Babybrook Nursery School

Elsa elephant and Gina giraffe give Babybrook's inspection-era account an unusually memorable detail: children used these behaviour mascots to think about effort and looking after their surroundings. The emphasis was practical. Everyday play, conversation and stories supplied opportunities to learn how to behave alongside other children.

Babybrook Nursery School, in Clayton Brook, Preston, has capacity for 48 children and accepts ages from 3 to 60 months. At its July 2023 inspection, Ofsted judged the nursery Good overall and found that children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), learned well. That judgement provides a positive assessment of the care and education at that time, alongside a specific weakness in teaching letter sounds.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage sets the requirements for children's learning, development and care: the day combines opportunities to develop communication, movement and independence with learning through activities and play. Babybrook's July 2023 activities gave children practical opportunities to develop language and physical skills.

In July 2023, babies practised pulling themselves upright using soft play furniture. Older children tackled bicycle pedals and a climbing pole. These examples show different physical challenges for different stages of development, with movement woven into the nursery day.

Books supplied another recurring thread that July. Staff returned to familiar stories, and children joined in with remembered passages; songs and rhymes also featured frequently. Repetition gave children something recognisable to participate in, while conversations helped them put ideas and feelings into words. Staff used gaps in children's language to decide what to teach next.

Elsa elephant represented trying hard, while Gina giraffe encouraged care for resources in July 2023. Giving expectations a character helped make abstract ideas understandable to young children. Staff also helped children consider one another, making behaviour part of ordinary shared activities.

Outdoor and Community Life

In July 2023, educational outings included the local primary school and shops. Children practised holding hands and remaining near adults on those visits. The value was immediate: learning how to move safely beyond the nursery while encountering familiar parts of the surrounding community.

In July 2023, babies sought comfort from a favourite key person. Staff responded to early attempts at speech and spoke gently with children, connecting emotional security with everyday communication. These are useful details for families weighing how care and learning worked together at the time.

At the July 2023 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and praised the prompt recognition of SEND, professional collaboration and children's inclusion in learning. Staff then received training on recognising welfare concerns and responding to them, and the manager worked with other agencies when families needed early help.

Communication with parents in July 2023 included information about children's progress that helped families continue learning at home. Staff practice was reviewed regularly, with training used to develop their understanding of the areas they taught. This linked professional development to the activities children experienced.

Food also became a learning opportunity that July: an on-site cook made fresh meals, and staff talked with children about the fresh food they were eating. Play involving spoons helped babies practise the movements needed to feed themselves.

Babybrook's address is Great Greens Lane, Clayton Brook, Preston, PR5 8HL. Enquiries can be made by email at info@babybrooknursery.co.uk or by telephone on 01772 697501.

Opening hours are 7:45am to 5:45pm, Monday to Friday, and childcare runs for 51 weeks of the year. Bank holidays are closure days. This gives families a weekday opening window to compare with their working arrangements.

In July 2023, the nursery provided funded early education for children aged two, three and four. That is a dated participation fact rather than a statement of today's entitlement or booking terms. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

• Early reading. In July 2023, some staff gave inaccurate explanations of letter sounds, hindering children ready to begin reading. Ask how staff now teach those sounds and how their practice is checked.
• Your child's care pattern. The nursery opens on weekdays from 7:45am to 5:45pm across 51 weeks. During a visit, discuss how the proposed attendance pattern, settling arrangements and funded or paid hours would work together, including responsibility for meals and consumables.

Babybrook suits families seeking care from infancy through the preschool years within a weekday opening window. Its July 2023 account has substance: familiar stories, physical challenges, behaviour mascots and practical experiences beyond the nursery, supported by a Good judgement.

The early-reading weakness deserves attention alongside those strengths. For parents, the most useful decision is whether Babybrook's daily arrangements fit their child, with teaching letter sounds a specific point to explore rather than a general question about school readiness.