Little Footprints Day Nursery

Playing fields beside the classrooms, a sensory garden and a family-run structure give Little Footprints Day Nursery a recognisable character. Its four purpose-built classrooms overlook the surrounding playing fields and have easy access to them, bringing outdoor space into the everyday offer rather than reserving it for occasional outings. The setting sits in the grounds of Thundersley Primary School in Thundersley, Essex, and accepts children from 3 months to 5 years.

At its July 2025 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Outstanding, finding ambitious teaching across the age groups and strong support for language and emotional development. The detail behind that judgement matters: children explored mystery boxes, used signs alongside speech and learnt to connect colours with feelings. These were practical ways to help children communicate, rather than learning confined to a formal group activity.

Four named rooms separate the youngest babies from children preparing for school. Attendance choices include morning and afternoon sessions, a School Day and a Full Day, giving families several ways to organise childcare.

Rooms and Ages

Teeny Weeny Toes takes babies from 3 months to 1 year, with toys for exploration and settling visits that let families introduce their child's routines before regular attendance begins. That gradual introduction gives staff time to learn about the baby as well as the parent time to become familiar with the room.

For children aged 1 to 2 years, Teeny Toes combines exploratory play with access to the private garden, sensory garden, school playground and surrounding fields. The outdoor choices matter at this age: children have different spaces in which to move and investigate, accompanied by staff.

Tiny Toes, for ages 2 to 3, has separate spaces for quieter activity, reading, craft and messy play, with experiences including cooking, dancing and body painting. Big Toes serves ages 3 to 5, combining child-chosen play, mathematical games and cooking with stories and discussions linked to a monthly topic.

Choice has a concrete place in Big Toes. Children help decide the room's routines and contribute to its rules, giving them opportunities to practise making decisions together. Outside, tyres provide climbing opportunities, while the garden slide and fields offer other ways to be active.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the shared framework for children's learning and care: here, activities connect communication, movement, relationships, early reading, number work and creative play. It is the foundation of the nursery day, rather than an extra programme. The curriculum page explains how these areas connect and how planning responds to children's development.

In July 2025, mystery boxes prompted children to talk about their discoveries, including the smell of lavender. Signs accompanied spoken language, giving children another way to communicate. Older children explored fairy tales with puppets and role play, drawing on woodland visits to make sense of the stories' settings.

Learning also took advantage of small, unplanned moments. In July 2025, spilled water became an opportunity to compare footprints, sizes and patterns; sparkly water on the playground supported early mark-making. These examples show how ordinary materials could become starting points for conversation and investigation.

Outdoor and Community Life

The private garden and sensory garden broaden the outdoor offer beyond the playing fields. Different surroundings give children choices about how they explore, while keeping outdoor activity connected to their room's day.

In July 2025, learning extended into family activities and community visits. Children collected autumn objects and joined their families for scavenger hunts at the beach, while visits to a local café and care home introduced places and people beyond the nursery. Family albums and self-portraits also gave children ways to talk about identity and different home lives.

Relationships and Communication

Every child has a key person, providing a consistent point of contact for the family and someone responsible for following development. In Tiny Toes, children can take a diary home after each session with information about food, play and anything else parents need to know. Big Toes holds open mornings for discussions with the key person, connecting daily experiences with longer-term development.

Babies in Teeny Weeny Toes can have as many introductory room visits as families feel they need. This is a useful settling arrangement for parents who want time to share routines and build familiarity before attendance starts. Cots support younger babies' usual sleep patterns, and older children can sleep after lunch when needed.

Daily observations feed into termly assessments, which help staff plan for individual development. Parents can discuss concerns privately through a booked appointment, and the nursery seeks interpreters for meetings and translated letters or policies where a family's first language is not English. These are specific communication arrangements, rather than a general promise that families will be kept informed.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the July 2025 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and praised SEND support built around specialist staff, parents and external professionals, alongside preparation for children's next stage. The current support structure includes a full-time SENCO who coordinates interventions and meetings with the people involved in a child's care. Personal interests help shape that support, keeping planning connected to the individual child.

The building occupies one level, with wheelchair-accessible entrances and doorways, accessible toilets and parking spaces for disabled people. These physical arrangements give families practical information about access. Where development raises a concern, the key person discusses it with parents and management before involving outside agencies; advice can include speech and language therapy, health visitors and educational psychology.

In July 2025, staff used colours to help children describe emotions, with yellow representing happiness. School preparation included conversations, visits and role play, making the next stage something children could explore beforehand.

Staff undertake continuing training shaped by their professional development reviews. A safeguarding lead and safeguarding coordinator are part of the team structure. For everyday health matters, medication requires signed parental permission, and a child must be clear of sickness and diarrhoea for 48 hours before returning.

Sessions and Attendance

The nursery's address is Thundersley Junior & Infant School, 2 Dark Lane, Benfleet, Essex SS7 3PT. It opens Monday to Friday throughout the year, from 7am to 7pm, with Bank Holiday closures. Enquiries can be made through the contact form or by telephone on 01268 795577.

Morning sessions run from 8.30am to noon; afternoon sessions run from 1.30pm to 4pm. The School Day is 9am to 3pm, and the Full Day runs from 7am to 7pm. A Full Week covers Monday to Friday. The minimum attendance is two sessions or one full day each week, so the shorter patterns still require a regular weekly commitment.

Fees are paid four weeks ahead, and sickness or holiday absences remain payable in full. Leaving requires four weeks' notice. Those terms matter when comparing the nursery's timetable with a family's working pattern and likely holidays, as the cost commitment extends beyond the days a child actually attends.

Funding and Paid Extras

Government funding is accepted for eligible children, alongside paid childcare. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation; the fees and general information page sets out the attendance and payment structure.

Meals are included with the School Day, Full Day and Full Week. Children attending shorter sessions can have a separately charged meal booked ahead. Parents supply labelled sun cream for hot weather.

Midday food is freshly prepared in the school kitchens, with a menu displayed each week and provision for special dietary requirements. Breakfast and tea can be requested.

Getting There and Moving On

Accessible parking is provided for staff and disabled people. The nursery is on the Thundersley Primary School site, but attending the nursery does not guarantee a Reception place.

• Minimum attendance. Children attend at least two sessions or one full day per week. Decide whether that commitment fits the routine you want before comparing the shorter sessions with the Full Day.
• Baby settling. Teeny Weeny Toes allows repeated introductory visits. Use a visit to discuss how feeding and sleep routines will be shared as your baby becomes familiar with the room.
• Dietary arrangements. School kitchens prepare lunch, and special dietary requirements are catered for. Families managing allergies should confirm current preparation and serving practice, including how information reaches the kitchen.
• School-site expectations. The playing fields and school grounds are part of the nursery's character. Keep the Reception application separate from the childcare decision, because nursery attendance does not secure admission.

Little Footprints suits families who want morning or afternoon sessions as well as those needing a School Day or Full Day. Its appeal is specific: separate age-based rooms, outdoor spaces beside the classrooms, a key-person structure and coordinated SEND support. The July 2025 Outstanding judgement adds weight to that practical offer.

The weekly attendance minimum and payment terms deserve attention alongside the learning and care. For families comfortable with those commitments, the combination of baby settling visits, home diaries and school preparation gives useful continuity from the earliest months to the move into formal education.