Rooftops Montessori Nursery School Ltd

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy, settled and safe in the nursery. They build warm, close relationships with staff. Where children are new and need support to settle, staff are on hand to provide cuddles and reassurance. This helps to develop children's confidence and self-esteem. Children engage in a wide variety of interesting and exciting activities. They relish the opportunity to investigate sensory activities. Older children mix mud, stones and sand in the outdoor area. They confidently discuss that they are making 'apple pie'. Babies enjoy investigating foam and shredded paper. They giggle as they watch the paper fall onto the floor.

Children have many opportunities to develop their large-muscle skills. Older children ride on scooters and balance bikes around the well-resourced garden. They dig in the large sand pit and roll themselves down the small hill. Babies climb up small steps and slide down a small wooden slide. This help to develop their coordination and balance. Staff provide good levels of challenge when older children play a shopping game. Children quickly identify the items on their shopping list. This also helps children to learn to take turns. Children's behaviour is good. They listen to staff and follow the routines and boundaries of the setting.

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

• Staff place a strong focus on developing children's literacy skills. Opportunities to introduce and share books are woven throughout the setting. For instance, toddlers climb inside the outdoor shed and share books with older children. Babies make marks with chunky chalks. Pre-school children learn how to hold their pens correctly and form shapes and letters from their name. This helps to develop children's early writing skills.
• Staff have regular opportunities to meet with the leadership team to support the development of their skills. They have room meetings and individual supervision meetings. Staff receive positive and constructive feedback about their performance. Leaders place a high priority on supporting staff well-being. They pride themselves on having an open-door policy for all staff. Staff comment that they feel well supported by the leadership team.
• The outdoor area is exciting and well resourced. Children develop a can-do attitude as they run and investigate in the garden. They confidently assess and manage their own risks safely. For example, children decide how to safely travel down the grassed slope. Toddlers use paint brushes and spray bottles to paint on large plastic sheets. Babies enjoy digging in the sand as they explore the sand pit. This helps to develop their large-and small-muscle skills.
• The curriculum is exciting and interesting. Staff know the children in their care well, overall, and monitor their development regularly. They use this information to plan a well-sequenced curriculum to help children move on to the next stage in their learning. However, some staff do not always understand what they want children to learn. They do not always focus on the skills children need to develop to make sure that children benefit highly from the experiences provided. Children make good progress from their starting points, overall.
• Partnerships with parents are very good. Staff share what children are learning daily through conversations and an online system. Parents speak very highly of the setting. They say they are well informed about their children's well-being and stage of development. Parents say that they are 'really impressed' with the setting and that the staff are 'incredible'.
• Overall, staff work well with other professionals. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are supported effectively. The SEND coordinator works well with parents and professionals involved in children's care to fully support them to reach their full potential. Nursery staff liaise with school staff to support children when the time comes for them to move onto school. However, when children attend other provisions alongside attending nursery, information about children's care and learning is not always shared effectively. This does not fully support continuity in children's all-round development.
• Children share, take turns and are polite to each other. Staff use consistent behaviour strategies so that children know what is expected of them. Children behave well.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• help staff to develop a clearer understanding of the skills and knowledge they want children to gain, to further extend their learning
• strengthen the partnerships with other providers so that children's care and learning are fully supported.