Stepping Stones Montessori Nursery and Preschool

A former village school, an outdoor classroom and Montessori materials give Stepping Stones a recognisable character. Its home is a Grade II listed building in Waverton, opposite St Peter’s Church, with outdoor spaces that extend from a gated courtyard to a woodland learning area. The setting takes children from birth to five, combining practical independence with time spent exploring outdoors.

At its December 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good and judged safeguarding effective. The important qualification concerns teaching consistency: planned learning did not always translate into what children actually gained, and younger children’s language development needed more consistent attention. Those points deserve as much weight as the grade.

Three named classrooms organise the nursery day: Precious Stones, Little Gems and Mighty Marbles. Full days, preschool school days and flexible hours serve different family routines, with term-time contracts also offered. The appeal is the combination of choices children make for themselves, practical tasks and substantial outdoor provision, rather than the building alone.

Rooms and Ages

Precious Stones, the baby room for children up to two, combines underfloor heating and an enclosed garden with sensory materials, soft toys and a quiet retreat, allowing exploration and calmer play within the same provision.

Little Gems takes children from around two, using low shelving, a story rug, construction and pretend play alongside materials for making marks and exploring textures, so toddlers can reach resources and begin choosing activities independently.

Mighty Marbles, the preschool classroom for children from around three, has freely accessible resources, individual storage, a shared eating area and a sleep room, with practical tasks and more structured learning preparing children for the routines of school.

These are meaningful differences in the day. A baby’s quieter space serves a different purpose from a preschool child’s own drawer or coat peg. In Mighty Marbles, looking after belongings and clearing resources are part of learning independence, rather than jobs reserved for adults.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS sets the expectations for children’s learning, development and care: here, play, stories, early number work and practical activities contribute to that everyday learning. Montessori adds an approach centred on children’s independence and choice, supported by prepared materials and adult guidance. It sits alongside the EYFS.

Teacher-led Montessori activities follow a weekly timetable, mixing individual work with groups. Families receive a weekly classroom update about this learning. The Montessori philosophy connects the approach to practical tasks, sensory exploration, language and number work, giving parents a clearer picture than a philosophy label alone.

In preschool, Pink Tower uses progressively sized wooden cubes for stacking, while sandpaper letters offer a tactile way to explore letter shapes. Pouring, threading, using tongs and sweeping bring the same emphasis on purposeful practice into ordinary tasks. Weekly baking sits alongside music, movement, yoga and language activities. Children can practise doing things, rather than only listening to explanations.

The School Readiness Programme starts from two and a half and brings together practical life, literacy, numeracy, science, culture, languages and physical education. Its useful feature is the breadth of preparation: becoming more independent matters alongside recognising sounds and numbers.

At the December 2023 inspection, Ofsted identified two improvements: staff needed to carry planned learning through more reliably, and language teaching needed to be more consistent across ages, especially for younger children. For parents, the distinction is important. An appealing activity is only part of the picture; the adult’s response should also help a child take the next step.

Outdoor and Community Life

Forest School provides child-led outdoor exploration, with practitioners supervising discovery and supported risk-taking. Sessions run through the seasons, while weekly activities include village nature walks, looking for insects, gardening and making art or instruments from natural materials. Outdoor access is part of the daily offer in all weather.

The three outdoor areas have different jobs. A secure courtyard contains an outdoor classroom, pretend kitchen and shop, construction resources and wheeled toys. The fairy garden offers climbing and ball games, with a wooden tepee for quieter story time. A separate forest school area supports hands-on exploration of the natural setting. Children have places to move, investigate and pause.

Outings include Delamere Forest, a zoo and a local park; walks also explore the surrounding area. Community visitors include farmers, police and the fire brigade, bringing working roles into children’s experience. In December 2023, children made regular farm visits and talked with farmers about their work.

The connection with St Peter’s Church has a concrete example: in October 2024, preschool children attended a Harvest Festival talk, planted an acorn, learned about bread-making and explored the church gardens. That is a past event, rather than a promise about the next calendar. It illustrates how village places become part of learning.

Relationships and Communication

Settling begins before the first nursery day. Parents are asked to spend time with the setting so children can become familiar with adults and other children, while families explain their child’s experiences and routines. This gives the relationship a starting point before ordinary attendance begins.

Key workers connect care with learning, and preschool children each have one allocated to observe their development and plan activities. Daily emails cover activities, food, sleep and toileting; parents’ evenings take place twice yearly. A digital Learning Journey records development and accompanies the child to primary school. Parents therefore have both a daily account and a longer view of progress.

Approximately every six weeks, child focus weeks invite information about home life, followed by suggestions for supporting learning at home. This is a useful two-way arrangement: the nursery receives context, and families receive practical ideas linked to their own child.

Family involvement also extends to recurring occasions such as the nativity performance and preschool graduation. These give relatives opportunities to share nursery life, beyond receiving updates or discussing development.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

The management structure includes a designated safeguarding lead and an early years SENCO. Staff hold relevant childcare qualifications and receive training in safeguarding, first aid and food hygiene. These describe the people and arrangements supporting daily care; the dated safeguarding judgement belongs to the inspection.

Sleep provision responds to different ages. Babies can use cots or mats, with sleep arranged around their needs and parental requests; preschool children who still nap have a sleep room. Rest remains part of the offer as children grow older.

A chef cooks on the premises using a seasonal menu that rotates over four weeks, including vegan and vegetarian choices each week. Dietary requirements and weaning are handled with parents, and children vote weekly for a meal to prepare with the chef.

Independence continues at the table: children pour drinks, serve others and clear their plates. Preschool children use ceramic plates, cutlery and glass tumblers. Vegetable growing also connects food with practical experience, giving children a role before a meal reaches the table.

When children move on, school preparation includes links with their destination primary schools, a preschool report and their Learning Journey. These are transition arrangements, rather than an admissions advantage.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is The Old School House, Village Road, Waverton, Chester, CH3 7QN. Opening hours are 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, across 51 weeks. The Christmas and New Year closure lasts five working days, and bank holidays are also excluded.

A full day runs from 8am to 6pm. The school-day pattern runs from 9am to 3pm and is available for preschool children only. Flexible hours and term-time contracts offer other ways to organise attendance, so the choice extends beyond a single daily booking pattern. Additional private hours can be bought across the year, with part-funded days charged proportionately at the usual rate.

Enquiries can be made by telephone on 01244 332 270, and registration forms are provided. There are no charges for bank holidays or nursery closures; late collection attracts a separate charge. These terms matter when comparing the whole attendance arrangement, rather than the booked hours alone.

Getting There

The nursery is just off the A41 and has parking outside. Its position opposite St Peter’s Church provides a clear village landmark.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered through 15-hour and 30-hour entitlements, subject to eligibility. Families can use funding over 38 term-time weeks or stretch it across the 51 weeks the nursery opens; the stretched weekly allocation is lower. Eligible working parents may receive up to 30 funded hours per week, starting the term after their child turns nine months and continuing up to school age.

Meals and snacks are charged separately, including during funded attendance. Parents supply sun cream, wipes and nappies when needed; those opting into meals and snacks together with voluntary services receive complimentary nappies and wipes. Sun cream remains a parent-supplied item. This distinction keeps food charges and non-food supplies separate from the funded hours themselves.

Additional voluntary services include baking, practical life activities and events or local trips, with separate charges. A refundable deposit is required, and a registration charge applies except for fully funded attendance, when only the deposit is required. Current prices should come in the nursery’s written quotation, alongside the relevant conditions on its fees and funding page.

• Teaching for younger children. December 2023 brought concerns about consistent language support and carrying intended learning through activities. During a visit, ask how practitioners now extend babies’ and toddlers’ communication and connect play with each child’s next steps.
• Preschool school days. The 9am to 3pm pattern is restricted to preschool children, while full days and flexible hours serve other routines. Discuss how the intended booking pattern would work as your child changes rooms.
• Funded attendance and extras. Food is separately charged, voluntary services have their own charges, and complimentary nappies and wipes depend on opting into both. Request a written quotation showing the funded hours, private hours and chosen extras together.
• Outdoor routines. Daily outdoor access includes a courtyard, fairy garden and forest school area. Ask how the younger rooms use these spaces and how clothing and rest fit around an outdoor nursery day.

Stepping Stones suits families who want Montessori activities, practical independence and regular outdoor learning in a village setting. It serves both full-day routines and preschool school-day attendance, with flexible hours and term-time contracts adding further options. The room environments and communication arrangements make the offer concrete: babies have a quieter retreat, older children practise looking after themselves, and parents receive daily information.

The December 2023 teaching concerns remain an essential part of the decision. The strongest question is how consistently adults turn these resources and activities into useful learning, especially for younger children. For families comfortable with the charge structure and interested in this combination of practical tasks, woodland exploration and parent involvement, there is much here to examine closely.