N Family Club, Ockham

Farmland surrounds Pound Farm, but the appeal here goes beyond the countryside address: light-filled playrooms, an atelier for creative activities and gardens with a race track give children several ways to spend their day. N Family Club, Ockham combines space for movement with places for quieter storytelling. The outdoor reading chair is a telling detail.

At its September 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good and found safeguarding effective, while identifying inconsistent support for temporary and bank staff as an improvement priority. That qualification matters alongside the positive judgement.

The nursery accepts children aged 3 to 60 months and has 73 places in total. Standard days and paid extensions sit alongside school day places and term-time attendance for children over three, giving families more than one attendance pattern to consider.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage sets the requirements for children's learning, development and care; in everyday terms, play, conversation and physical activity contribute to their development. At Ockham, a creative atelier provides space for N Extras, the additional activities included in the nursery offer, with atelier time also identified among the activities on funded plans. The useful distinction is between the framework every nursery follows and the activities added here.

In September 2024, younger children used brushes and their hands for painting with hoops. The activity combined freedom to make marks with physical movement. Communication sessions used actions and simple signing alongside songs, while conversations gave children opportunities to practise new vocabulary. These examples show how art and language were built into activities rather than confined to separate lessons.

Books had a quieter place in that September 2024 day. Children could look through them independently in comfortable reading areas, and staff discussed familiar stories with them. For a parent comparing settings, the balance matters: children had opportunities both to join an adult-led experience and to spend time with a book themselves.

Outdoor and Community Life

The current garden includes a mud kitchen, climbing frame and race track, as well as covered outdoor space. These provide different kinds of play: making and experimenting, climbing and moving, and activities outside with some shelter. A large reading chair brings storytelling into the garden too.

In September 2024, children practised riding small bicycles and explored running, balancing and climbing outdoors. Staff also helped them recognise garden hazards. Trips to a nearby farm were followed by songs and stories about animal sounds, connecting an experience away from nursery with activities back there. The farm was an example of an outing, rather than a fixed weekly commitment.

Relationships and everyday routines carried much of the care in September 2024. Children approached staff when they wanted reassurance, and adults used conversation and singing during nappy changes. Staff also helped children work through disagreements by guiding sharing and turn-taking. For younger children, those ordinary interactions are a substantial part of the nursery day.

At the September 2024 inspection, Ofsted found that support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities included effective individual plans developed with parents and healthcare professionals, including occupational therapists. This gives families a concrete example of how support was organised: planning involved the people who knew the child across home, nursery and healthcare.

The staffing improvement point was specific. In September 2024, responsibility for helping new and temporary staff was unclear in some rooms, and the consistency of teaching interactions suffered. Families should weigh that finding alongside the examples of attentive everyday care.

Meals are cooked at the nursery. Private fees include snacks and meals, infant formula, nappies, wipes and sun cream, reducing the number of everyday supplies families need to send from home.

Family Club is a group-wide programme included with enrolment here, giving parents access to expert-led virtual talks and seasonal events. It extends the offer beyond the child's booked nursery hours, with activities aimed at parents and carers as well as families.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Pound Farm, Old Lane, Cobham, Surrey, KT11 1NH. Ockham opens Monday to Friday across 51 weeks of the year. A standard full day runs from 8am to 6pm; paid extensions allow a 7:30am start and a 6:30pm finish, subject to availability.

The usual minimum is two full days each week, with either Monday or Friday included. For children over three, school day places and term-time attendance are also offered. These are materially different choices for a family whose childcare needs follow the school calendar rather than the working year.

Emergency swaps are permitted for healthcare or childcare emergencies, up to five per calendar year and subject to availability. The replacement day must fall within the same calendar month; bank holidays and nursery closures are excluded. Extra ad hoc days can also be purchased, subject to availability, with booking no more than two weeks ahead.

Getting There

A car park serves the nursery, and there is storage for scooters and bikes. Together, these support different ways of travelling to Pound Farm.

Funding and Paid Extras

Both 15 hours and 30 hours Early Years Funding Entitlement are offered. Funding is stretched across the year: the weekly amounts become 11.18 and 22.35 hours respectively. On two-day plans, the entitlement is capped at 20 hours in line with attendance, so the headline entitlement and the hours used on a particular plan need to be kept separate.

Private days use an inclusive rate covering food, drinks, consumables and activities. During funded hours, the treatment differs by plan: some have no additional charges, while others charge separately for food, non-food consumables and activities. Families receiving funding can opt out of additional charges. The Ockham fees and funding details explain the structure; current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

Joining the waiting list requires a registration payment, which becomes a non-refundable joining charge when a place is accepted. A separate place acceptance payment is deducted from the final invoice. Monthly payments include bank holidays and inset closures, and absence for sickness or holidays does not generate a refund.

• Support for temporary staff. September 2024 brought a specific concern about who supported new and temporary colleagues in some rooms. During a visit, ask how that responsibility is allocated and monitored now.
• The right attendance pattern. The usual plan requires two full days including Monday or Friday, while children over three can attend school day or term-time places. A tour or call is the opportunity to establish which pattern fits your working week and school calendar.
• Funding and everyday extras. Funded plans treat food, consumables and activities differently from private days, and additional charges can be declined. Before accepting a plan, ask for an itemised quotation showing the chosen arrangements and any opt-out.

Ockham suits families who value substantial outdoor space and creative activities, whether they need standard full days with paid extensions or school day and term-time attendance for a child over three. The garden and atelier give that judgement practical substance.

The September 2024 Good judgement is useful, but the accompanying concern about support for temporary staff deserves a direct discussion. This is a nursery with clear physical advantages and several attendance choices; the best fit depends on the child's age, the family's calendar and the funded or private plan selected.