Starjumps Nursery Borehamwood

A large garden, a cook on site and a link with the Family Centre in the same building give Starjumps Nursery Borehamwood a practical, recognisable character. Its purpose-built premises at The BECC Family Centre combine indoor space with room for outdoor play. For families, that means the physical setting and everyday food arrangements are substantial parts of the offer.

The nursery has 40 places in total for children aged two to five. At its June 2025 inspection, Ofsted graded it Good overall. The strongest examples from that visit involved children using stories, movement and everyday objects to explore ideas.

Both morning sessions and full days are sold, with a shorter full-day window on Fridays. That distinction matters: this is an option for families seeking different lengths of nursery day, although the Friday finish needs to fit the household routine.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage sets the framework for children's learning, development and care. In parent language, this brings learning and everyday care together: play, conversation, movement and increasing independence all belong in the child's day.

In June 2025, stories supplied concrete starting points for activities. Toddlers used tweezers to pick up beans linked to Jack and the Beanstalk, giving their hands a precise task connected to a familiar narrative. Older children retold Runaway Peas while an adult recorded their ideas. That made the relationship between spoken ideas and written text visible.

Numbers were worked into practical experiences, too. During June 2025, toddlers matched counting to their actions while pressing dough. Older children explored measurement through beanstalks, while those preparing for school measured and recorded how far their planes travelled in a flying competition. The useful thread is that counting and measuring had something tangible attached to them.

Outdoor and Community Life

A large garden is part of the current setting. It gives outdoor play a substantial physical space, alongside the bright, purpose-built indoor premises. The connection with the Family Centre within the building is another useful feature for families interested in nursery care alongside family services.

In June 2025, older children devised an outdoor obstacle course and chose how to move through it, including balancing and hopping. Their choices made movement part of the activity itself. Conversations about collected snails also encouraged children to look closely at shell patterns and colours, providing a concrete reason to compare and describe.

There was a clear development point alongside these examples. In June 2025, practitioners sometimes needed a firmer understanding of what an activity was intended to teach. Enjoyable resources alone were not enough: adults needed clearer learning aims to make the curriculum more effective.

In June 2025, practitioners knew their key children and used their understanding of each child's next steps when planning activities. Parents had opportunities for informal conversations as well as scheduled meetings, and received ideas for continuing learning at home. This gave communication a role beyond reporting what a child had done that day.

At the June 2025 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and strong progress among children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), supported by cooperation between staff, families and outside agencies. This is a dated assessment of the support children received, rather than a promise about an individual child's future experience.

School preparation was concrete in June 2025. Children explored photographs of classrooms, books introducing teachers and actual school uniforms. Those objects helped make the next setting more familiar before the move. The emphasis was on understanding school life and feeling ready for it.

Independence needed more consistent attention. During June 2025, children managed their coats and helped themselves to cereal, but adults sometimes passed over further chances for children to practise doing things for themselves. Strengthening that support across routines was an improvement priority.

The team comprised 16 childcare staff in June 2025, and staff received induction and ongoing supervision. Those figures belong to that visit; the practical emphasis is on how adults were supported in their work.

Sessions and Attendance

Starjumps opens for 50 weeks each year. Full days run from 8am to 6pm on Monday to Thursday, while Friday full days run from 8am to 3pm. Morning sessions run from 8am to 1pm. Afternoon sessions are not currently offered.

The morning pattern provides a shorter nursery day; the full-day option extends care into the afternoon. Friday is the important exception for working arrangements because its full-day finish is earlier than the other weekdays.

Getting There

The address is The BECC Family Centre, Shakespeare Drive, off Furzehill Road, Borehamwood, WD6 2FD. Enquiries can be made by telephone on 020 8236 7564.

Elstree and Borehamwood train station is 5 minute walk away, with Thameslink providing access to London. That gives rail commuters a practical connection to weigh against the session finish times.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered, including 30 Hours Free Childcare for eligible families. A separate free part-time nursery place arrangement starts in the term following a child's nine-month birthday, subject to eligibility, and comprises three sessions each week over 38 term-time weeks, with each session lasting five hours.

Breakfast, a cooked lunch and tea are provided, with meals included in paid session prices and no additional meal charge. An in-house cook prepares food for the nursery.

A refundable holding deposit applies when a place is accepted, except for supported two-year funded sessions. There is also a non-refundable registration charge, added to the first invoice. Fees are paid ahead of attendance by direct debit; childcare vouchers and payments from a Government tax-free account are accepted. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation, and the fees page explains the charge structure.

• Friday collection. Friday full days finish at 3pm, compared with 6pm on Monday to Thursday. Families using full days need a workable earlier collection arrangement that day.
• Learning aims and independence. The June 2025 priorities concerned clearer intentions for activities and more consistent help with independence. On a visit, ask how practitioners now extend learning and encourage children to manage everyday routines themselves.
• Funded sessions and everyday supplies. The term-time funded arrangement uses three five-hour sessions across 38 weeks. Ask how your child's funded pattern would work.

Starjumps suits families seeking either morning sessions or full days, with a large garden, food prepared on site and a Family Centre connection adding practical value. Its June 2025 examples show learning rooted in stories, physical challenges and hands-on mathematics.

The decision needs to account for the earlier Friday finish and the improvement priorities around learning aims and independence. For parents who value practical school preparation and conversation with their child's key staff, those are useful points to weigh alongside the attendance pattern.