Queens Park Montessori and Sakutu Montessori School Club

The March 2023 inspection offers a dated picture of practice here, while the registered name alone does not establish the nursery’s current educational method. In March 2023, the nursery followed a Montessori educational philosophy. Montessori is an established child-led approach centred on hands-on activity and growing independence.

In March 2023, overall effectiveness, education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership and management were all judged Good. Safeguarding arrangements were effective at the same visit. Children were aged two to four, with 26 places and 19 children on roll at that time.

The Early Years Foundation Stage was the framework for the March 2023 nursery day. In plain terms, it gives young children learning and development through play, routines and adult interaction. Mathematics had an everyday feel: staff used sand moulds, pegs and counting sticks to introduce shape, number and matching.

Independence was equally concrete. In March 2023, children selected and tidied activities, put on their own shoes and coats before using the garden, and used a buckle-fastening frame to practise a useful self-care skill. Paint, imaginative play in the home corner and morning group time sat alongside that practical work.

In March 2023, a good-sized garden was used for ball games, catch and ride-on toys. Children also talked about putting rubbish into food-waste and recycling bins, connecting ordinary routines with care for the environment.

Relationships with families and external agencies had a clear role in March 2023. Staff identified additional needs promptly and put plans in place, giving children with special educational needs and disabilities a structured route to support at that time. Learning updates were shared with parents, whose feedback was used in curriculum planning.

Safeguarding arrangements were effective in March 2023. At that time, staff had local-authority safeguarding training, discussed concerns at team meetings and completed daily risk assessments. Two dated improvement points were to give children longer to respond to questions and to improve staff knowledge of how to build children’s understanding of healthy eating.

Queens Park Montessori and Sakutu Montessori School Club is at 346 Dollis Hill Lane, London NW2 6HL. The March 2023 inspection recorded an age range of two to four and funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children. Those are inspection-era details, so families considering funded childcare should obtain the current entitlement arrangements and a written nursery-specific quotation.

At that inspection, families brought healthy food for lunch. Food routines and any dietary arrangements are therefore useful points to cover before choosing a place.

• Educational approach. The March 2023 report recorded a Montessori philosophy, but the registered name does not settle the current daily method. Discuss how activities, independence and adult guidance are organised for the age group your child would join.

• Children’s voice. Giving children more time to answer questions was an improvement point in March 2023. Explore how practitioners now make room for children to explain their ideas during play and group time.

• Food routines. Families provided healthy lunches at the inspection. Cover the current lunch, snack and dietary arrangements if these shape your child’s day.

• Additional support. Individual planning with parents and external agencies formed part of the 2023 practice. For a child with an identified or emerging need, discuss the support process from the outset.

It suits families considering a place for a two- to four-year-old who want to weigh a detailed but historical account of playful mathematics, practical independence, outdoor activity and coordinated support for additional needs. The March 2023 Good judgement and effective safeguarding finding give that account weight.

The key decision is present-day fit. The dated record is strongest on the buckle-fastening work, child-chosen activities and garden play; the current educational approach, food routine and arrangements for funded childcare deserve direct discussion before a family commits.