skills and precision when they achieve this activity. Children wear their necklaces or bracelets with pride throughout the nursery session.

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The provision is good

Children have positive relationships with friends and the adults who care for them. They discuss their current learning about what being 'kind' means and give examples of this. As a result, children start to understand the impact of their behaviour on others.

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The provision is good

Children enjoy listening to books. They show great excitement to share their knowledge with others about the plot and outcome of a favourite story. They demonstrate that they can use recall and talk about the characters that interest them. This contributes towards building their language skills.

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The provision is good

Children show high levels of independence and care for their own play environment. For instance, they wash their own hands and serve themselves snacks. When they notice they have spilled water, they seek a mop to clear up any puddles.

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need to do better?

n Leaders have effective oversight of the nursery and offer support to the manager, who is relatively new to the role. They have a clear vision about what children need to learn and work closely with staff to achieve this. The manager shares her knowledge and expertise in the Montessori approach with the staff team. As a result, children receive a rich and engaging curriculum that meets their individual needs. n Staff support children's health and well-being well. Children enjoy a wide variety of practical play experiences. For instance, staff challenge children to think about what they need to do when they comment, 'I'm boiling,' when playing in the outside area. Children take time to think and say that they need to take off their coat and hat and get a drink of water. Consequently, children start to learn how they can contribute towards their own good health. n Staff support children with regular opportunities to learn about their local

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need to do better?

community and the wider world. Children take trips to a duck pond, local gardens and to the beach. This enables children to notice and talk about

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need to do better?

18 March 2022 different features of the places they visit. Staff use these opportunities to support children to learn about how to keep themselves safe when attending local places of interest. Children delight in spending time at a local garden and enjoy participating in group games with their friends, playing 'What's the time, Mr Wolf?'. This helps children to develop their social skills and learn to play together well. n The manager and her team take the time to get to know children well. This helps them make effective use of any funding that is allocated to support children. Staff plan precisely to meet all children's needs. Consequently, children are making good progress in their learning and development. n Overall, staff work closely with children and families to identify how they can support them to settle into the nursery with ease. However, staff do not make full use of strategies and available resources to support children learning English

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need to do better?

as an additional language when they first start. n Parents speak highly of the nursery and comment on how well the nursery staff support their children's learning and development. Overall, parents comment that the communication from the nursery is good. This gives them information about their children's progress and suggestions to further extend children's learning at home. However, occasionally, communication is not as clear as it could be. There are times when parents are not always clear about the two-way information-sharing between staff and outside professionals.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

The manager and staff know how to identify signs that children may be at risk of abuse and neglect. Furthermore, they have a sound knowledge of wider safeguarding issues including county lines, domestic abuse, radicalisation and extremism. The manager has a secure understanding of her role and responsibility to refer any concerns, including how to manage any allegations. The manager and staff are clear about the process to follow in line with local procedures. This includes accessing support from agencies with statutory responsibilities to ensure children who may be at risk receive intervention in a timely manner.

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should:

n enhance the arrangements for the smooth transition into nursery for children learning English as an additional language n review the processes in place to ensure parents are clear about information- sharing between the nursery and outside professionals to meet the needs of children with special educational needs and or/disabilities.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY561910 Local authority Brighton and Hove Inspection number 10194306 Type of provision Childcare on non-domestic premises

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Registers

Early Years Register, Compulsory Childcare Register, Voluntary Childcare Register Day care type Full day care

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inspection

Total number of places 30 Number of children on roll 27 Name of registered person Childcare 360 Limited

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reference number

Telephone number 01273 271969 Date of previous inspection Not applicable

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Information about this early years setting

Apple Tree Montessori Nursery School registered in August 2018. It operates from a local village hall in Rottingdean, East Sussex. The nursery opens Monday to Friday, term time only, from 8.30am until 3pm. The nursery employs four staff, and the director also works at the setting when required and holds a level 6 qualification. Other staff hold relevant qualifications at level 3 and above. The nursery provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children.

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Inspection activities

n This was the first routine inspection the provider received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with the provider and has taken that into account in their evaluation of the provider. n The inspector went on a learning walk with the manager to establish the priorities for the curriculum. n The inspector observed the quality of education during activities indoors and outdoors and assessed the impact this has on children's learning. n The inspector spoke with staff and children at suitable times throughout the inspection. n A joint observation was completed and discussed with the manager. n The inspector tracked children to establish what it is like for a child at the setting. n The inspector held a discussion with the manager in relation to the leadership and management of the nursery. n The inspector looked at relevant documentation, such as evidence of

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Inspection activities

recruitment, staff qualifications and suitability to work with children. n The inspector invited parents to share their views. The inspector took account of all feedback received.

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Inspection activities

We carried out this inspection 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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Inspection activities

18 March 2022 regulates and inspects to 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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Inspection activities

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Inspection activities

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Inspection activities

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Inspection activities

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