Winton House Private Day Nursery

A resident tortoise called Sheldon and a house with airy playrooms give Winton House its own character. The large garden adds space for outdoor play, while the setting brings babies, toddlers and preschool children together within one nursery in Hatherley, Cheltenham. Its appeal is concrete: play indoors and outside, opportunities to make choices, and a familiar animal children can get to know.

At its September 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated Winton House Good overall, with communication-rich play and carefully planned introductions among its strengths, alongside an improvement point about distractions during circle time. That judgement is a dated assessment. The current nursery accepts children aged 0 to 59 months.

Morning and afternoon sessions sit alongside a full-time pattern, so attendance can cover part of the day or the working week.

Rooms and Ages

Baby Room, Two Year Old Room and Pre-school Room provide the nursery's age-stage structure. Children are organised in small groups, with opportunities to alternate movement and rest, indoor and outdoor experiences, and activities they choose themselves or undertake with staff. That gives the day changes of pace rather than a single continuous group activity.

The house has bright playrooms and a substantial garden. Hatherley Park is nearby, although the garden itself is the outdoor space described for the nursery day. Indoor and outdoor play both belong to the routine; neither is presented as an occasional extra.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage guides planning, with play used to develop children's learning. Children can explore independently or participate in groups of different sizes. In practical terms, that means room for individual interests alongside shared activities, rather than expecting every child to do the same thing throughout a session.

In September 2023, babies exercised their bodies using a ball pit and soft-play apparatus, toddlers repeatedly worked at making sand castles, and preschool children compared toys using ideas about size and difference. Staff extended these activities through conversation and suggestions. These examples show how physical development, persistence and early mathematical language could arise from ordinary play.

Conversation was woven through activities in September 2023. Adults added vocabulary during water play and discussions about animals, listened to children's responses, and helped them practise following instructions. The useful detail is the connection between words and what children were doing: language was part of play rather than confined to a separate lesson.

Outdoor and Community Life

Sheldon, the resident Hermann's tortoise, gives children something recognisable beyond toys and equipment. Children can stroke his shell, and he spends time in the garden when conditions are warm enough. His presence adds an opportunity for contact with a living animal within the nursery's own setting.

Planned visitors include the fire service and local farms, with Santa visiting at Christmas. These encounters bring experiences from outside nursery into the children's day. Their value lies in giving children new people and subjects to talk about, rather than extending an already busy timetable.

In September 2023, introductions began with staff learning about each child's familiar routines, interests, favourite activities and comfort needs. Family background and sleep arrangements were part of those conversations. That is a practical starting point for settling: staff had information about what was familiar to the child before planning the introduction.

At the September 2023 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective, positive support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), and strong communication with parents. Work with families and outside agencies supported inclusion, while staff understood how to raise concerns about children or colleagues. These are inspection-time findings, rather than a new assessment of today's practice.

Current staff arrangements include leadership roles for Baby Room and Pre-school Room, alongside nursery practitioners and apprentices. Staff undertake safeguarding training and paediatric first aid. These are useful details about how care is organised, without treating training alone as evidence of effectiveness.

Health routines also have a clear practical consequence for parents. If a child becomes unwell, the nursery contacts their family; a child who cannot comfortably participate, or who has a contagious illness, needs collecting. Emergency temperature medication requires parental permission and is followed by collection, so families need a workable response during the nursery day.

Food and drink supported daily routines in September 2023: children had freshly prepared meals and snacks, could obtain drinks, and learnt about handwashing. The current allergy policy accommodates dietary requirements and allergies; families affected by these need to discuss the arrangements for their child.

Sessions and Attendance

Winton House is at 11 Warden Hill Road, Hatherley, Cheltenham, GL51 3AU. Weekday opening runs from 8am to 6pm. Morning sessions cover 8am to 1pm, afternoons run from 1pm to 6pm, and the full-time pattern covers Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm.

The nursery operates across the year, with bank-holiday closures and a Christmas closure from 24 December to 1 January inclusive. Closure periods are not charged, but charges continue when a child misses nursery because of sickness or a family holiday. That distinction matters when comparing the attendance pattern with the family's working calendar.

Enquiries can be made by telephone on 01242 511417 or by email at info@wintonhouse-daynursery.co.uk. Visits are booked by telephone.

Funding and Paid Extras

Eligible children can use the 15 and 30 hours funded childcare entitlements. The funding arrangements describe provision from the term after an eligible child reaches nine months, and 15 hours Universal Funding from the term after a child's third birthday; eligible working families may receive a further 15 hours.

Funding can run over 38 term-time weeks or be stretched across 50 weeks. Under the stretched arrangement, each five-hour session contains three hours and 48 minutes of funded time, with the remaining hour and 12 minutes charged privately. A funded entitlement therefore does not cover the whole stretched session. Families need to compare the funded portion with the complete attendance pattern they intend to buy.

Term-time-only afternoons are a restricted booking option: care from 1pm to 6pm is fully funded by the childcare entitlement and follows Gloucestershire County Council school term dates. For this arrangement, tea carries a voluntary separate charge, with a packed tea from home as the alternative. Nappies, wipes, sun cream and Aptamil formula are supplied by the nursery; parents bring spare clothing, with additional changes during toilet training.

Parents apply through the Government's childcare service, supply an eligibility code for verification through Gloucestershire County Council, and sign the Local Authority declaration before funding is claimed. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation. The funded childcare and fees page explains the session structure and funding arrangements.

• Circle-time concentration. In September 2023, movement past a group interrupted children's attention, and improving the organisation of these activities was the stated development point. During a visit, ask how group activities and movement to the garden are arranged now.
• Funding across the full session. Stretched funding covers only part of each five-hour session, while term-time afternoons have a different arrangement. Compare a written quotation for the pattern you need, including the treatment of tea.
• Allergies and everyday supplies. The nursery accommodates allergies and provides Aptamil formula alongside nappies and wipes. Discuss your child's dietary needs and how their individual arrangements will work before joining.

Winton House suits families looking for morning sessions, afternoon attendance or a full-time weekday pattern in a house-based nursery with a large garden. Sheldon adds a memorable point of interest, while the learning offer centres on play, conversation and opportunities for children to make choices.

The September 2023 Good judgement gives a useful assessment of that period, with a specific caution about circle-time organisation. For parents making a decision now, the strongest practical question is how the chosen attendance pattern fits the funding structure: stretched sessions include privately charged time, while term-time afternoons operate differently.