Russell Street Private Day Nursery

Growing potatoes, learning about different beliefs and practising toothbrushing give Russell Street Private Day Nursery a recognisable character. At its June 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated it Good and judged safeguarding effective.

The nursery is at 3 Russell Street, Bradford, BD5 0JB, with capacity for 39 children aged 3 to 60 months. Its inspection-time strengths centred on practical learning and close relationships with families. There was also a specific improvement point: younger children needed more consistent support during mixed-age garden play.

In June 2024, children grew vegetables in the incredible, edible garden, learning when potatoes and courgettes were ready to harvest. Discovering that slugs and snails had eaten carrot leaves made growing food a lesson in what actually happens outdoors.

The early years foundation stage sets the framework for children's learning, development and care. Here, the June 2024 activities connected those purposes through play: younger children explored counting, size and distance, while older children used numbers in pretend shopping. Mathematics had a practical use.

Outdoor experiences in June 2024 included chasing bubbles and balancing on wooden logs in a large garden. Babies stacked bricks. Parachute games and songs brought children together, while cultural celebrations and visits to places of worship introduced different beliefs. Staff encouraged turn-taking and polite exchanges alongside these shared activities.

However, support was uneven when different ages played outdoors together. Some babies and toddlers were less fully involved in learning. The June 2024 improvement action addressed staff understanding of their role in these mixed-age sessions, rather than the garden itself.

At the June 2024 inspection, Ofsted found effective support for wellbeing and strong language teaching, including work with other professionals that helped children with speech difficulties make excellent progress.

In June 2024, settling visits were adapted to individual children, with a key person helping babies and older children settle. Staff expanded children's sentences with descriptive vocabulary and used songs to practise communication. These were concrete ways to build conversation into everyday activity.

Family involvement also had practical substance that June. Parents received updates about learning and joined family trips and gardening sessions; some then grew vegetables at home. Staff worked with parents and dental health professionals on toothbrushing routines. Managers supported staff development and further study, although the outdoor improvement point showed that teaching support still needed to reach practice more consistently.

Opening hours are 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, and the nursery operates across the year. The address is 3 Russell Street, Bradford, BD5 0JB.

In June 2024, the nursery received funding for early education for two-, three- and four-year-olds. That is a dated participation fact, rather than a promise of a funded place for an individual child.

• Mixed-age outdoor learning. The June 2024 action concerned consistent support for babies alongside older children in the garden. On a visit, ask how staff now organise and support this shared play.
• Attendance and funding. Opening hours span 8am to 6pm, while funded early education was recorded in June 2024. Ask which booking patterns and funded arrangements would apply to your child, including any charges for food and consumables.

Russell Street suits families drawn to hands-on learning and involvement in nursery life: its June 2024 picture included growing food, family gardening and practical health routines. The Good judgement gives that picture weight. Parents of babies and toddlers should give the mixed-age outdoor improvement point particular attention when judging how well the nursery would fit their child.