Mama Bear's Day Nursery, Clifton, Whiteladies Road

A train trip to the beach gives this Clifton nursery a memorable starting point: in June 2023, children’s experiences extended beyond the nursery into the surrounding community. At its June 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated the setting Good, found that children made good progress, including those with additional needs, and judged safeguarding effective.

Mama Bear's Day Nursery, Clifton, Whiteladies Road has capacity for 80 children aged 3 to 60 months. Its home is St Johns Church on Apsley Road in Bristol. The strongest inspection-era detail concerns learning shaped around individual children, close relationships with babies and experiences beyond the building.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage sets the requirements for children’s learning, development and care: everyday play and routines support communication, physical skills and growing independence. In June 2023, the nursery’s planning wheel brought together each child’s interests and their next learning steps. Activities were adjusted for children’s ages and needs, giving individual interests a practical role in what happened next.

During that June 2023 visit, older children handled citrus fruit with tweezers, combining hand control with descriptive language and imaginative play. Adults asked questions that encouraged children to explain their ideas. A countdown accompanied by fingers brought early mathematics into tidying up.

Language work in June 2023 included talking tunes, a programme developing awareness of letters and sounds, alongside story sacks and sign of the week. These gave children different ways to engage with communication rather than relying on spoken instructions alone.

Outdoor and Community Life

In June 2023, outdoor play happened daily, while outings included the local library and farm shop; Christmas carol singing and donated charity-shop resources also connected the nursery with its community. A recent beach outing had involved travelling by train. Such experiences supplied subjects for children to recall and discuss afterwards.

The outdoor experience was uneven, however. In June 2023, babies had too few opportunities outside to stimulate exploration and extend learning. Improving the outdoor area for the youngest children was the specific improvement required.

At the June 2023 inspection, Ofsted found that babies formed close relationships with their key persons, emotional support helped children through settling and transitions, and the special educational needs coordinator worked effectively with families and the local authority to organise support.

In June 2023, developmental assessments helped staff identify learning gaps and put support plans into practice, with professional advice sought where needed. This matters for families needing a clear connection between identifying a difficulty and changing a child’s daily support.

During June 2023, younger children practised washing their hands after adults demonstrated the routine. Babies explored feelings through core books, books used in small groups to discuss emotions, while older children had daily opportunities to talk about how they felt. Care and learning met in ordinary routines.

The address is St Johns Church, Apsley Road, Bristol, BS8 2ST. Opening hours are 7am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, across the year, with closures for bank holidays and Christmas.

Funded early education for children aged two, three and four was part of the offer in June 2023. Current prices should come in the nursery’s written quotation. Childcare enquiries can be made through the contact form by selecting Whiteladies Road, Clifton, or by calling 0117 970 6751.

• Outdoor learning for babies. In June 2023, the youngest children’s outdoor learning needed development. On a visit, ask how the outdoor area now supports exploration and learning for this age group.
• Attendance and the total bill. The opening window runs from 7am to 6pm. Ask which booking pattern fits your week and request a written breakdown of funded hours, paid hours, meals and items supplied from home.

This setting suits families seeking childcare across the year in Clifton who value learning connected to children’s interests and community experiences. The June 2023 picture offers concrete reasons to consider it: individual planning, communication activities and attentive relationships with babies. The youngest children’s outdoor learning deserves particular attention when choosing.