Highview Montessori Day Nursery

Independence starts with small, useful jobs at Highview Montessori Day Nursery: handling a jug, helping with lunch and caring for plants. Montessori here means choosing purposeful activities, practising practical skills and having time to work through them. The rooms occupy the rear of St. James Church in New Barnet, with a landscaped garden available throughout the day.

At its April 2026 inspection, Ofsted judged all six areas to be Strong standard, with safeguarding standards met. That is a set of area judgements, rather than a single overall grade.

Highview accepts children aged nine months to five years and has capacity for 47 children. Full-day, morning and afternoon sessions sit alongside short extensions at either end of the day, subject to a minimum attendance requirement of two full days.

Rooms and Ages

Nido, the baby room, combines low shelving, soft rugs and furniture scaled for children, with direct access to the garden. Its emphasis is on movement, communication and growing independence, supported by songs, stories and opportunities to explore resources at each child's pace. Feeding, sleep and toileting follow individual routines agreed with parents, rather than requiring babies to fit a single timetable.

Preschool has a book corner and spaces for construction, imaginative play, art and sensory exploration; its Montessori learning areas cover everyday practical tasks, sensory understanding, knowledge of the world, literacy and numeracy, using examples such as pouring with jugs, investigating floating and sinking, exploring letter sounds and handling mathematical materials. Story sacks bring objects associated with books into storytelling, giving children something tangible to use as they develop their own ideas.

The move between rooms depends on readiness. Children also have opportunities to spend time together during the day, so the younger and older groups are not entirely separate social worlds. Mixed-age learning gives younger children examples to follow and older children opportunities to help.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS sets the requirements for children's learning and development, including communication, physical development and early understanding of language and numbers. Highview combines that framework with Montessori activities organised for children to choose and use independently.

In Preschool, morning and afternoon work-cycles each allow three hours for sustained activity. Children can work alone or with others, while practitioners introduce materials, guide play and offer group teaching.

Practical participation extends beyond the learning materials. Children help prepare lunch arrangements, clear up afterwards and grow fruit and vegetables for cooking or snacks. Handling fragile objects carefully and looking after plants make independence concrete.

Outdoor and Community Life

The renovated garden supports climbing and gardening as well as construction, sensory exploration and art. Outdoor access continues through the day, with play encouraged across seasons and weather conditions. Appropriate clothing is part of making that arrangement work.

In April 2026, everyday mathematics included counting and sorting within routines and play. Children also explored creative activities and stories, while adults supplied language for sharing, taking turns and recognising feelings.

Relationships give the independent learning its support. In April 2026, a key person helped connect each child's care with family routines, and settling arrangements supported children who were new to the nursery. Practitioners offered babies comfort and responded to older children's requests for help. Independence did not mean leaving a child to manage alone.

Information gathered from parents covered sleep, feeding, weaning, allergies and dietary needs. In April 2026, staff used that detail to maintain continuity of care, while children practised everyday tasks such as feeding themselves and tidying away.

At its April 2026 inspection, Ofsted found that children with SEND made clear progress and that children learning English as an additional language participated fully, while identifying the next step as achieving a more substantial impact for disadvantaged children, including those with SEND, social-care involvement or other barriers. This is a meaningful development priority alongside the positive judgements.

A SENCO lead role sits with the deputy manager. Current staff arrangements include paediatric first-aid training for all staff, background checks and continuing professional development. For children under two, the nursery follows the EYFS minimum of one staff member to three children.

In April 2026, teaching adaptations included Makaton to support communication, alongside targeted help and work with external professionals. Support was reviewed as children's needs changed. Parents were involved in learning, and staff exchanged information with families to connect nursery experiences and home life.

Food comes from Kidz Clean Kitchen, which delivers freshly prepared seasonal meals each day, including hot lunch and tea. Its menus cater for dietary and allergy requirements; families affected by allergies should confirm the current arrangements for their child.

Sessions and Attendance

Highview opens Monday to Friday, from 7.30am to 6.30pm, across 51 weeks of the year. It closes for a week between Christmas and New Year, on Bank Holidays and for three inset days, with closure dates issued annually in advance.

The Full Day runs from 8am to 6pm. Morning sessions run from 8am to 1pm and include breakfast and lunch in their timetable; Afternoon sessions run from 1pm to 6pm and include tea. Early Bird covers 7.30am to 8am, while After tea extends attendance from 6pm to 6.30pm. The minimum booking requirement is two full days, so the shorter sessions need to be understood within that attendance rule.

Getting There

The address is St. James Church, East Barnet Road, Barnet, EN4 8RN; the contact address also identifies the nursery as 71 East Barnet Road. Tours can be booked by email or telephone.

New Barnet Station is a 2 minute walk away, with direct services into Central London, and buses 307, 184, 383 and 326 stop opposite. Parking options include Sainsbury's car park, free for up to two hours, East Barnet Road North Car Park, free before 9am and after 5pm, and free parking along Margaret Road.

Funding and Paid Extras

The nursery accepts 15 and 30 hours funding and Tax Free Childcare payments. Entitlements are stretched across 51 weeks, with funded hours offered between 8am and 6pm: the 15-hour entitlement provides up to 11 hours a week, and the 30-hour entitlement up to 22 hours a week. The minimum two-full-day attendance requirement also applies to funded attendance.

Private childcare is charged separately from meals and snacks. For funded attendance, the nursery requests a voluntary consumables payment that covers meals; families opting out provide three meals and two snacks each day in accordance with its Health and Safety Policy.

Payments are due monthly in advance, and families receive at least one month's notice of fee increases. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation; the fees and funding page explains the charging structure.

In April 2026, leaders worked with local schools and external professionals on transitions. That work concerned preparing children for their next stage and coordinating support.

• Shorter sessions and the minimum commitment. Morning and Afternoon sessions are offered alongside a two-full-day minimum. During a tour, establish how a proposed combination fits that rule before choosing an attendance plan.
• Moving from Nido to Preschool. Readiness influences the move, and the younger room's individual routines matter. Discuss the signs used to plan a transition and how feeding or sleep routines will continue through it.
• Funding and what the payment covers. Funded hours are stretched, while the voluntary consumables payment covers meals.
• Support beyond the positive judgements. April 2026's next step concerned the impact of support for disadvantaged children. Families whose child needs additional help should discuss how individual goals are reviewed and how progress will be shared.

Highview suits families seeking Montessori learning built around practical independence, with garden access and substantial time for children to pursue activities. Its Full Day, Morning and Afternoon patterns offer different lengths of attendance, subject to the two-full-day minimum.

The April 2026 area judgements give a positive inspection position. The decision still turns on concrete fit: the attendance minimum, the readiness-based move between rooms and the arrangements for stretched funding and meals. For parents who value purposeful choice and everyday responsibility, the detail here makes a persuasive case.