Millington Road Nursery School

A wooden train, fairy houses and a garden used for much of the session give Millington Road Nursery School a clear outdoor character. In Newnham, Cambridge, children can move between imaginative play, physical challenges and gardening, with environmental care made practical through composting, recycling and protecting wildlife. These are activities children can take part in, rather than an environmental message left to adults.

Ofsted rated the nursery Outstanding at its 9 September 2021 inspection. That judgement belongs to 2021; the present offer combines child-chosen play with weekly music and sports sessions led by visiting teachers.

There are 45 places in total, for children aged 24 to 60 months. Morning, afternoon and full-day sessions run during term time, with an Early birds option before the main day. For families, the combination of shorter sessions and a full day is an important part of its appeal.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage provides the framework for learning through play, covering communication, physical development, relationships and the foundations of literacy and mathematics. It is the common early-years framework; Millington Road adds weekly visiting music and sports teachers, alongside activities shaped by children's interests. Those sessions bring specialist input into the ordinary nursery week.

Children choose activities for themselves and also join adult-led groups, both large and small. The balance gives them opportunities to pursue an idea independently and to practise working with others. Experimenting, extending vocabulary and connecting creative work with an understanding of the world are part of the learning approach.

In September 2021, children used clay and dough to model Cambridge cows they had seen during the summer. A local experience became something to recreate and discuss. Story play also moved beyond listening: children retold an owl story to dolls and used puppets outdoors to act it out. These examples show the connection between children's experiences, conversation and imaginative play at that time.

Outdoor and Community Life

Outdoor access is built into the routine, with opportunities to be outside for most of a session. The mud kitchen and fairy houses support make-believe, while the wobbly bridge and tree walk provide physical challenges. A herb and flower garden adds living things to tend and observe. There is more here than a space for running around.

Environmental learning includes composting, recycling, saving energy and caring for local wildlife. Children can connect those ideas with things they actually do. Parents are also encouraged to reduce plastic in lunch boxes, extending the same approach into everyday family routines.

The Teddy Bears Picnic returns in the term calendar, with the next event scheduled for Friday 28 May 2027. Nursery sessions finish at midday that day. It is a shared occasion with a practical consequence for anyone arranging afternoon care.

Relationships and Communication

Settling can take the time an individual child needs: parents may remain with their child for as long as necessary. That gives families a gradual route into nursery life rather than requiring the same timetable for everyone. The nursery does not use agency staff, and its permanent team brings continuity to children's everyday relationships.

Parents and practitioners exchange observations about children's development, combining what happens at home with what happens at nursery. Families can also contribute directly by reading stories, helping in the garden or talking about a festival. Regular coffee mornings give parents a separate opportunity to get to know one another.

In September 2021, key-person relationships included learning about children's starting points and celebrating festivals connected with their cultures. Staff also sang rhymes in children's home languages. For bilingual families, those examples matter because they recognised the child's existing language and experiences rather than treating nursery life as separate from home.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the September 2021 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and identified early recognition of emerging needs, clear support plans and specialist language groups that helped children's communication develop. Those are dated findings, rather than a guarantee about an individual child's future experience.

Current arrangements include a SENCO role and designated safeguarding leads. Staff working directly with children have first-aid training and child-protection certificates, and the permanent team is qualified and experienced. These are concrete arrangements for support and staff preparation.

Families provide lunch boxes and fruit for snack time; neither funded nor private attendance attracts an extra snack charge. The emphasis on healthy eating therefore involves parents in what children bring each day.

Moving on is also a shared task. Staff work with the child, family and receiving primary school to support the transition. That is preparation for the next stage, with the child's needs carried into the conversation.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is 4a Millington Road, Cambridge, CB3 9HP. Opening hours are Monday to Friday, 8.15am to 4.30pm, during term time. School holidays are closures, so families needing care across the year must account for those breaks.

Morning sessions run from 8.30am to 1.30pm; afternoons run from 1.30pm to 4.30pm, with funded-only children finishing at 4. A full day runs from 8.30am to 4.30pm. Early birds covers 8.15am to 8.30am, providing an earlier start before the main sessions.

The 2026/27 calendar also includes staff-training closures and an early finish at midday on Friday 18 December 2026. These exceptions matter alongside the usual weekly pattern, especially for parents arranging work around the afternoon session.

Funding and Paid Extras

Eligible children can use 15 funded hours, private attendance or a combination of the two. Attendance is term-time, and funded-only hours carry no additional payment. This keeps the entitlement separate from any private hours a family chooses to buy.

Consumables are included for both funded and private children. Music and sports sessions also carry no extra charge, including during funded hours. Parents supply lunch boxes and snack fruit, so food brought from home remains part of the family's routine.

Invoices cover the forthcoming term. Bursaries can support attendance where a family would otherwise find it financially difficult. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation; the funding and charges page explains the charging structure.

• Term-time fit. School holidays and staff-training days interrupt the usual pattern, and the Teddy Bears Picnic on 28 May 2027 ends sessions at midday. Families need a care plan that accommodates those closures.
• Funded afternoon finish. Funded-only children finish at 4, while the usual afternoon session ends at 4.30pm. That distinction can affect work and collection arrangements.
• Settling and support. Parents may stay while their child settles. At a visit, discuss how that arrangement and the SENCO role would work for your child; appointments can be arranged, with virtual tours possible for families outside the UK.

Millington Road suits families seeking morning sessions, afternoons or full days within a term-time routine, especially those who value outdoor play and involvement in nursery life. Weekly music and sports teaching adds specialist activity without a separate charge, while the garden offers several different ways to play and explore. The Outstanding judgement is from September 2021. The practical decision is whether its term-time calendar and funded afternoon finish fit the family's week.