A school became the first state-funded in London to gain accredited status as a Montessori school today.
Aldersbrook Nursery and Primary School, in Harpenden Road, Wanstead, gained accreditation for their early years foundation stage from the Montessori Evaluation and Accreditation Board (MEAB).
A plaque was handed over by the Mayor of Redbridge Cllr Ashley Kissin at 10.30am this morning at the school.
Montessori education is an approach to early-years teaching, from the ages of three to six, which focuses on hands-on and self paced learning instead of using handouts, worksheets and lesson plans.
Reception teachers instead set up stations in the classroom and children have the freedom to explore and choose which activity and level of difficulty they want to complete.
The MEAB scheme offers support and guidance to Montessori schools in order to ensure that Montessori provision is high quality, and the accreditation shows the school has reached the necessary requirements.
Angela Euesden, Assistant head of the school, said: “The team have worked immensely hard this year to not only gain accreditation from the board, but to gain themselves Montessori Teaching Diplomas.
“Our children are really benefiting from the approach and the impact is such that our results are improving dramatically with our Reception children achieving a Good Level of Development this year that is 26% above the National Average from last year."