Monkey Puzzle Day Nursery Stanway

Monkey Puzzle Day Nursery Stanway
Unique reference number (URN): 2504015
Address: 1 Villa Road, Stanway, Colchester, Essex, CO3 0RH
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registered with Ofsted: 19/11/2018
Registers: EYR
Registered person: SMJ Childcare Ltd
Inspection report: 14 April 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
Expected standard
Leadership and governance Strong standard
Leaders have made the required improvements since the last inspection. This displays their
dedication to continuously reflect and strengthen the curriculum and teaching standards.
Leaders have set clear goals to continually build on these improvements. For example,
leaders have accessed further training and coaching opportunities to ensure that the
curriculum is always inclusive and of consistently high quality.
Since the last inspection, leaders have taken substantial action to ensure that reciprocal
communication with parents is consistent and highly effective. For example, parents are
regularly invited to meet with their child's key person to discuss children's progress. Part of
this process includes listening to parents' views and working together, sometimes with other
external professionals, to plan children's next steps in learning and development. This
collaborative approach particularly supports those children known (or previously known) to
children's social care and those who face other barriers to their learning and/or wellbeing.
Parents express overwhelming amounts of praise for the caring and dedicated staff. They
applaud the in-depth, daily communication about their child's day. Parents report a
significant increase in their children's communication and language development since
attending.
Staff provide overwhelming praise for their leadership team. They feel incredibly supported
in their roles and feel their workload is manageable. Staff explain how training matches their
development needs and preferences, alongside building their confidence to deliver high-
quality care and education.
Achievement Expected standard
All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), are
thriving and achieving very well from their starting points. Children with SEND typically
benefit from tailored interventions, such as one-to-one support when appropriate. This
includes for the most disadvantaged children to improve their best outcomes and
achievements in all areas of learning and development.
Children become independent learners and develop the essential knowledge and skills
needed for their future learning and development. Children are very proud of their
achievements and delight in showing visitors pretend ice cream they have made from sand.
Older children and those with SEND independently take themselves to specific areas to self-
regulate when they feel overwhelmed. These are spaces where children can take time to

calm their mind and body, for example by listening to a quiet story. This helps children to
manage their emotions and behaviours when they progress to school.
Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard
Leaders provide training to ensure that staff deliver inclusive approaches to behaviour,
attitudes and establishing routines. Leaders have recently introduced 'five-minute
observations', where they implement focused reflections alongside staff. This helps staff
step back and observe environments at key points in the day, such as transitions to outdoor
play. This is in its infancy but will help staff to reflect and improve on their practice, such as
ensuring that staff help children's increasing independence by helping them learn how to
dress appropriately for different types of weather.
Children are happy, and laughter fills the air as they play cooperatively with their peers and
staff. Staff support children to foster close friendships, for example through turn-taking
games. Any minor disputes over popular toys are dealt with effectively. Children learn about
sharing and respecting the needs and feelings of others through excellent modelling by staff.
Staff praise children when they show random acts of kindness, such as sharing toys. This
helps maintain positive attitudes to learning.
Staff have high expectations for children's behaviour and establishing routines, including
those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). For example, staff model to
children with SEND how to push chairs under the table so they are not a trip hazard.
Staff provide tailored settling-in processes, which help children develop routines and positive
habits. They also promote children's punctuality and attendance at nursery.
Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard
All children are becoming increasingly independent in attending to their personal needs.
They develop life skills, such as cutting up food with a knife and fork. Patient staff use gentle
hand-over-hand guidance to support this learning. Children self-serve their own meals and
learn to make healthy food choices. Freshly prepared meals are balanced and meet
children's nutritional needs.
Leaders have embedded daily procedures, such as intermittent spot checks of all rooms in
the nursery. This promotes children's welfare and wellbeing, as leaders identify times of the
day where extra support could be provided to maintain safe and purposeful learning
environments.
Staff meticulously follow daily risk assessments to ensure that children with special dietary
requirements, preferences, food allergies and intolerances have their care needs met.
Children develop good hygiene routines in age-appropriate ways. This supports children's
health and wellbeing beyond nursery. For example, parents report how children sing a merry
handwashing tune taught at nursery to help them wash their hands properly at home.
At times when children experience periods of high energy levels, staff know how to help
individual children manage their feelings, such as playing outdoors. Children, including
those with children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, benefit from fresh air

and physical play, which can help even the most disadvantaged children to improve their
wellbeing.
Curriculum and teaching Expected standard
Babies and children develop their physical strength and mathematics in fun ways. Babies
enjoy learning to climb and pull themselves up on soft-play equipment while attempting to
count in sequence with staff who are modelling this. Staff consistently respond attentively to
babies' early signs of communication. For example, when babies hold out a book to them,
staff offer to read to them. Babies show excellent attention and listening skills while being
read to. They are building on their articulation of first words as they attempt to repeat words
that staff model to them. The promotion of these early literacy skills is crucial for when they
progress to school.
Recent improvements to the nursery curriculum are highly successful and play a pivotal role
in staff's delivery of typically high-quality teaching throughout the nursery. However,
occasionally, when staff are implementing activities, they do not always gather a broad
perspective of all children's involvement. This can lead to some children not persevering in
activities of their choosing, which can reduce intended learning outcomes.
Staff use robust assessments of children's progress to inform planning. This ensures that
the individual needs of all children are met, including those with special educational needs
and/or disabilities. For example, staff use Makaton sign language and visual prompts such
as 'now and next' boards to help all children communicate and understand changes to
routines.
Inclusion Expected standard
Robust settling-in procedures and a securely embedded key-person system mean parents
and carers can share their unique information about their child before they start. These early
discussions foster a collaborative approach, including listening to views from any external
professionals already working with the child. Any early interventions, such as speech and
language support, are actioned straight away. This ensures that all children who have
special educational needs and/or disabilities make typical progress from their starting points.
Partnerships with parents are prioritised and a strength of the nursery. Leaders and staff
work sensitively and build trusting relationships with parents. This ensures that all families
and children are consistently receiving well-rounded support. This increases attendance and
the overall happiness of all children, including those known (or previously known) to
children's social care and those who face other barriers to their learning and/or wellbeing.
Staff use parental input and regular assessments of children's progress effectively to offer
opportunities to support children's next steps in learning. Staff skilfully consider children's
interests and learning priorities in planning activities. Staff notice when children are not
getting the most out of typically effective teaching strategies, such as one-to-one support.
However, occasionally, staff do not always adapt their interactions swiftly enough to help
children make even more progress.

What it's like to be a child at this setting
Children are very happy and enjoy their time at this nurturing and inclusive nursery. A well-
established key-person system and bespoke settling-in procedures ensure that babies and
children swiftly develop positive and trusting attachments with staff. Before children start,
parents and carers are invited to discuss their children's existing daily routines, such as
sleeping and eating patterns. Staff implement these routines from home, which are familiar
to children. This greatly benefits children, as they settle smoothly, and can boost attendance.
They feel extremely safe in their new environment and when moving into different rooms
within the nursery.
Children's individual learning needs are typically met very well. Leaders and staff have
recently created a well-designed curriculum that is clear, high quality and flexible to meet
children's individual needs. Children particularly make rapid progress in their communication
and language development. For example, staff provide visual pictures and use Makaton to
help those children who find communication difficult. This ensures that all children make lots
of progress from their starting points, including those with special educational needs and/or
disabilities. Older children regularly visit care homes, where they can practise their
communication skills freely. Children develop a love of books and reading, enhanced with
trips to the local community library.
Indoor and outdoor environments are stimulating and inviting and offer endless opportunities
for discovery and fun-filled learning. Children delight in the freedom to create their unique
artwork by painting on the outdoor fence with paint they have made themselves from
beetroot. Children move closer to staff for reassurance and a cuddle when visitors ask them
how they made the paint. With gentle encouragement from staff, children feel safe and
empowered to explain, building on their social communication skills.
Children play cooperatively and show acts of kindness frequently without prompting. Staff
provide genuine praise when children kindly push their peers on the swing. This reinforces
positive behaviours expected of them.
Next steps
Leaders should consistently support staff to identify children's changing needs, skilfully
adapting their teaching and interactions to continuously enhance and extend all children's
further learning and development.

Inspector:
Louisa Taylor
About this setting
Unique reference number (URN): 2504015
Address:
1 Villa Road
Stanway
Colchester
Essex
CO3 0RH
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registration date: 19/11/2018
Registered person: SMJ Childcare Ltd
Register(s): EYR
Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:30 - 18:30
Local authority: Essex
Facts and figures used on inspection
Leaders should support staff to identify children's engagement levels and help children to
meet their learning intentions to further their overall development.
About this inspection
The inspector spoke with leaders, staff, practitioners, the special educational needs
coordinator, parents and children during 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.

This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection.
This data is from 14 April 2026
Children numbers
Age range of children at the time of inspection
0 to 4
Total number of places
159
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.

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