Blossom Lodge Day Nursery

A wormery, a butterfly habitat and an outdoor classroom give Blossom Lodge Day Nursery a recognisable character: nature is something children can investigate, grow and use in their play. This Cheltenham nursery combines separate stages from babyhood to preschool with gardens that give younger children their own outdoor space. The practical appeal is clear. Children can explore outdoors while their indoor routines change with their development.

At its July 2021 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good and found safeguarding effective, with positive findings on language development and progress, including for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. That judgement belongs to July 2021. The same visit identified weaknesses in hygiene, keeping play spaces clear and explaining changes between activities, which deserve attention alongside the praise.

Blossom Lodge has capacity for 73 children, accepting ages from 3 to 59 months. Full-time care and shorter morning or afternoon sessions sit within an opening window of 7.30am to 6.30pm, with funded hours spread across the year.

Rooms and Ages

Ladybirds accommodates babies aged 3 to 16 months, with language encouraged through rhymes, songs and stories and daily care organised around each baby's needs. The intention is continuity with home rather than an identical timetable for every baby. Feeding, rest and play can follow the child's existing rhythm, making the room's approach relevant to families whose baby still has a changing sleep pattern.

Bumblebees is the toddler stage, labelled for ages 1 to 2, where pretend cooking, dolls, construction and messy play sit alongside movement and direct access to the outdoor area shared with Ladybirds. Moving rooms depends on development as well as age; mobility and sleeping patterns enter the discussion with parents. That makes a room move a conversation about readiness rather than simply a birthday milestone.

Caterpillars, for children aged 2 to 3, emphasises imaginative play, making marks and talking about feelings, with toilet training begun at home and supported at nursery. Butterflies, the preschool stage labelled for ages 3 to 5, combines adult-organised activities with child-chosen play and opportunities to tackle problems independently. The progression is towards doing more for themselves, including the everyday self-help skills needed for starting school.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the framework for children's learning and care: play, conversation, physical exploration and growing independence are part of the educational day. Here, that takes concrete forms such as adults modelling language for babies, toddlers experimenting with pretend play and older children following their interests through open-ended activities. The framework is the common foundation; the room routines explain how it becomes a child's experience.

In July 2021, babies explored soft play cubes, toddlers used a pretend market stall and preschool children worked with alphabet stencils and their name cards. These were different ways of matching activity to development: movement for the youngest children, imaginative conversation for toddlers and early familiarity with letters for older children.

Stories also connected indoor learning with outdoor discoveries in July 2021. Younger children joined familiar actions and repeated phrases, while preschool children connected a caterpillar they found outside with a story they knew. Such examples show the value of returning to familiar material in a new context, rather than treating story time and garden time as unrelated parts of the day.

Outdoor and Community Life

Front Garden includes sensory planting, a bug house, a wormery, a butterfly habitat and a ladybird tower. These give children specific things to inspect and discuss, alongside equipment for painting, sand and water play. The interest lies in small discoveries: growing plants and observing insects can supply the subject matter for questions, pictures and conversations.

Outdoor Classroom was introduced in 2026, adding construction tables, mud kitchens and a planting table, with resources for number work, making marks, songs and investigation. Toddler Garden gives babies and toddlers a space beside their indoor room, while Main Garden provides further outdoor play space. Outdoor learning therefore has several settings, rather than depending on a single shared playground.

Relationships and Communication

Babies' routines are planned with parents, and the move into Bumblebees takes account of the child's development. For families, the useful detail is the attention to sleep and mobility as well as age: care arrangements and room transitions are connected to what the child is actually doing.

In July 2021, key persons planned learning around children they knew well and worked with parents and other professionals when extra help was needed. Photographs and videos were shared online, giving parents a view of activities beyond a verbal account of the day. Family photographs and home-language contributions also informed displays and conversations at that time, connecting nursery experiences with children's lives outside it.

Caterpillars supports toilet training started at home, and a toilet training guide brings together nursery procedures and practical advice. Butterflies develops self-help skills for the move to school. Both arrangements put everyday independence alongside learning activities, with parents involved in the transition rather than left to manage a separate approach at home.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

The management structure includes a SENDCO role and designated safeguarding officer roles. Staff development combines individual training plans, online refresher learning and sessions delivered internally and through Gloucestershire County Council; 80% of the team hold childcare qualifications spanning NVQ Level 2 to Level 6. These are concrete arrangements for support and professional development, rather than a substitute for the dated inspection judgement.

In July 2021, the improvement priorities were practical: dropped dummies were sometimes returned before cleaning, toys could obstruct the baby room floor, and changes in activities were not consistently explained. Some children became restless while adults prepared the next activity, and small-group sessions did not always begin with children ready to listen. Hygiene, usable floor space and clear transitions matter as much as the activity itself.

Meals and snacks are freshly prepared at the nursery, menus follow a seasonal four-week cycle, and children help grow produce used in the food. The nursery operates a nut-free policy and caters for dietary requirements, making current allergy arrangements an important subject for affected families to discuss.

Sessions and Attendance

The nursery opens from 7.30am to 6.30pm and operates for 51 weeks of the year. Its full-time place runs Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm. Morning sessions run from 8am to 1pm, with an extended morning ending at 2pm; afternoon sessions run from 1pm to 6pm, with an extended afternoon starting at noon. These shorter patterns make the offer relevant to families needing only part of the day as well as those seeking a full-time week.

Late collection covers 6pm to 6.30pm. The Full Day entry carries a separate clock-time issue addressed below, so it should not be assumed to match the full-time place. Full fees apply during public bank holiday closures, an important distinction between the nursery's opening calendar and the family's bill.

Getting There

The address is 77 Hales Road, Cheltenham, GL52 6SR. Families can contact the team on 01242 525374 or use the contact form; visit booking is also offered.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare includes up to 30 hours for eligible working parents with children from 9 months, 15 hours for qualifying two-year-olds, and universal 15 hours for three- and four-year-olds, with an additional 15 hours subject to working-parent eligibility. Funding is stretched over the nursery's 51-week year. This spreads support beyond term time, while additional booked hours are charged privately.

For private sessions, meals, snacks and non-food consumables are included in the session price. Funded sessions carry a requested voluntary contribution covering meals, snacks, nappies, extra resources and additional educational experiences; this contribution does not apply to children receiving disadvantaged funding. Parents confirm their position each term, and an agreed contribution already paid for that term is non-refundable.

Tax-free childcare is accepted. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation, with the charge structure explained on its fees and funding page.

• Full Day timing. The Full Day entry pairs that label with 7.30am to 8am, while the full-time place runs from 8am to 6pm. Ask which hours the Full Day booking covers before choosing that pattern.
• Baby-room practice. July 2021 improvement points concerned dummy hygiene, clutter and transitions between activities. During a visit, ask how practitioners keep floor space usable and make changes in the day clear to children.
• Funding contributions. The contribution for funded sessions is voluntary, with an exemption for disadvantaged funding and no refund once an agreed term contribution has been paid. Clarify the arrangement for your child's booking before agreeing it.
• Allergy arrangements. The nursery operates a nut-free policy and prepares food on site. Families managing allergies should confirm current preparation and serving procedures for their child's needs.

Blossom Lodge suits families choosing between a full-time week and morning or afternoon care, especially those who value separate developmental stages and outdoor investigation. Front Garden and Outdoor Classroom give its nature-based activities substance, while home-linked baby routines and supported toilet training address everyday family concerns.

The Good judgement dates from July 2021, and its practical improvement points should remain part of the decision. The strongest fit is a family that values garden activity and continuity with home, with a booking and funding arrangement they understand clearly.