Ninny's House

Woodland dens, garden-grown ingredients and play shaped by children's questions give Ninny's House its character. At St Mary Bourne, the outdoors supplies both the setting and much of the subject matter: children climb, investigate plants and prepare food, with regular Forest School and Forest Tots sessions adding practical woodland experiences.

The nursery accepts children from 4 months to 4 years and has 30 places in total. The address is Bourne Meadow, St Mary Bourne, SP11 6BE, at St Mary Bourne Village Centre. This is the St Mary Bourne setting, whose village surroundings are part of daily learning.

At its June 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated Ninny's House Good, found safeguarding effective and described a curriculum supporting good progress, including communication for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities; the improvement priority was to broaden children's understanding of lives beyond their immediate community. Later regulatory action involving supervision and outings also matters to the choice. It deserves attention alongside that dated grade.

Whole-day, half-day and school-day patterns are offered, with both year-round and term-time contracts.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage provides the framework for children's learning, development and care: play, conversation and practical exploration help children build skills. St Mary Bourne puts its own outdoor emphasis alongside that foundation. Staff observe children's interests and use them to shape activities, rather than making each day follow an identical sequence.

Forest School brings woodland learning into the programme, including den building, climbing and discovering the surroundings. Forest Tots gives younger children woodland experiences too, with examples including rolling a water carrier, investigating natural materials and discovering a pretend campfire made from sticks. These are concrete ways to explore weight, texture and cooperation through play.

Gardening Club connects growing with early investigation. Children have examined seed packets to organise a planting calendar and explored how potato-starch packaging dissolves before putting it into compost. The garden becomes somewhere to test an idea and return to it later. Growing is more than a decorative activity here.

Creative play uses everyday materials as well as conventional toys. Sticks, fabric, stones and crates can become the ingredients for children's own games. The baby room uses heuristic play, meaning exploration of real objects and their different textures and materials. That gives the youngest children something tangible to handle and investigate.

In June 2023, children listened to expressive storytelling, joined action rhymes and identified instruments while hearing classical music. Those examples show how listening and language were woven into enjoyable activities at that time.

Outdoor and Community Life

The physical environment includes a garden, woodland experiences and an outdoor play area where natural wood chips have replaced artificial surfacing. Children helped with that change. There is also a wormery, giving them a close-up way to examine the creatures living in compost and connect gardening with care for living things.

Stow Sports has led a session developing throwing and catching for netball. Cooking experiences include preparing ingredients and making food together, so active learning reaches beyond woodland exploration. The practical thread is consistent: children do things with their hands, talk about what happens and work alongside others.

Weather changes the activity rather than routinely ending it. Children continue outdoor play in rainwear during ordinary rain, while torrential conditions bring them inside until they can return outdoors. Families choosing this setting should be comfortable with outdoor play being a substantial part of childhood, including wet days.

Sleep has its own place in the routine. After lunch, younger children rest in dedicated sleep areas, while older children have time for activities such as Lego and board games. This separates the needs of children ready for a nap from those ready for a different kind of play.

In June 2023, babies were looked after by familiar practitioners who responded to their emotional needs. Older children practised independence by serving food and clearing tables. Staff exchanged assessments with parents and used information about learning at home to help plan activities around individual interests.

Later supervision findings need a clear place in the account: Ofsted's November 2023 compliance outcome followed a child being briefly beyond staff sight and hearing, while its November 2025 outcome concerned accident or injury, safeguarding procedures, outings safety and risk assessment, with both outcomes finding that some legal requirements were not being met and recording action taken to put matters right. The later response included changing outings risk assessments and reviewing procedures with staff. Because outings and outdoor learning are central to the experience, the repeated subject is material even though action was taken.

The June 2023 improvement priority also has practical meaning for families. Learning about the immediate village and its natural surroundings should sit alongside opportunities to understand people whose lives differ from children's own.

Sessions and Attendance

Opening hours are 7.30am to 6pm, Monday to Friday. The nursery operates throughout the year and closes on bank holidays. Attendance is arranged by the hour, with a whole-day option, a half day from 8.30am to 1pm, and a school-day pattern starting at 9am and finishing at either 3.30pm or 4pm.

There is no required minimum number of days or sessions. The nursery recommends at least two sessions each week to help children settle, which is advice rather than a booking condition.

Year-round and term-time contracts are separate options. Term-time contracts carry no school-holiday retainer. For families whose care needs follow the school calendar, that distinction matters as much as the daily timetable.

Enquiries use the St Mary Bourne Parent Enquiry Form, email at hello@ninnyshouse.co.uk or telephone on 07543 520240. The nursery is based at the village centre on Bourne Meadow.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare includes 15 and 30 hours for eligible working families, alongside the universal 15 hours from the term after a child's third birthday. Funding can be taken term-time or stretched across the year; the stated standard offer is up to 15 hours over 38 weeks, and the stated stretched offer is up to 11.25 hours weekly over up to 50 weeks. Those delivery examples should not be read as a promise that every entitlement follows an identical attendance arrangement.

Private childcare is charged hourly. Nappies, wipes, creams and sun lotion are included in that hourly rate, while food carries a separate daily charge. Activities included in the hourly rate are part of the shared Ninny's House offer, including older children's Forest School, cooking, gardening, yoga and French; yoga and French are included activities rather than separately priced additions.

Food is cooked from scratch, with menus changing weekly and provision spanning breakfast, snacks, lunch and tea. The nursery's meal policy includes nut-free options, vegetarian and vegan choices, and allergen-free alternatives.

Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation. The useful comparison is the total for the chosen attendance pattern, including food and the treatment of funded hours.

• Outdoor supervision and outings. Corrective action followed supervision and outings concerns in November 2023 and November 2025. At a visit, ask how the revised risk assessments, staff procedures and checks operate during woodland activities and trips.
• A wider view of the world. The June 2023 improvement priority concerned experiences beyond the immediate community. For families, the decision is how village-based learning is balanced with opportunities to understand different lives in modern Britain.
• The funded-hours quotation. Food is charged separately, while specified consumables are included in the private hourly rate. Request a written breakdown for your funded attendance pattern, covering meals, consumables and any additional private hours.
• Weather and dietary needs. Outdoor play continues through ordinary rain, and the food policy includes nut-free and allergen-free options. Discuss suitable clothing and, where allergies affect your child, confirm current food preparation and handling practice.

Ninny's House suits families who want woodland exploration, gardening and practical play to shape their child's day, with full days, half days and school day type sessions serving different routines. The garden, heuristic play for babies and named outdoor sessions give that preference substance.

The June 2023 Good judgement is useful historical context, but the later, repeated supervision and outings concerns make current practice a central part of the decision. How those safeguards operate alongside outdoor exploration is central to judging the nursery's suitability.