The Mulberry Bush Montessori Nursery Ltd

Inclusion: Strong standard

Leaders and staff have created a highly inclusive environment that supports all children, including those with barriers to their learning, to thrive. They expertly adapt their approach to meet the needs of all children. This supports children to fully engage in the activities on offer. Staff support all children to learn and develop the skills they need to be confident and independent learners. They provide children with multiple opportunities to practise and develop their skills and provide praise, encouragement and guidance to support. As a result, children are highly engaged in their play and are curious and eager to join in and learn.

Any areas of concern in a child's learning and development are quickly identified and addressed. Targeted, individualised support is swiftly implemented to help children close any gaps and reduce their barriers to learning. Leaders have reflected on when extra-curricular activities take place to ensure these are planned in a way that enables all children to take part, with the aim to ensure that all children have access to a rich and broad curriculum. For example, forest school sessions happen more regularly to capture the whole cohort of children.

Curriculum and teaching: Strong standard

All staff demonstrate high-quality teaching methods in their interactions with children. They expertly adapt their approach to meet the needs of all children. Staff are highly responsive to the needs of all children and skilfully use different strategies to engage children in play and learning opportunities. All staff have a clear understanding of child development and the steps they will take to support all children to make excellent progress in all areas of their learning and development. They focus on building the foundations to children's learning and prioritise teaching children the skills they need to become independent learners. They provide children with opportunities to develop their emerging physical, communication and social interaction skills, and as a result, children are curious, empathetic and confident communicators.

Leaders have carefully reflected on the setting's curriculum and have worked in partnership with the staff team to create a revised curriculum that blends several pedagogical approaches together and puts children at the centre. These changes have been implemented as leaders feel this will continue to improve the outcomes of all children, including those who face barriers to their learning.

Achievement: Strong standard

All children, including those who face barriers to their learning, are expertly supported to make excellent progress. Children are provided with targeted, individualised support plans that are regularly reviewed and adapted to meet the changing needs of individual children. Staff use these plans to closely monitor children's progress to ensure that any issues are flagged and swift action is taken to close any gaps. Staff are highly reflective of the learning opportunities they provide to children and continuously strive to improve. This results in children receiving highly impactful learning opportunities. Children are supported to become independent learners who are confident, curious and ready to learn, which supports them to gain the knowledge and skills needed to be suitably ready to transition to the next stage in their learning and make excellent progress across all 7 areas of their learning and development.

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines: Strong standard

Children demonstrate they understand the behavioural expectations of the setting. Clear instructions from staff and well-established routines support all children to understand what is expected of them. As a result, children are able to successfully follow the rules and behave impeccably. Children are respectful and empathetic. They recognise when their peers need help and are eager to guide and support each other. Staff expertly support children to take turns and play collaboratively. They praise this behaviour when they observe it and role model how to positively interact with others. This supports children to play collaboratively together and work to complete tasks.

Staff teach children the skills they need to be able to resolve any conflict that may occur. As a result, children are confident to express their thoughts and feelings with their peers when something happens that they do not like. Children listen to the views of others and adapt their behaviour accordingly. Staff teach children the importance of perseverance and encourage children to keep trying when completing tasks. They help children to celebrate their achievement, and this promotes positive attitudes to learning.

Children's welfare and wellbeing: Strong standard

Leaders and staff have created a calm, relaxed environment where children demonstrate a secure sense of belonging. Children show that they feel content, safe and confident to explore. Leaders and staff take action to get to know children really well. They build strong partnerships with parents to create a secure link between home and the setting. They celebrate what makes children unique and use knowledge of each individual child to provide them with tailored activities to meet each child's individual interests and needs. This child-centred approach helps children to fully engage in the learning opportunities on offer to them. Children are able to find things they enjoy doing and use these activities to practise and extend their emerging skills. Well-planned and structured routines support children to learn the skills needed to be independent. Staff encourage children to make healthy choices with regards to mealtimes and hygiene procedures to teach them how to manage their own health and wellbeing.

Leadership and governance: Strong standard

A recent change to the management team at the setting has resulted in many changes to how the setting operates. Leaders reflected on their position in the community and looked at ways they could better support the children and their families that they serve. Parents report that these changes have been highly impactful and have made a positive difference in the support the setting offers to families. Leaders strive to continually improve the setting. They are working on bringing about change to the curriculum to have a stronger emphasis on the connection they have to the local community and area in which they are located, for example by creating links to the local beach and natural environment. Leaders prioritise the wellbeing of their staff and go above and beyond to offer support and create a harmonious working environment. As a result, all staff report they feel well supported and enjoy their job. Leaders ensure that staff receive opportunities to access ongoing training to further develop their practice with the children. Leaders and staff have a clear vision for the setting and what they can do to best prepare children for future learning.