Three Gables Nursery & Pre-school Westbourne

Vegetables grown for snack time give a useful flavour of Three Gables Westbourne: in March 2022, children could harvest produce from an all-weather polytunnel in the garden. Learning had a practical purpose. That connection between growing, eating and exploring is a more revealing detail than a long list of toys.

At its March 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Outstanding and found that carefully planned conversations, engaging storytelling and an ambitious curriculum helped children develop their language and prepare for their next stage of education. This is a dated judgement, rather than a description of a recent visit.

The nursery cares for children aged 6 to 60 months at Snowdon Road in Westbourne, Bournemouth. A large garden gives outdoor play a substantial place in the setting, while the branch's seasonal learning has linked weather, plants and books with children's everyday experiences.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage provides the statutory framework for children's learning, development and care. For parents, that means a day concerned with communication, movement, relationships and growing independence, alongside early reading and number experiences. The framework is the foundation; the useful question is how staff turn it into activities children want to join.

In March 2022, staff used stories and props to hold children's attention, and deliberately extended vocabulary through their conversations. Children anticipated another story enthusiastically. Reading was therefore a shared experience with an adult, rather than simply access to a shelf of books.

Physical learning had equally concrete outlets at that time: children rode trikes in the garden, climbed in a baby gym and took part in routine yoga sessions. These gave them different ways to practise movement and balance. No single activity carried the whole responsibility for physical development.

Westbourne's March 2025 activities explored how changing weather affected seasons, flowers, trees and clothing. The following month's plans connected gardening and new life with cress growing, seed exploration and a butterfly life cycle using live butterflies. These were plans for April 2025, not a standing timetable of current activities.

The preschool plans for that April also paired Pete the Cat and Hairy Maclary with rhymes, songs and sound games. Children were to practise recognising initial sounds and clapping syllables. This makes the school preparation concrete: listening carefully to the sounds within words.

Outdoor and Community Life

A large garden is part of the Westbourne setting's physical offer. For a child who enjoys movement and exploration, that is an important counterweight to time indoors.

In March 2022, the garden also contained the all-weather polytunnel, where vegetables were grown for children to harvest and eat. The link between tending a plant and eating its produce gave gardening a clear endpoint. Trike riding brought another practical lesson: children wore helmets and learnt to take precautions during play.

In March 2022, staff helped children understand boundaries and recognise their feelings. Sharing resources and showing consideration for others were part of daily behaviour. The emphasis was on helping children express themselves and manage situations with other children, rather than treating behaviour as a separate lesson.

At the March 2022 inspection, Ofsted found effective safeguarding arrangements and strong support for children with special educational needs, including coordination between the special educational needs coordinator, parents, staff and external agencies. Families needing additional support should read that as a finding about practice at that time.

Relationships also informed learning in March 2022. A key-person system helped staff understand children's starting points, identify gaps and plan individual learning experiences. That matters because a child's next activity could respond to what they needed, rather than follow the same sequence for everyone.

Communication with parents then included online journals, newsletters, video calls and parents' evenings. Staff also shared ways to continue learning at home. These different routes allowed families to discuss development as well as receive updates about the nursery day.

Staff development was purposeful in March 2022: training responded to children's needs and practitioners' interests, and staff could explain how they had applied it. For parents, the useful detail is that learning by adults was connected to their work with children.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is 2 Snowdon Road, Westbourne, Bournemouth BH4 9HL. Opening hours are 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, with care across the year and closures for bank holidays and a week at Christmas. Families whose work continues through those closures will need to account for them in their childcare arrangements.

The Westbourne enquiry telephone number is 01202 763 241. Visits can be arranged through the nursery's contact route.

• Outdoor learning. Westbourne has a large garden, and gardening featured in both the March 2022 daily experience and the April 2025 activity plans. On a visit, ask how outdoor access works for your child's age and daily routine.
• The age of the judgement. The Outstanding judgement dates to March 2022. Use a visit to discuss how today's key-person arrangements and individual support work, especially if your child has additional needs.
• Booking and the full cost. Opening hours run from 8am to 6pm, but your family's actual attendance agreement matters. Ask for a written quotation covering the booking pattern, funded hours if applicable, meals and consumables together.
• Holiday cover. Bank holidays and the Christmas closure interrupt the otherwise year-round opening pattern. Build those breaks into your family's care plan.

Three Gables Westbourne suits families who value practical outdoor learning and want a Bournemouth nursery with weekday opening across the year. The large garden is a tangible attraction; the dated examples of vegetable harvesting and story-based language work give its educational character substance.

The strongest quality judgement belongs to March 2022. Alongside it, Westbourne's March 2025 seasonal activities and subsequent plans show how plants, changing weather and named books can become starting points for learning. A visit should connect those strengths with the care and attendance arrangements your child needs now.