The Nursery Rooms

A designated sleep area for babies, cookery for preschool children and a separate room for funded childcare give The Nursery Rooms a clear progression from early care towards school preparation. Based at Warwick House in Harlow's Staple Tye area, it accepts children from 3 months to 5 years. The rooms have different purposes, rather than simply different names.

Ofsted rated the nursery Good on 10 May 2024, with an improvement point centred on broadening staff development in teaching and learning. That gives families a positive inspection position and a specific issue to weigh. The detail behind the grade includes practical independence, language development and learning shaped around children's interests.

Attendance choices include half days, full days and a shorter school-day pattern, with additional hours charged separately. These options make the nursery relevant to families with different working routines, as well as those seeking funded early education.

Rooms and Ages

Caterpillar Room, for children aged 3 to 24 months, combines a designated sleep area with resources for exploring sound, texture, colour and shape, giving the youngest children both a place to rest and opportunities for sensory discovery.

Rainbow Room serves children aged 2 to 3 years, using shared activities and work with numbers, shapes, colours and familiar words to develop confidence and prepare them for Sunshine Room.

For children aged 3 to 5 years, Sunshine Room brings together construction, cookery, imaginative play, music, early science and mathematics, alongside computer use and opportunities to make their own choices as they prepare for school.

Butterfly Room also serves children aged 3 to 5 years, providing term-time childcare for children who qualify for government funding, with an emphasis on learning and skills for the move to school.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS provides the educational framework: communication, physical development and relationships sit alongside early reading, mathematics, creativity and understanding the world. These are the foundations of the day, rather than an extra programme. Activities are planned around individual interests and development, with observation helping staff decide what comes next.

In May 2024, children practised cutting by using scissors on cabbage leaves. Older children worked with large brushes and boxes in a painting activity, combining creative choices with bigger movements.

Language received attention across the age groups in May 2024. Staff used straightforward speech and stories to extend vocabulary, including for children learning English as an additional language; babies heard songs and conversation and copied rhyme actions. Books were accessible both outside and in the rooms. That connected communication with play, movement and shared reading.

Outdoor and Community Life

In May 2024, children used climbing equipment outside and indoors and took part in regular dance sessions led by a professional teacher. The combination gave physical activity different forms: climbing involved movement through equipment, while dance added an organised session. The outdoor book provision also meant that being outside was not limited to energetic play.

Relationships and Communication

Settling is part of the joining arrangement. A non-refundable registration charge includes 3 to 4 settling sessions, so those introductory visits sit within the initial booking cost. For a baby or toddler starting nursery, this gives the family a defined introduction rather than leaving settling as an unspecified stage after enrolment.

In May 2024, staff built close connections with their key children and supported moves between rooms. Parents received updates about development, and the progress check at age two was completed with families. The relationship extended beyond daily care: information from home and nursery fed into planning the child's next steps.

Children also practised useful everyday tasks in May 2024. Babies were encouraged to feed themselves, while older children helped arrange cutlery for lunch and received assistance according to their development. Independence here meant participating in ordinary routines. For parents, that is a concrete form of school preparation, alongside the preschool rooms' learning activities.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At its May 2024 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and good learning progress for children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

In May 2024, staff observed children's development and responded when they identified gaps. When some children needed more help with mathematics, the curriculum was adjusted and additional resources were bought. Managers also used additional funding for resources and experiences matched to children's needs. The useful detail is the response: assessment led to changes in what children encountered during the day.

The improvement point concerned the breadth of staff development. In May 2024, staff received safeguarding and paediatric first-aid training, but their opportunities to deepen teaching skills needed extending. This distinction matters when judging the Good grade: the recommendation was about developing educational practice further.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Warwick House, Perry Road, Harlow, Essex, CM18 7NF. The nursery operates throughout the year, Monday to Friday, with bank holidays excluded. Its opening window is 7.30am to 6.30pm; the core full-day booking runs from 8am to 6pm.

Half-day bookings run from 8am to 1pm or from 1pm to 6pm. The shorter School days pattern runs from 9am to 4pm. These patterns apply to Caterpillar Room and to Rainbow Room and Sunshine Room, so the main paid attendance choices extend across the nursery's age groups.

Additional hours can be booked when required. The extended-day charge applies to care from 7.30am to 8am and from 6pm to 6.30pm, outside the core day. For a family comparing costs, the distinction between the nursery's opening window and the hours included in a booking is essential.

Butterfly Room opens from 8am to noon and from 1pm to 4pm, Monday to Friday during term time. Its timetable is separate from the year-round paid patterns. Enquiries and viewing arrangements are handled by telephone on 01279 866445; families can also contact children@thenurseryrooms.co.uk.

Funding and Paid Extras

Free Early Education Entitlement is offered for children aged 2, 3 and 4. The standard funded arrangement is up to 15 hours each week across 38 weeks, with an additional 15 funded hours offered for qualifying families of children aged 3 to 4. Eligibility conditions apply, and the nursery handles the funding claim.

Children taking additional paid hours have funding deducted from their monthly invoice. This separates the funded entitlement from the rest of the booked care, rather than treating every hour as funded. Butterfly Room provides funded childcare without childcare fees for qualifying children, while meals during funded-only attendance are charged separately.

For paid sessions, the fee includes the meals appropriate to that booking; dinner and tea have separate charges for funded-only sessions. Families should give the nursery details of specific dietary requirements.

A non-refundable registration charge is required and includes settling sessions. Invoices are due in advance each month, by the 25th. The fees and funding information sets out the distinction between core care, extended hours and funded-only meals.

Getting There

The nursery has parking spaces. Local bus routes also provide access, giving families a public-transport option alongside driving.

• The youngest room. Caterpillar Room combines children aged 3 to 24 months and has a designated sleep area. At a viewing, ask how daily group size and the balance of babies and older toddlers shape play and rest.
• Teaching development. The May 2024 improvement point concerned extending staff development in teaching and learning. Families can use this specific recommendation to discuss how staff training has developed educational practice.
• Funded attendance and meals. Butterfly Room operates during term time, and funded-only dinner and tea are charged separately. Compare the childcare timetable and meal costs together when deciding whether this pattern fits the family week.
• Joining costs and payment timing. The registration charge is non-refundable and covers settling sessions, while monthly invoices are payable in advance. These terms affect the initial commitment as well as ongoing budgeting.

The Nursery Rooms suits families seeking either half-day or full-day care, with a shorter school-day option and a separate term-time funded arrangement for preschool children. Its strongest practical details are the baby sleep area, clear room progression and several genuinely different attendance patterns.

The May 2024 Good judgement provides a positive reference point, while the recommendation on teaching development supplies the balancing consideration. This is a nursery whose appeal rests on the combination of everyday independence, age-related activities and useful booking choices.