Cherrytree Nursery School

Stepping-stones, tunnels and books to take home give Cherrytree’s Kingsnorth Road branch a recognisable character: physical play and early reading sit alongside learning to choose, talk and cooperate. Those examples come from November 2022, when younger children selected activities for themselves and older children worked through their ideas together. They offer a concrete picture of the nursery’s day at that time.

Ofsted rated Cherrytree Nursery School Good on 3 November 2022. The nursery has 38 places in total for children aged 24 to 60 months, at 149 Kingsnorth Road, Ashford, TN23 6NE. Morning attendance, a session extending through lunch and a full nursery day give families different ways to use the setting.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage guides activity planning through observations of what children can do. In practical terms, staff record achievements across areas of development and use them to decide what to offer next. That connects a child’s experiences with their developing skills, rather than treating the activity timetable as an end in itself.

In November 2022, communication featured strongly in daily interactions. Adults emphasised important words and used signing to help children express needs, understand routines and make choices, including children learning English as an additional language. Counting and number recognition also happened during play. These were everyday opportunities to practise language and mathematics.

Books travelled between nursery and home in November 2022, allowing children to share their choices with their families. Comfortable reading spaces gave them somewhere to pause with a book. The combination matters: reading could be both a quiet nursery activity and something continued with a parent.

Planning had a weakness at that date. Some activities introduced too many ideas, making the intended learning less clear. The improvement needed was greater precision about what children should learn from each planned experience, rather than simply adding more activities.

Outdoor and Community Life

In November 2022, the garden supported movement in several forms. Younger children practised balance on stepping-stones and crawled through tunnels; older children put on outdoor clothing before playing in rainy conditions. The emphasis was on using their bodies and managing practical tasks as well as enjoying the space.

Outdoor clothing remains part of the daily preparation: families provide suitable clothes for changing weather, with wellingtons and outer layers for wet conditions. Labelling removable clothing helps it find its way back to the right child. For parents, this is a nursery day to prepare for with practical clothes rather than a carefully protected outfit.

Relationships and Communication

Cherrytree uses a group-wide Personalised Initial Profile (PIP), completed with a family to capture what their child can already do at home. This gives staff a starting point beyond what a child demonstrates in an unfamiliar setting. Home capabilities and nursery observations can then contribute different pieces of the same picture.

Contact books allow information to pass in both directions, and a parent evening takes place annually. Parents can contribute observations from home rather than only receive updates. When a conversation cannot happen immediately, an appointment can be arranged.

In November 2022, children had established trusting relationships with their key person, and staff knew family routines. Daily communication books described activities, but information about learning and development was sometimes insufficient: parents were not always clear about progress. That distinction still makes a useful question for a visit. A list of activities and an explanation of what a child is learning serve different purposes.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the November 2022 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities good, with professional advice and additional funding used to help their learning. These are dated judgements about practice, rather than a promise about an individual child’s experience today.

For the move to primary school, staff prepare a developmental report that parents read and can comment on; sharing it with the receiving school requires parental permission. This carries information about the child forward while keeping the family involved in the handover.

Sessions and Attendance

Opening hours are 8.45am to 3pm, Monday to Friday. Three booking windows start at 8.45am: a morning ending at 11.30am, a longer session ending at 1pm, and a full nursery day ending at 3pm. The middle option includes lunchtime while retaining an earlier finish.

The main nursery runs during term time. Playscheme, the optional holiday provision, usually operates at Kingsnorth Road on Mondays and Thursdays for children from 2 years old until their 8th birthday. Each holiday requires a separate booking, and Christmas, New Year and bank holidays are excluded. It follows Kent County Council term dates, with a possible additional closure at the end of summer.

Applications are returned to the relevant branch. The Kingsnorth Road contact is kingsnorth@cherrytreens.co.uk. An application is retained until a suitable place becomes available; submitting it is therefore part of the joining process rather than confirmation of a place.

Funding and Paid Extras

The nursery offers 15 Hour Funding, including eligible two-year-olds, and 30 Hour Funding for eligible children. Funding is term-time only, covering 38 weeks rather than the nursery’s 39 term-time weeks; it is not stretched across holidays. Playscheme attendance is paid separately.

The free 15-hour pattern combines two days from 8.45am to 3pm with one morning from 8.45am to 11.30am. Hours outside that arrangement attract session charges. For families wanting shorter visits across more days, the attendance pattern therefore matters as much as the total funded hours. Current prices come in the nursery’s written quotation, alongside the funding and charges information.

Morning snacks are included in both session fees and funding, with voluntary contributions welcomed; children staying beyond 11.30am bring lunch and a drink from home. Lunchboxes cannot be refrigerated, so a suitable container and ice pack are practical considerations.

Art, craft and everyday activity consumables are included, including during funded hours; parents supply nappies, wipes and any sun cream needed for topping up. Nappies or wipes supplied because a family has not brought them can incur a charge, while in-house special activities and visitors are included and optional outings may cost extra.

A deposit applies except to children using Free for 2 funded hours only. For funded-only attendance otherwise, it is returned within six weeks of starting unless a different arrangement is agreed in writing; deposits for partly or fully paid attendance depend on notice and outstanding fees. Fee-paying places require four weeks’ notice, and booked term-time fees remain payable during sickness or holidays.

• Progress information. In November 2022, families did not always receive enough detail about development. At a visit, ask how contact books and conversations now explain the next steps for your child.
• Funding pattern. The free 15-hour arrangement uses two longer days and one morning. Compare that pattern with the attendance you need, since a different spread of sessions can bring charges.
• Holiday coverage. Kingsnorth Road Playscheme usually runs on Mondays and Thursdays and requires a new booking each holiday. Families needing care across the working week should weigh that schedule carefully.
• Lunch and changing supplies. Longer sessions require a packed lunch, and families supply nappies and wipes. For a child with dietary or allergy needs, discuss current lunch arrangements and handling before joining.

Cherrytree suits families choosing between morning attendance, a session through lunch and a full nursery day, with optional holiday Playscheme as a separate arrangement. Its November 2022 picture combines independent choices, physical play and reading shared with home. The balance to weigh is practical: the funded attendance pattern may shape your week, and clear explanations of developmental progress deserve attention alongside accounts of daily activities.