Stepping Stones Nursery School

Storytelling, sensory exploration and growing independence give Stepping Stones Nursery School in Thames Ditton its character. At its January 2025 inspection, Ofsted rated it Good and judged safeguarding effective. The current age range is 24 to 60 months, with 62 places in total.

The strongest examples are small, useful steps: children learning to manage their coats, negotiating turns and developing stories together. These describe nursery life in January 2025, rather than a promise about each child's experience today.

The early years foundation stage sets the requirements for children's learning, development and care: play, communication and practical independence belong alongside early reading and writing.

In January 2025, younger children experimented with textured mats made by staff, while preschool children explored rice and noodles and set themselves challenges. Large paper strips gave younger children space to practise making marks. Some older children applied reading techniques to straightforward words. These examples show how hands-on exploration and early literacy sat together in the day.

Books also prompted imaginative play. Children used illustrations to retell stories, discussed characters and developed shared adventures involving a rocket journey to Saturn and a safe return to Earth. Adults introduced vocabulary during play, giving children words to use in their own conversations and stories.

At the January 2025 inspection, Ofsted found that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities received targeted support plans, with visual cues helping children who needed support with understanding language. This provides a concrete example of how support was adapted to developmental needs.

In January 2025, younger children practised dressing themselves, while older children managed coat fastenings. Adults helped younger children share toys and allowed older children time to work out turn-taking together. Independence and relationships were practised through ordinary tasks.

Parent communication included updates about daily experiences and learning, alongside meetings about children's next steps. Families received ideas for continuing learning at home. That gave parents practical ways to connect nursery activities with family life.

The address is 129 Woodfield Road, Thames Ditton, KT7 0DR. Opening hours are 8.30am to 3.45pm, Monday to Friday, across the year, with closures for bank holidays and Christmas. The finishing time matters for families arranging afternoon care.

In January 2025, the nursery was eligible to deliver funded early education. That dated position should be kept separate from the attendance arrangements a family chooses now.

• Individual challenge. In January 2025, some older children finished adult-directed tasks easily and adults did not consistently extend the learning. Families seeking stretch should weigh this alongside the imaginative play and early reading examples.
• Consistency of teaching. In January 2025, monitoring of individual practice and personalised staff development needed strengthening. This matters because children's experience depends on how each practitioner adapts activities.
• Afternoon arrangements. The nursery closes at 3.45pm. At a visit, what booking options would fit your child's age and your afternoon care arrangements?

Stepping Stones suits families seeking care for children aged 24 to 60 months within an opening day that ends at 3.45pm. Its January 2025 examples give substance to the Good judgement: imaginative storytelling, practical independence and communication with parents. The counterweight is clear too: adult-directed learning needed closer tailoring, and staff development needed greater consistency.