Parkgate Nursery

Play dough, climbing and growing plants give Parkgate Nursery’s last inspection a practical, hands-on character. This Ashbourne setting cares for children from 6 months to 5 years, with opportunities for individual play alongside shared activities. For families, that means a choice between pursuing an interest independently and learning to share toys and space.

Ofsted rated Parkgate Nursery Good at its 13 August 2021 inspection, with strengths in language development and children’s independence, alongside improvements needed in two-year-olds’ engagement and preschool mathematics. That is a dated assessment. The practical examples give that assessment substance: children were learning through conversation, play and everyday routines.

Morning, afternoon, Full Day and Short Day bookings provide different attendance patterns, rather than a single all-day option.

In August 2021, babies practised waiting for a turn while sending cars down ramps, and two-year-olds tackled a climbing wall with staff support. These were small but concrete opportunities to practise patience and physical confidence. The examples also show how learning could emerge from play rather than depend entirely on an adult-led activity.

Preschool children’s play dough activity in August 2021 brought several skills together: choosing ingredients, sharing the dough equally, cutting shapes and comparing quantities. Staff introduced vocabulary about texture and the process of making it. One familiar activity therefore gave children something to talk about, count and manipulate with their hands.

Language work in August 2021 varied with children’s ages. With babies, staff repeated words while making eye contact; singing helped two-year-olds build vocabulary, while questions encouraged preschool children to think. Communication therefore ran through interactions as well as activities. Conversations also addressed differences between children, including their appearance and who lived with them. These gave children concrete ways to discuss themselves and others, using familiar details from their own lives.

The early years foundation stage is the framework for children’s learning, development and care. In everyday parent language, it brings learning and care together: play, conversation and increasing independence all have a place in the day. It is the baseline framework, rather than a special programme unique to Parkgate.

Garden experiences added another dimension in August 2021. Children dug, explored and grew runner beans and sunflowers, including children whose homes lacked gardens. That gave them direct experience of planting and growing, rather than leaving these ideas as pictures or conversation.

There were limits to the teaching, too. In August 2021, two-year-olds could lose interest in planned activities because staff did not consistently help them sustain their attention. Preschool water play also missed opportunities to develop an understanding of capacity through language about containers being full or empty. Those are useful, specific points for parents to explore, rather than a general concern about the whole curriculum.

In August 2021, staff took time to learn about children’s families and interests and used that knowledge when planning experiences. They also kept parents informed about learning. The practical value is the connection between home and nursery: a child’s interests can shape what they are offered, rather than sitting separately from the day’s activities.

Independence was built through ordinary routines in August 2021. Two-year-olds poured drinks at snack time, preschool children used the bathroom independently, and handwashing extended to babies. These examples matter because care routines themselves became opportunities to practise doing things, with support, rather than simply having everything done for the child.

At the August 2021 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding arrangements effective, with staff understanding how to raise concerns, recruitment checks and daily checks for hazards. This safeguarding judgement belongs to that inspection date.

Parkgate Nursery is on Cokayne Avenue, Ashbourne, Derbyshire DE6 1EJ. Enquiries can be made through its contact form or by telephone on 01335 345492.

Opening hours are 7.30am to 6pm, with the nursery operating for 51 weeks of the year and closing for Christmas. Morning bookings run from 7.30am to 1pm; afternoon bookings run from 1pm to 6pm. Full Day and Short Day are additional booking options. The distinction is useful: opening hours describe the nursery’s operating window, while the morning and afternoon times describe the sessions a family can book.

Government funding is offered for most working families with babies over 9 months, between 8.30am and 3.30pm, subject to eligibility. Hours outside that window attract private childcare fees. Families considering an early start or later finish therefore need to budget for the attendance hours beyond the funding window, rather than treating the whole opening day as funded.

• Teaching priorities. In August 2021, sustained engagement for two-year-olds and preschool understanding of capacity needed development. On a visit, ask how staff now approach these two specific areas.
• The funding window. Funded attendance is offered between 8.30am and 3.30pm, subject to eligibility, while the nursery opens earlier and closes later. Request a current written quotation covering your chosen pattern, including how meals and non-food consumables are handled.
• Independence in practice. Pouring drinks and managing bathroom routines were examples from August 2021. Ask how staff support your child’s next steps in everyday routines, especially when they are still learning a skill.

Parkgate suits families seeking morning or afternoon attendance as well as Full Day or Short Day bookings. Its August 2021 examples give the clearest picture of its educational character: practical play, conversation, garden experiences and growing independence.

The balance is straightforward. There is a Good inspection judgement to consider, but also two precise teaching priorities to explore. Families whose working hours extend beyond the funding window should weigh the paid hours alongside the session pattern that suits their child.