Katey's Nursery & Pre-school Hampton Court

Hampton Court Palace gardens and Bushy Park give this Creek Road nursery a day that extends beyond its rooms. Regular visits to both sit alongside weekly cooking, language games and musical instruments that stretch from violins to didgeridoos.

Katey's Nursery & Pre-school Hampton Court accepts children from three months to five years and has 55 places in total. Its youngest room, Cherries, has a separate sleep room where babies have their own cot.

At the February 2026 inspection, Ofsted judged inclusion to be at the Strong standard, the other assessed areas at the Expected standard, and safeguarding standards met. Concerns centred on behaviour guidance, some teaching and communication about individual learning targets.

Rooms and Ages

Cherries covers the room age band from birth to 18 months and combines sensory materials with a sleep room where babies have their own cot; the nursery's overall entry age remains three months. That separation gives rest its own space within the baby provision, while planning takes account of each child's routine and development.

For toddlers, Plums spans 18 months to three years, with a bright room, a terrace and messy activities using materials such as water, soil and clay. The emphasis is exploration: children can investigate how materials behave, make things and follow interests that staff use to shape activities.

Apples takes children aged three to five and places the preschool room near a messy room leading to the outside terrace, alongside games supporting language and early number skills.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage provides the shared framework for children's learning, development and care: activities respond to their interests, while observations help staff decide what to introduce next. It is the foundation here, as it is across early-years provision. The nursery adds a Reggio Emilia-inspired approach that gives children's ideas, discussion and experimentation a central role in how activities develop.

In Apples, termly topics connect activities across the areas of learning, while observations shape each child's next steps.

Zig Zag Zumba links drawing and painting with movement to classical music, with an emphasis on the physical skills used for writing. Music brings instruments including didgeridoos and violins into children's experience. Structured language activities introduce Mandarin, Spanish and German through songs, games and imaginative play, giving children opportunities to hear and use unfamiliar words in an accessible context.

Weekly cooking gives children practical experience preparing hot and cold food.

Outdoor and Community Life

Regular trips to Bushy Park and Hampton Court Palace gardens complement outdoor experiences on the nursery's terrace.

In February 2026, children put away their high-visibility jackets after daily park and garden outings, practising responsibility for their belongings.

Relationships and Communication

Settling is organised gradually, with parents and the key person planning how the child becomes familiar with staff, activities and the daily routine as parental presence reduces. This makes the introduction a shared process rather than a single handover. Babies' individual routines are part of that planning.

Monthly newsletters describe learning activities and nursery news, while termly Progress Evenings provide time to discuss development with the key person. Cherries and Plums also use a daily diary for communication between home and nursery. Learning Journey folders hold observations of children's development and invite contributions from parents, allowing home experiences to become part of the picture.

In February 2026, key people routinely moved rooms with children. Some parents were unaware of individual learning suggestions in the parent app, limiting the usefulness of that communication.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At its February 2026 inspection, Ofsted found that support for children with SEND included regularly adjusted individual plans, collaboration with speech therapists and physiotherapists, communication aids and quieter spaces, while children generally made secure progress from their starting points.

In February 2026, children who struggled with group sitting could choose quieter activities with an adult. Visual prompts helped them express needs and feelings.

Rest and feeding also require individual attention. Cherries has its sleep room, and in February 2026 staff discussed weaning with parents so food preparation matched babies' development. Older children practised independence through serving food, helping with tables and clearing their plates, turning familiar routines into manageable responsibilities.

Meals are prepared by a chef based at Ham, and staff eat alongside the children. The nursery's dietary arrangements include catering for individual needs, making mealtimes both a practical care routine and a shared social occasion.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is 35-37 Creek Road, East Molesey, KT8 9BE. Opening hours run from 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday. The nursery operates for 51 weeks, closing for a week between Christmas and New Year and on bank holidays.

Attendance uses set sessions, with a minimum booking of two days each week that must include Monday or Friday. Full-time and part-time attendance are both accommodated; the funded arrangements specify full-day bookings. The 15-hour funding arrangement requires at least two full days, while the 30-hour arrangement requires at least three.

Enquiries can be made through the nursery's form, by email or by telephone. The form asks for a preferred start date and attendance days. Offers carry a two-day acceptance deadline, so families need to be ready to make their decision when an offer arrives.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare includes the 15-hour and 30-hour arrangements and FEET, the funded early education offer for eligible two-year-olds. Funding is stretched across the year. Eligibility conditions apply, including to the offer of up to 30 hours from nine months to school age.

Additional hours are paid for separately. For the 15-hour and 30-hour arrangements, there is a monthly voluntary additional service package, with alternatives to discuss if families cannot pay and want to opt out; this package charge does not apply to funded two-year-olds. FEET carries no charge unless parents choose extra sessions. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

A deposit normally applies once a place is confirmed and is returned after departure when the required notice has been given and fees settled. Fully funded two-year-old places are exempt; a deposit applies to those children only if additional attendance is purchased. A non-refundable registration charge also applies, with exemptions for siblings and funded two-year-olds.

Reducing or ending a booking requires two months' written notice. Fees follow booked attendance, so sickness and family holidays do not attract refunds.

Moving on to School

Staff contact preschool children's future schools and work towards a visit, helping children become familiar with their next setting.

• Fixed attendance commitment. Bookings require at least two days, including Monday or Friday, and reducing attendance takes two months' written notice. Consider how that fits changing work patterns before accepting an offer.
• Funded-year calculation. The funding arrangements describe stretching over 52 weeks, while the terms specify 51 weeks. Ask which calculation will apply to your child's agreement and how the voluntary service package affects it.
• Consistency in daily practice. In February 2026, behaviour instructions were not always followed through consistently, some teaching varied, and individual learning suggestions did not reach every parent effectively. During a visit, ask how staff now maintain shared expectations and explain each child's next steps.
• Baby routines and dietary needs. Cherries has a sleep room, while settling is planned with the key person. Use a visit to discuss your baby's sleep and feeding routine, or confirm current arrangements for any allergy or dietary restriction.

Katey's Hampton Court suits families seeking full-time or part-time attendance across the year, especially those drawn to regular outings, practical cooking and learning shaped by children's ideas. Cherries' dedicated sleep space gives baby families a concrete point to weigh; older children have language activities, music and local exploration.

The February 2026 findings give inclusion greater weight than the broader teaching picture, with clear examples of tailored support alongside inconsistencies that need attention. The fixed booking rules also make this a decision about fit: the activities may appeal, but the minimum days, funded attendance conditions and notice period must work for the family too.