Blossoms Montessori Children's House

Inspection of Blossoms Montessori Children's House 27 Dunstans Grove, London SE22 0HJ

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Overall effectiveness Outstanding

The quality of education Outstanding Behaviour and attitudes Outstanding Personal development Outstanding Leadership and management Outstanding Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Outstanding

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The provision is outstanding

Children thrive at this exceptional nursery. They arrive excited and eager to learn. Staff have high expectations for all children. They plan challenging activities across all areas of learning. They use Montessori teaching methods extremely successfully, so that children make excellent progress from their starting points. Children display particularly high levels of confidence and self-assurance. They independently select activities and equipment from the shelves and return them when finished. Children are very sociable. They seek out their friends to play with and cooperate well together to achieve tasks. Children's awareness of numbers develops rapidly. They work together to gather a set of numbered cans and help each other to stack them in order. Children's fine motor skills are exceptional. They manipulate scissors accurately to snip strips of paper. They use pens and pencils with confidence to form recognisable letters.

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The provision is outstanding

Children benefit from plenty of exercise in the nursery garden. They run, climb and steer two wheeled bikes with considerable skill. Children show tremendous curiosity about the world around them as they use magnifying glasses to hunt for bugs in the garden. Children become very skilled communicators. They enjoy immensely helping to programme electronic toys. They describe accurately the steps needed to move the toys from one point to another. Children who speak English as an additional language progress incredibly rapidly. They are incredibly proud to teach their friends words in their home languages

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need to do better?

n The provider is highly ambitious for the achievements of all children. She has considered carefully the content and structure of the educational programme. The provider utilises the strengths of her team extremely well. She targets their training very successfully to bring about developments in teaching. This enables staff to offer children the best possible support, so that they make exceptional progress. n Staff foster children's passion for books and stories. Children choose from a huge range of high-quality children's books displayed throughout the nursery. They re-tell their favourite stories with great enthusiasm, using props which are carefully selected and provided by staff. This builds a strong foundation to support children's future reading skills. n Children's creativity is incredibly well supported. Staff read the story of Yayoi Kusama. Children concentrate deeply as they attempt to paint pictures in her

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need to do better?

style. Children choose freely from a wide range of resources to make their own amazing creations. For example, children collect paper, pens, glue and collage materials and make their own model rockets. n Staff have a deep understanding of children's fascinations and structure their

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need to do better?

27 March 2023 teaching around these. For example, staff have planned a number of activities around children's interest in space. Staff skilfully embed children's learning as they re-visit books and charts about the solar system. Children remember that Mars is covered in red dust and Mercury is the smallest planet. The impact of teaching on what children can do and remember is highly effective. n Staff are expert at supporting children's communication skills. They use highly effective questioning techniques, which encourage children to speak in sentences and express their knowledge and ideas. Children's language is exceptionally well developed and they express themselves with growing confidence. They participate enthusiastically in group discussions and listen to each other respectfully. n Children's behaviour is exemplary. Staff are consistent in their management of children's behaviour. They provide excellent role models for children as they are

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need to do better?

kind and supportive towards each other. Children are extremely kind and thoughtful. Older children put their arms around their younger friends when they are feeling tired and escort them to the lunch table. n Parents express extremely high levels of satisfaction with the nursery. They feel very well informed about their children's progress and say that their children are extremely well prepared for the move to school. Parents praise the many rich and exciting opportunities for children to learn about families and communities beyond their own. n Staff are very well prepared to meet the needs of all children, including those from disadvantaged backgrounds and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Staff work extremely closely with families. They utilise highly effective observations and assessments to rapidly get to know children and understand their needs. This means that they identify very quickly and

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need to do better?

accurately where children may need extra support. n Children's health and well-being are a high priority. Staff use highly innovative strategies to introduce children to healthy eating. They provide place mats at lunchtimes depicting the different food groups. Children match their lunches to the food groups and engage in discussions about what is healthy. Children gain an excellent understanding of how to stay healthy.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

The provider and staff are fully committed to ensuring that all children are safe and secure. All staff undertake regular safeguarding training, which covers a very wide range of issues, including the 'Prevent' duty. Staff are exceptionally clear about the action they must take if they are concerned about a child. They know the procedure to follow in the event of an allegation against a member of staff. The provider carries our extremely robust recruitment procedures to ensure staff are fully vetted and suitable to work with children.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY368646 Local authority Southwark Inspection number 10235183 Type of provision Childcare on non-domestic premises Registers Early Years Register Day care type Full day care

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inspection

Total number of places 20 Number of children on roll 33 Name of registered person Thompson, Julie Catherine

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reference number

Telephone number 07801 947 404 Date of previous inspection 31 March 2017

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Information about this early years setting

Blossoms Montessori Children's House registered in 2007. It is located in East Dulwich, in the London Borough of Southwark. The nursery is open on each weekday from 9am to 4pm, during term time only. The nursery receives funding to provide free early education for children aged three and four years. There are five staff, including the manager, all of whom hold appropriate early years qualifications. This includes one staff member who holds early years professional status and the manager who has an early years degree. The nursery has a Montessori ethos.

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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 manager joined the inspector on a learning walk and talked to the inspector about their curriculum and what they want their children to learn. n Children spoke to/communicated with the inspector during the inspection. n The inspector talked to staff at appropriate times during the inspection and took account of their views. n The inspector observed the interactions between staff and children. n The inspector observed the quality of education being provided, indoors and outdoors, and assessed the impact that this was having on children's learning.

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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

27 March 2023 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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