Teddies Nursery

At the June 2024 inspection, cornflour play, cooperative water games and the Mr Tongue story brought movement, language and relationships together at Teddies Nursery. The setting has capacity for 30 children at Countesthorpe Academy, Winchester Road, Countesthorpe, Leicester LE8 5PR.

At its June 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good, judged safeguarding effective and found that assessment and additional support helped children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, make good progress. Children attending then were aged 1 to 4. That is a dated picture of the children attending, rather than a current age policy.

In June 2024, activities drew on children's interests and their next learning steps. The early years foundation stage sets the framework for learning, development and care; here, the examples included sensory exploration, conversation and learning to cooperate through play.

Babies explored cornflour with spoons and their fingers, watching its texture change. A shared soup-making game involved pipes, buckets and a large tub, with children dividing jobs between themselves. These experiences gave children something concrete to investigate and a reason to work together.

Staff-led yoga brought stretching and balancing into the day. There was also a clear limitation: children lost interest in a programmable robot mouse when staff gave too little guidance. The June 2024 improvement priority was to make teaching within activities more consistent, so their intended learning was realised.

In June 2024, settling sessions were adapted to individual children, while conversations with families helped staff understand preferences and previous experiences. This made settling a personal process rather than a uniform timetable.

Mealtimes encouraged independence: babies practised feeding themselves, and older children served food and poured drinks while staff ate alongside them. Conversations about different foods also helped children understand their friends' allergies.

Following language training, staff had created a communication friendly space and introduced Mr Tongue, a story helping children explore mouth movements used in speech. For school preparation, staff spoke with teachers about the skills children would need next. Parents received progress updates, although the June 2024 improvement priorities included more practical ideas for continuing learning at home.

The address is Countesthorpe Academy, Winchester Road, Countesthorpe, Leicester LE8 5PR. In June 2024, the nursery operated on weekdays throughout the year, with closures for Christmas and bank holidays; sessions ran from 7.30am to 6pm.

At that time, funded early education was provided for children aged two, three and four. These attendance and funding details describe the June 2024 arrangements.

• Guidance during activities. In June 2024, the robot-mouse activity faltered because children needed clearer help. During a visit, look at how practitioners explain unfamiliar tasks and extend children's thinking.
• Learning beyond nursery. June 2024 progress updates were not consistently accompanied by ideas for home. Ask what practical suggestions now accompany those conversations.
• Your attendance needs. The June 2024 session window was 7.30am to 6pm. What current booking patterns, accepted ages and funded-hours arrangements would fit your child?

The June 2024 picture suits families who value hands-on play, individual settling and everyday opportunities to build independence. The June 2024 picture includes purposeful sensory and language activities alongside two clear improvement priorities: more consistent guidance within activities and better ideas for learning at home. Those are useful points on which to judge the nursery's fit for your child.