URN EY479688 · Inspected 2026-02-04 · Published 2026-04-24 · Inspector: Jessica Whiteley
The Mulberry Bush Montessori Nursery Ltd Unique reference number (URN): EY479688 Address: 12 Melrose Road, West Mersea, COLCHESTER, CO5 8JB Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registered with Ofsted: 30/07/2014 Registers: EYR, CCR, VCR Registered person: The Mulberry Bush Montessori Nursery Ltd Inspection report: 4 February 2026 Exceptional Strong standard Expected standard Needs attention Urgent improvement Safeguarding standards met The safeguarding standards are met. This means that leaders and/or those responsible for governance and oversight fulfil their specific responsibilities and have established an open culture in which safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and concerns are actively identified, acted upon and managed. As a result, children are made safer and feel safe. How we evaluate safeguarding When we inspect settings for safeguarding, they can have the following outcomes: Met: The setting has an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not met: The setting has not created an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not all legal requirements are met. Strong standard Achievement Strong standard All children, including those who face barriers to their learning, are expertly supported to make excellent progress. Children are provided with targeted, individualised support plans that are regularly reviewed and adapted to meet the changing needs of individual children. Staff use these plans to closely monitor children's progress to ensure that any issues are flagged and swift action is taken to close any gaps. Staff are highly reflective of the learning opportunities they provide to children and continuously strive to improve. This results in children receiving highly impactful learning opportunities. Children are supported to become independent learners who are confident, curious and ready to learn, which supports them to gain the knowledge and skills needed to be suitably ready to transition to the next stage in their learning and make excellent progress across all 7 areas of their learning and development. Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard Children demonstrate they understand the behavioural expectations of the setting. Clear instructions from staff and well-established routines support all children to understand what is expected of them. As a result, children are able to successfully follow the rules and behave impeccably. Children are respectful and empathetic. They recognise when their peers need help and are eager to guide and support each other. Staff expertly support children to take turns and play collaboratively. They praise this behaviour when they observe it and role model how to positively interact with others. This supports children to play collaboratively together and work to complete tasks. Staff teach children the skills they need to be able to resolve any conflict that may occur. As a result, children are confident to express their thoughts and feelings with their peers when something happens that they do not like. Children listen to the views of others and adapt their behaviour accordingly. Staff teach children the importance of perseverance and encourage children to keep trying when completing tasks. They help children to celebrate their achievement, and this promotes positive attitudes to learning. Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard Leaders and staff have created a calm, relaxed environment where children demonstrate a secure sense of belonging. Children show that they feel content, safe and confident to explore. Leaders and staff take action to get to know children really well. They build strong partnerships with parents to create a secure link between home and the setting. They celebrate what makes children unique and use knowledge of each individual child to provide them with tailored activities to meet each child's individual interests and needs. This child- centred approach helps children to fully engage in the learning opportunities on offer to them. Children are able to find things they enjoy doing and use these activities to practise and extend their emerging skills. Well-planned and structured routines support children to learn the skills needed to be independent. Staff encourage children to make healthy choices with regards to mealtimes and hygiene procedures to teach them how to manage their own health and wellbeing. Curriculum and teaching Strong standard All staff demonstrate high-quality teaching methods in their interactions with children. They expertly adapt their approach to meet the needs of all children. Staff are highly responsive to the needs of all children and skilfully use different strategies to engage children in play and learning opportunities. All staff have a clear understanding of child development and the steps they will take to support all children to make excellent progress in all areas of their learning and development. They focus on building the foundations to children's learning and prioritise teaching children the skills they need to become independent learners. They provide children with opportunities to develop their emerging physical, communication and social interaction skills, and as a result, children are curious, empathetic and confident communicators. Leaders have carefully reflected on the setting's curriculum and have worked in partnership with the staff team to create a revised curriculum that blends several pedagogical approaches together and puts children at the centre. These changes have been implemented as leaders feel this will continue to improve the outcomes of all children, including those who face barriers to their learning. Inclusion Strong standard Leaders and staff have created a highly inclusive environment that supports all children, including those with barriers to their learning, to thrive. They expertly adapt their approach to meet the needs of all children. This supports children to fully engage in the activities on offer. Staff support all children to learn and develop the skills they need to be confident and independent learners. They provide children with multiple opportunities to practise and develop their skills and provide praise, encouragement and guidance to support. As a result, children are highly engaged in their play and are curious and eager to join in and learn. Any areas of concern in a child's learning and development are quickly identified and addressed. Targeted, individualised support is swiftly implemented to help children close any gaps and reduce their barriers to learning. Leaders have reflected on when extra-curricular activities take place to ensure these are planned in a way that enables all children to take part, with the aim to ensure that all children have access to a rich and broad curriculum. For example, forest school sessions happen more regularly to capture the whole cohort of children. Leadership and governance Strong standard A recent change to the management team at the setting has resulted in many changes to how the setting operates. Leaders reflected on their position in the community and looked at ways they could better support the children and their families that they serve. Parents report that these changes have been highly impactful and have made a positive difference in the support the setting offers to families. Leaders strive to continually improve the setting. They are working on bringing about change to the curriculum to have a stronger emphasis on the connection they have to the local community and area in which they are located, for example by creating links to the local beach and natural environment. Leaders prioritise the wellbeing of their staff and go above and beyond to offer support and create a harmonious working environment. As a result, all staff report they feel well supported and enjoy their job. Leaders ensure that staff receive opportunities to access ongoing training to further develop their practice with the children. Leaders and staff have a clear vision for the setting and what they can do to best prepare children for future learning. Compulsory Childcare Register requirements This setting has met the requirements of the compulsory part of the Childcare Register. How we check if a provider meets the requirements of the Compulsory Childcare Register When we check if settings meet the Compulsory Childcare Register requirements, they can have the following outcomes: Met Not met Voluntary Childcare Register requirements This setting has met the requirements of the voluntary part of Childcare Register. How we check if a provider meets the requirements of the Voluntary Childcare Register When we check if settings meet the Voluntary Childcare Register requirements, they can have the following outcomes: Met Not met What it's like to be a child at this setting Staff create a calm and inviting environment that supports children to be curious learners who engage well in their play. Children confidently explore the environment. They select activities that interest them and find the tools and resources they need from accessible storage. They use these to enhance their play and learning. Staff are highly responsive to children and expertly support children to learn the skills they need to be independent and complete tasks for themselves. They give children clear instructions, role model what to do and provide children with opportunities to develop their emerging skills. For example, staff recognise that younger children want to climb, and so they provide children with opportunities to develop their balance, coordination and gross motor skills. Older children are shown how to create a bird feeder in the forest area of the garden. They copy the different stages of the activity and work together to complete the task. Children comment about what they are doing and confidently count and talk about what birds like to eat. Children are highly respectful of one another and show care and empathy towards their peers. Leaders are highly reflective and have implemented many recent changes. These changes aim to best meet the needs of the community the setting serves. Leaders are currently working to embed a revised curriculum that builds on what they already did and blends together several different pedagogical approaches to create a clear framework for what they want children to learn as they feel this will best support all children to make excellent progress. Next steps Leaders and those responsible for governance should sustain their work to ensure continued improvement and high standards. They should focus on creating a transformational impact on the outcomes and experiences of disadvantaged children, those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, those who are known (or previously known) to children's social care and those who may face other barriers to their learning and/or wellbeing. About this inspection The inspector spoke with leaders, practitioners, the special educational needs coordinator, children and parents/carers during the inspection. We carried out this inspection under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of provision that is registered on the Early Years Register. The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children's learning, development and care, known as the early years foundation stage. Inspector: Jessica Whiteley About this setting Unique reference number (URN): EY479688 Address: 12 Melrose Road West Mersea COLCHESTER CO5 8JB Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registration date: 30/07/2014 Registered person: The Mulberry Bush Montessori Nursery Ltd Register(s): EYR, CCR, VCR Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:00 - 18:00 Local authority: Essex Facts and figures used on inspection This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection. This data is from 4 February 2026 Children numbers Age range of children at the time of inspection 0 to 4 Total number of places 30 Our grades explained Exceptional Practice is exceptional: of the highest standard nationally. Other settings can learn from it. Strong standard The setting reaches a strong standard. Leaders are working above the standard expected of them. Expected standard The setting is fulfilling the expected standard of education and/or care. This means they are following the standard set out in statutory and non ‑ statutory legislation and the professional standards expected of them. Needs attention The expected standards are not met but leaders are likely able to make the necessary improvements. Urgent improvement The setting needs to make urgent improvements to provide the expected standard of education and/or care. The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) inspects services providing education and skills for children and learners of all ages, and inspects and regulates services that care for children and young people. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk. You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence, write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk. This publication is available at https://reports.ofsted.gov.uk. Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn. Piccadilly Gate Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted © Crown copyright 2026 © Crown copyright