Wind In The Willows Nursery

A fenced garden, access to a school field and a key person approach give Wind In The Willows Nursery its character: outdoor space sits alongside care organised around a familiar adult. Based at Willow Brook Primary School on Rosen Crescent in Brentwood, it has capacity for 30 children and accepts children aged two to five.

Ofsted rated the nursery Good on 21 June 2023 and judged safeguarding effective. That is a dated assessment, rather than a description of every aspect of today's provision. The strongest practical features are the outdoor spaces, individual planning with parents and arrangements for children who need additional support.

Full-day and part-day attendance are both offered, with breakfast provision adding an earlier start. The distinction matters for families fitting nursery around different working patterns.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS guides learning through play, with activities led by adults alongside experiences children choose themselves. Staff use children's interests and development to plan what comes next. This gives parents a useful way to understand the day: play has an educational purpose, while children retain room to make choices.

In June 2023, communication and language shaped the activities. Adults joined children's games and supplied vocabulary as play developed. An insect game used a homemade cardboard dice, turning discussion about ladybirds into something children could take turns doing. Singing with actions offered another route into language, while cutting different materials gave children practice using their hands with control.

The same month's observations included children experimenting with cardboard boxes and soil to create slug habitats. This connected discussion about living things with practical investigation. Children could try out an idea rather than simply hear an explanation.

There was an important limitation. In June 2023, the intended learning behind activities was not consistently precise enough to advance each child's development. Staff mentoring and coaching also needed more attention. An appealing activity and a clear next step for an individual child are different things; both matter.

Outdoor and Community Life

The nursery has its own fenced outdoor area. It also describes strong links with Willowbrook Primary School, which allow use of the playground, field and hall. Those spaces broaden the physical settings available for play beyond the nursery's garden.

Community outings form part of the outdoor offer. Activities and trips are reviewed with participation in mind, parents receive the details beforehand, and risk assessments are completed. For a child needing adaptations, this planning is relevant to whether an outing can work for them.

Relationships and Communication

Each child has a key person who works with parents on their needs and interests and helps them settle. Before starting, children and parents can visit and meet that adult. The All About Me booklet gathers information from home, giving the relationship a practical starting point rather than leaving staff to discover everything after attendance begins.

Home diaries and parent consultations provide ways to exchange information. Assessments and observations inform those discussions, and parents can speak with the key person about development. This creates opportunities to connect what happens at nursery with what families notice at home.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

Support planning involves the key person, SENCO and agencies already working with a child. Children's preferred toys, games and other interests can shape the strategies, with parents involved in planning. Resources can be accessed through the Essex resource centre via the Area SENCO or specialised teachers.

At the June 2023 inspection, Ofsted found that SEND coordinators recognised support needs promptly, worked with families and professionals, and made timely referrals to help children progress and prepare for school. The current support mechanisms give families concrete arrangements to discuss, while that assessment belongs to its inspection date.

Wheelchair access and an accessible toilet are available. The team includes safeguarding, SENCO and behaviour support roles, alongside staff with paediatric first-aid training. Access points have security systems, and attendance is recorded as children enter and leave. These describe arrangements; the dated safeguarding judgement sits above.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Willow Brook Primary School, Rosen Crescent, Brentwood, CM13 2TU. Telephone contact and a contact form provide enquiry routes, and visits can be arranged by telephone or email.

The all-day session runs from 8.30am to 2.30pm. Single sessions last three hours; breakfast club starts at 7.30am, and an early-start option begins at 8am. Additional private hours for funded children extending beyond their entitlement can run until 3pm, 3.15pm or 3.30pm. This separates the core nursery day from paid extensions rather than treating the entire opening window as one booking.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered subject to eligibility, including FEEE and Working Families Entitlement, and private childcare is also offered. In June 2023, the nursery operated during term time and provided funded early education for children aged two, three and four.

For funded sessions, a voluntary consumables contribution is requested. Its stated coverage includes snacks, cooking, art materials and spare nappies and wipes. Parents of unfunded children provide a healthy, nut-free lunch for the all-day session; allergy-affected families should confirm current practice.

Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation. The distinction between entitlement hours, private extensions and the voluntary contribution is the useful starting point for understanding the overall arrangement.

Getting There

The school car park has two accessible parking spaces. These support access for families who need them.

• Address and collection time. The school-site address uses CM13 2TU, while contact details use CM13 2RG; contact hours end at 3.30pm, whereas the prospectus gives 5.30pm. Confirm the address to use and the current collection deadline when arranging a visit.
• Individual learning. In June 2023, activity intentions and staff coaching needed greater precision. Ask how a child's next learning step now shapes activities and how practitioners receive feedback.
• Moving on to school. The nursery describes links with Willowbrook Primary School and uses its facilities. Attendance does not guarantee a school place; families still apply through the local authority admissions process.
• Lunch and extras. An unfunded all-day booking involves a parent-provided healthy, nut-free lunch, while funded sessions carry a requested voluntary consumables contribution. Families managing allergies should confirm the lunch rules and current practice, and obtain a written breakdown of their booking.

Wind In The Willows suits families seeking either three-hour Single sessions or an All-day session, with breakfast and paid extensions also part of the offer. Its fenced garden, school facilities and key person arrangements give parents concrete reasons to consider it.

The balance is between those practical strengths and the June 2023 need for sharper individual learning intentions and better staff coaching. For families needing additional support, the planning process, accessible facilities and links to specialist resources deserve close attention.