CURIOUSMINDS MONTESSORI LTD

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children enter this vibrant and homely setting with smiles and cuddles for the warm and welcoming staff. Children have formed positive relationships with staff and feel safe and secure. They take time to recognise their name cards and post into the box, proudly showing their friends their accomplishments. They delight in recognising the letters in their name, and this helps to build early literacy skills. Staff recognise these moments and provide praise and encouragement. This allows the children to develop a sense of achievement and pride.

All children thrive in this inclusive environment. Their individual needs are known and respected by the knowledgeable staff team who put children at the heart of what they do. The indoor and outdoor environments have been adapted to meet the needs of the children attending. Staff are aware that some children live in flats, so they ensure that the children have lots of opportunities to play in the outdoor space. The children skilfully put on wet suits and boots. This supports their physical development and encourages healthy lifestyles as they negotiate the space on the bikes, make mud pies in the outdoor kitchen, balance on the wooden beams and roll balls to one another.

The setting uses a curriculum founded in the Montessori method of teaching, and staff ensure that children are given the opportunities to access a range of planned and unplanned experiences. Children quickly recall the important facts they have learned this week and delight in discussing the merits of people who help us. Staff work with parents to know what children already know and use this information to build a strong curriculum. They know what they want children to learn and use additional funding appropriately to support children's individual developmental needs, ensuring that all children make progress.

What does the early years setting do well and what does it need to do better?

• Parents report high levels of satisfaction about their child's time at the nursery. They feel that children are treated as individuals and encouraged to develop their own personalities. They also report that they feel supported as parents. They utilise the open-door policy of the manager and feel like respected partners in their children's learning.
• Children have developed a love of books and stories. They share books with their friends and eagerly respond to questions when staff tell stories to children in larger groups. They talk about how the character in the story feels or guess what might happen next. Children are exposed to a wide variety of books and texts in a range of languages that are shared by families. Books are placed in all areas to support knowledge and understanding of the world around them.
• An ambitious curriculum allows children to develop a love of learning. Children are inquisitive and curious. Generally, staff are clear on what they want children to learn and why. They enhance the environment thoughtfully and delight in learning alongside the children. However, at times, staff do not interact effectively with children to extend their learning or build on their vocabulary.
• Staff engage well with children and talk to them about recent experiences, such as a visit from the local fire brigade. Children talk about the emergency services and how they would need to dial '999' to call for an ambulance, the police or a firefighter. Staff extend the children's knowledge, talking about what they know about people who help us, helping them to consolidate their learning.
• The support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) is good. Staff make timely referrals to ensure that children receive the specialist support they need. All children make good progress in their learning and development. They monitor children's progress closely and identify and narrow gaps in a timely manner. Staff work closely with other agencies to ensure that children have appropriate support when it is needed. Staff have a strong network for advice and ideas to support the range of children's needs.
• Leaders have a positive attitude towards continuous improvement. They encourage the staff team to be reflective and have autonomy in making changes to the learning environment. Good plans are in place to develop the nursery further, including enhancing the garden area. Staff comment positively on the training that is available to them and say that their well-being is well supported. Staff morale is high. They work well together and support each other. Leaders provide effective supervision and support for all staff.
• Children learn to be increasingly independent. Staff encourage them to take responsibility for tasks, such as managing some aspects of their self-care independently. For example, children pour their drinks during mealtimes and take some responsibility for tidying up throughout the day. However, at times, staff do things for the children that they could learn to do by themselves, such as serving their own food and putting their coats on. Therefore, children are not always fully encouraged to master independent skills for the future.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• develop the consistency of staff engagement and their interactions with children to fully support and extend each child's learning consistently
• enhance opportunities for children to develop independence and self-help skills and allow them to do things for themselves.