Oaklea Montessori St John's rated good by Ofsted inspector

Oaklea Montessori St John’s, in St John’s Church Community Centre, Colchester, was awarded a good rating by the children’s services watchdog following an inspection last month.

The site, in St John’s Close, ranked good across all of the board in quality of education provided, behaviour and attitudes, personal development and leadership and management.

The Ofsted report explains how children part from their parents and carers with ease, being greeted “warmly with smiles and cuddles” upon arrival by staff.

It adds: “Children respond positively to each other, encouraging their friends to join in their play.

“They behave well and staff treat them with respect and praise them regularly for this efforts – this helps to build children’s self-esteem.”

The inspector highlighted the manager, who leads the nursery with a “strong sense of direction and dedication”.

They added: “She is passionate about providing the highest quality care and learning for the children, continually improving the provision.

“The manager values the staff as the most important asset of the nursery.”

The inspector stated the only improvement the nursery could make would be to support staff to consistently challenge and extend children’s learning.