Bright Horizons Clairmont Day Nursery and Preschool

A separate baby nursery, gardens divided by age and a Forest School area give Clairmont a clear physical identity. Refurbished for 2026, this Wilmslow setting combines spaces for younger children with school preparation for preschoolers. Outdoor learning has a substantial place in the offer.

Bright Horizons Clairmont Day Nursery and Preschool takes children from 3 months to 5 years at 126 Gravel Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 6EG. At its 17 August 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated it Outstanding, finding highly effective education, targeted support for children with SEND and effective safeguarding arrangements. That is a dated judgement: a subsequent organisational safeguarding notice is material to the decision families make today and is addressed below.

Learning and Activities

Six rooms provide spaces organised around different ages, including a dedicated baby nursery; preschool children also have an Early Years teacher. This makes the distinction between baby care and preparation for school concrete, rather than treating the whole age range as one group.

EYFS provides the framework for learning, development and care: children build language, physical abilities and social skills through their daily experiences. Alongside it, Bright Horizons' group-wide Nurture Approach combines emotional wellbeing with learning in areas such as art, science and early literacy. At Clairmont, the Ready for School programme adds more structure to essential skills and opportunities to practise independence. Additional language classes are also offered.

In August 2022, learning included testing homemade boats and comparing how materials absorbed water. Children encountered hydrophobic and hydrophilic while investigating floating and sinking. The useful detail is the connection between an experiment and its vocabulary: children had something tangible to discuss, rather than simply hearing unfamiliar words.

Books served different purposes across the ages in August 2022. Babies selected favourites, toddlers dramatised stories and older children explored fiction and non-fiction. Activities also addressed fine-motor development after staff identified gaps following the pandemic. These examples show how the day was adapted to children's stages and needs at that time.

Outdoor and Community Life

Two large gardens are arranged for different ages, with smaller spaces for exploration. Forest School, an approach to learning through outdoor experiences, has its own area and sessions led by a practitioner trained in it. A Mud Kitchen, Nature Trail and Vegetable Garden add different reasons to spend time outside: making, exploring and observing growth.

In August 2022, outdoor activities included paint mixing and harvesting potatoes from the allotment area. Children linked what they grew with what they ate. They also helped inspect the garden for hazards, including checking gates, giving them practical tasks through which to think about safety.

The nursery council gave children a role in decisions in August 2022. They examined their surroundings, discussed possible changes and contributed to a children's newsletter. For parents interested in children's independence, this is a more useful example than a general promise to encourage confidence: children had decisions to discuss and communicate.

In August 2022, parents received feedback about their children's learning and support for continuing it at home. Families were encouraged to share experiences and aspects of home culture. That exchange gave practitioners material from children's lives to bring into nursery activities.

Emotional wellbeing had practical tools in August 2022. Children used choice boards and staff checked how they were feeling, with activities intended to help them manage emotions. These were specific ways to support expression across the ages.

The later safeguarding position requires separate attention. In its notice dated 22 June 2026, Ofsted required Bright Horizons to strengthen organisational safeguarding leadership, oversight, escalation of concerns, handling of staff allegations and monitoring of training, with actions due by 1 August 2026; it explicitly distinguished these organisational weaknesses from concerns identified at every individual setting. The notice said the organisation had not demonstrated consistently effective safeguarding across its provision. It is the latest published regulatory position here, rather than a finding that Clairmont itself had each of those weaknesses.

Meals are cooked by an onsite chef. For private care, meals, snacks and everyday essentials are included in the fee, including nappies, wipes, creams and formula milk for babies under 1 year; funded-hours food charges have separate terms below.

Sessions and Attendance

Opening hours are 7.30am to 6pm, Monday to Friday. The nursery operates across the year, with closures for bank and public holidays, one inset day and the period between Christmas and New Year. Families needing care through holiday periods should build those closures into their plans.

Funded childcare uses 10-hour sessions beginning when the nursery opens. Hours attended beyond that funded session are charged separately, and buying additional hours is not a condition of taking a funded place. Private childcare is also offered, with fees paid in advance through monthly direct debit. A registration charge applies.

Getting There

The address is 126 Gravel Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 6EG. There is an onsite car park, and Wilmslow and Alderley Edge train stations are nearby.

Personal tours can be booked through the nursery's visit form. Telephone enquiries can also be made directly to the nursery.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funding is offered subject to eligibility, with 30-hour arrangements for children from 9 months and for two-year-olds, and 15- or 30-hour arrangements for ages 3 to 5. Entitlements are stretched across 50 weeks rather than delivered solely in term time, so families need to distinguish their entitlement from the weekly attendance they purchase.

For funded hours, food is charged separately, but the food charge is non-mandatory and does not determine access to a funded place. Consumables associated with funded hours are supplied by Bright Horizons; the terms do not equate supply with inclusion in the funded entitlement. Additional paid childcare hours are another separate component. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

• Organisational safeguarding action. The 22 June 2026 notice required changes by 1 August 2026. Before joining, ask what subsequent regulatory outcome applies and how the organisational changes operate at Clairmont.
• Baby care across the day. Clairmont has a dedicated baby nursery within a six-room setting. Use a personal tour to discuss how your child's sleep and feeding routines would fit its day.
• Funded attendance and extras. Funding is stretched across 50 weeks and uses 10-hour sessions from opening time. Request a written quotation separating funded hours, additional childcare, food and consumables, including the arrangement if you decline the food charge.

Clairmont suits families seeking care across the year, whether through funded sessions or an arrangement incorporating additional private hours. Its separate baby provision, outdoor spaces and Ready for School programme give families concrete features to weigh. The August 2022 educational judgement carries weight, but the June 2026 organisational safeguarding action also belongs in the decision. A choice should take account of both.