Twinkle Stars Montessori Nursery

Montessori here means purposeful activity, learning through play and growing independence. Calm cooperation is the defining quality at Twinkle Stars Montessori Nursery, a 33-place sessional setting at Holy Trinity Church on Lyonsdown Road. Ofsted judged it Good in May 2024. Children formed strong bonds with caring staff, played cooperatively and took pride in what they achieved.

Its Montessori approach centres on children learning through purposeful activity and growing independence. Independence had practical substance during the inspection. Children changed their shoes, removed coats and washed their hands themselves. Staff built learning step by step from what children already knew, giving them repeated chances to practise and extend skills.

Learning often grew from children's own interests. After children discovered worms in the garden, staff helped them make a wormery, created natural habitats in a sensory tray and provided materials for making bugs. One discovery therefore moved through investigation, sensory play and creativity.

Communication and social problem-solving mattered too. Staff introduced varied vocabulary for children to reuse in play. Children used a green timer to negotiate turns and a peace rose to ask others for company. These clear, repeatable tools helped them manage everyday disagreements and include one another.

Children had strong bonds with caring, friendly staff. Parents reported that children settled quickly, developed sharing and cooperative play, and benefited from regular feedback about their day. The report described the nursery as busy yet calm, with children respectful of one another and its rules.

Support for children with SEND was judged excellent. Staff identified needs early, arranged suitable intervention and used additional funding carefully. Safeguarding arrangements were effective, with an open culture centred on children's interests.

The nursery is at Holy Trinity Church, 18 Lyonsdown Road, New Barnet, Barnet EN5 1JE. It has 33 places in total and is recorded as sessional day care.

A single pre-application enquiry can cover current age ranges, attendance patterns, funding arrangements, meals, consumables and a provider-specific quotation.

• Attendance pattern. Confirm the available sessional patterns, clock times and any minimum weekly commitment.
• Budget detail. Compare total costs using a written breakdown of funded hours, meals, consumables and paid extras.
• Tidy-up routine. Leaders were asked to organise tidying so that play and learning are not interrupted unnecessarily. Check how the routine now works in practice.

Twinkle Stars Montessori Nursery has persuasive inspection evidence around warm relationships, calm behaviour, independence and SEND support. The garden worm project and practical tools for turn-taking show thoughtful teaching rooted in children's real interests. It is best suited to families seeking sessional or part-week care who are comfortable confirming the exact attendance pattern directly.