Tree Tops Montessori Nursery

Low shelves that children can reach, a baby building with its own outdoor space, and preschool children helping construct obstacle courses: Tree Tops Montessori Nursery gives independence a practical shape. Its Montessori approach lets children choose activities and consolidate skills before moving on. The appeal is concrete, rather than simply a label attached to the nursery’s name.

At its January 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated Tree Tops Good and found safeguarding effective, with good support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. That is a dated judgement. The current nursery accepts children from 3 months to 5 years and has 69 places in total at its Chesham Street address in Leamington Spa.

Rooms and Ages

Babies have a building shared with toddlers, containing a playroom, facilities for changing, a milk kitchen, space for rest and sleep, and an outdoor play area; puzzles, creative play and physical equipment support early exploration.

Two Year Olds combines early Montessori materials with construction, sand, water, music and artwork, while low shelves put choices within children’s reach and a separate outdoor area supports active play.

Pre School serves three- and four-year-olds, using individual education plans and Montessori materials alongside drama, cookery and construction, with a dedicated outdoor classroom and apparatus children use to create obstacle courses.

These arrangements give independence different meanings at different stages. A toddler can select an activity from a shelf; an older child can help organise a physical challenge outside. The youngest children also spend time with older children, and visits to the toddler room and its outdoor area prepare babies for their next move. Familiarity comes before the change of room.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS is the framework for children’s learning and development, covering communication, movement, relationships and, as children grow, literacy, mathematics, creative expression and understanding their surroundings. It shapes activities and individual next steps. Montessori sits alongside that framework: children work at a pace suited to them, practising and consolidating skills before progressing.

The curriculum makes that approach tangible. Toddlers choose accessible materials, while preschool children use individual plans to connect Montessori activities with their developing skills. Music and movement, creative work and cookery also follow children’s interests, seasonal changes and festivals. Choice operates within a prepared environment, rather than leaving the day entirely unstructured.

In January 2022, younger children experimented with wooden oranges and objects that could hold them, while children manipulating dough practised the small movements needed to shape facial features. Older children used stories and songs to discuss emotions. These examples show how play can combine physical skill, problem-solving and language, rather than treating each as a separate lesson.

In January 2022, staff sustained conversations with children and introduced vocabulary during their exchanges. Learning was organised to build on existing knowledge, although staff did not always use everything they knew about a child to set a sufficiently stretching next step. That distinction matters: an engaging activity and the right level of challenge are separate questions.

Outdoor and Community Life

Preschool children care for classroom fish, plants and vegetables, bringing small responsibilities into ordinary nursery life. Growing food also connects with harvesting, preparing and eating it. The outdoor classroom adds another setting for learning, while obstacle courses, ball games and parachute activities provide physical play.

World Book Day, Comic Relief and Children in Need bring fundraising activities into the nursery calendar.

Relationships and Communication

A personal key worker supports babies during settling and helps maintain their home routines and parents’ wishes. Parents can spend time playing with or feeding their baby at nursery. For a family making the first transition into childcare, those are useful mechanisms: the relationship develops around the child’s existing habits, rather than requiring every routine to change at once.

Toddlers’ key workers maintain developmental records, plan next steps and give parents daily feedback. The Progress Summary at 2 provides a written account of development that parents can share with professionals such as health visitors.

Toilet training is handled flexibly, with staff accommodating routines used at home. Moves into preschool involve visits and time playing with older children. Reception teachers are invited to meet children at nursery before they move on to school, allowing that first contact to take place in familiar surroundings. This is transition preparation, rather than an admissions advantage.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

The team includes a Special Educational Needs Co – Ordinator, and staff prepare individual education plans for children. These give families identifiable routes for discussing support and the child’s next steps. They are more useful decision points than a general promise that every need will be met.

In January 2022, staff used assessments to identify learning gaps and involved managers and other professionals in arranging support. Children also practised everyday independence, including putting on coats, serving food and returning resources after use. These were observations from that period, rather than guarantees about every child’s present experience.

In January 2022, the improvement priorities concerned staff supervision and the monitoring of teaching, alongside more precise use of information about children’s learning. Managers had introduced more frequent staff meetings, but further work was needed to identify development opportunities. For parents, the practical issue is how professional support for staff translates into the next activity planned for their child.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is 1-3 Chesham Street, Leamington Spa, CV31 1JS. Tree Tops opens from 8am to 6pm on weekdays throughout the year, closing for Christmas, Easter and Bank Holidays. Those closures matter when matching nursery care to a working calendar, even where the usual weekday opening window fits well.

Enquiries can be made by telephone on 01926 888050, by email at info@treetopsmontessorinursery.co.uk or through the contact form.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded nursery education includes up to 15 hours a week over 38 weeks, beginning in the term after a child’s third birthday. Eligible children can receive 30 hours free childcare, and funded provision is also offered to eligible two-year-olds. Eligibility conditions apply; these entitlements do not mean that every family receives the same funded allocation.

Holiday attendance is paid privately at the standard rate, with its cost spread across the year. Fees are charged for 50 weeks, and payment is due in advance by the 7th of each month. Extra attendance days, late collection and late payment attract additional charges. Current prices come in the nursery’s written quotation; the fees page explains the payment structure.

For under-twos, parents provide lunch and tea, which can be reheated in the baby kitchen, while snacks are arranged after discussion with parents. A cook prepares food on site for toddlers and preschool children, and the nursery caters for vegetarian and special dietary requirements.

• Independence in practice. Low shelves and child-selected activities are central to the toddler environment. During a visit, ask how staff help a child who needs encouragement to choose or who repeatedly returns to the same activity.
• Challenge and staff development. In January 2022, the improvement priorities included more precise next steps and stronger monitoring of teaching. Ask how individual learning plans and staff supervision now connect to the level of challenge offered to your child.
• Food for younger children. Parents supply lunch and tea for under-twos, while older children have food prepared on site. Families managing allergies should confirm current dietary procedures and how instructions follow a child between rooms.
• The working calendar. Christmas, Easter and Bank Holiday closures sit alongside year-round weekday opening, and holiday attendance is paid privately. Compare those arrangements with the care you need across the year.

Tree Tops suits families who want Montessori choices to be visible in the day: accessible materials, time to practise skills and increasing responsibility as children grow. Its offer spans babies needing familiar routines and preschool children preparing for school, with key workers and planned room transitions connecting those stages.

The January 2022 Good judgement provides a dated quality reference, while its improvement priorities give parents useful questions about teaching and challenge. The strongest practical fit is for families comfortable with the weekday opening window, holiday closures and the requirement to provide meals for under-twos.