The Collegiate Montessori Nursery LTD

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children, families and staff are very happy at this nursery. Leaders have carefully designed the environment, routines and teaching to help children settle well and be prepared for the next stage of their education. For example, baby rooms are quiet, calm spaces. Staff chat warmly with babies as they feed them. Calming music plays softly in the background. Older children experience lining up and going for lunch in a larger space. This helps to get children ready for eating meals in a noisier dining hall when they go to school.

Children benefit from daily time outdoors. They collect natural objects and create a group collage. Children remember what they have learned, such as pine needles are brown because they are no longer attached to the tree. Leaders plan regular opportunities for children to help other people in their community. They raise funds for the local children's hospital. Staff celebrate children's similarities and differences. Children develop a good understanding of the world they live in and what makes them unique.

Staff provide engaging learning opportunities. As a result, children concentrate for long periods. Children sing the songs they have learned as they play and enjoy stories. Children are curious about new words. Staff talk to them about what words, such as 'forbade' and 'fled', mean. This helps children to understand and develop their vocabulary.

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

• Leaders have created a detailed, sequenced curriculum. They use information about children's changing interests and levels of development to update and adapt the learning programmes. This means that children are well prepared for the next stage in their education.
• Staff have high expectations of children's behaviour. The environment and routines are designed to support children's learning and create calm. Children and staff speak with each other respectfully. Staff ask children's permission to support them with personal care routines. Children say please and thank you and staff encourage this from a young age. Consequently, children are mostly highly engaged and ready to play and learn.
• Leaders provide well-planned opportunities for children to learn about the world they live in. Each year, children learn about the life cycles of a butterfly and chickens or ducks. They do this by having real-life eggs and caterpillars visit the nursery and observing the changes they go through. Children contribute to the wider community. They collect food donations and walk to local charities to donate it. Staff find out about the different languages children speak. They learn about children's different cultures and celebrate festivals that are important to them. This helps children to understand and respect their similarities and differences.
• Staff generally have high-quality interactions with children. The nursery helps children to develop a love of songs and stories. Staff sing to children throughout the day. They introduce new words as children play. For example, they repeat 'shake, shake, shake' as babies explore instruments. Older children listen intently to stories. Staff help them to think about the characters. They ask children what they would do if they had magical powers too. Children confidently express their ideas. This supports their developing literacy skills.
• Staff sometimes ask children too many questions. They do not always allow children time to think or respond. Some questions are too difficult for younger children to answer. At these times, children remain quiet or move away.
• Staff carefully monitor children's progress. They quickly identify any gaps in children's learning. They are proactive in discussing this with parents and refer children for additional support, such as speech and language therapy. However, the nursery does not always seek advice from the other professionals working with children. As a result, children's individual support plans are not as robust as they could be.
• Relationships between children, families and staff are warm and supportive. Strong partnership with parents helps children to settle well at the nursery. Children's transitions between the childcare rooms, and onwards are carefully planned and supported. For example, children move to the next room with a group of friends after regular visits. Parents and staff maintain a two-way flow of information about children's changing interests, learning and development. This allows parents and staff to work together to support all children to make good progress.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• further enhance the good support of children's communication and language skills, including by considering staff's use of questioning
• further support children's learning and development by seeking guidance and support from other professionals who support them.