Puddleducks, Meadoway

A separate garden for babies, a preschool annex and vegetables growing in the top yard give Puddleducks, Meadoway a character built around exploration and increasing independence. Children choose resources, tend plants and practise everyday tasks at this Church, Accrington nursery.

Ofsted rated the nursery Good at its 29 October 2021 inspection, finding effective safeguarding and effective support for children with SEND, while identifying teaching during unplanned play and the participation of quieter children as areas needing attention.

The nursery accepts children aged 4 to 59 months and has 66 places in total. Its baby room, Tweenie room, Toddler room, Pre-Pre room and Pre-school room give families several stages between infancy and preparation for school.

Rooms and Ages

The baby room combines sensory exploration through water, food play and treasure baskets with low-level resources, space for developing movement and a separate garden.

The Tweenie room serves confident walkers aged 1-2 years, with independently accessible toys, a natural-themed environment and its own garden, alongside sensory and vegetable-growing spaces.

The Toddler room is for younger two-year-olds, bringing imaginative and messy play together with support for self-feeding, early toilet training and access to mud kitchen and sensory/vegetable garden areas. Daily care becomes part of learning rather than something entirely separate from play.

The Pre-Pre room serves children aged 2-3 years across a main room and messy room, combining early mark-making and independent choices with outdoor physical play and its own bathroom facilities. Having distinct spaces gives painting and quieter floor play different places in the day.

The Pre-school room serves children aged 3-4 years in a separate annex, with construction and imaginative play, group activities, self-care facilities and free movement into outdoor areas. Preparation for school includes sharing activities with other children while retaining opportunities to play alone.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS provides the required framework for learning and care: here, younger children begin with communication, movement and social development, with literacy, mathematics and other areas receiving greater emphasis as they develop. This is the shared early-years foundation, rather than an extra programme unique to Meadoway.

Birth to 5 Matters also informs the curriculum, whose stated priorities are personal, social and emotional development and communication and language. Meadoway's Golden Thread connects intended learning with teaching and its effect on development.

Children's interests help shape the day. Staff use observations and conversations to adjust activities, and experiences shared from home can become starting points for play. Monthly topics sit alongside this responsive planning. A child's enthusiasm can therefore influence what happens next, while staff retain a plan for their development.

In October 2021, younger children investigated objects in discovery areas, while older children used soil, pans and ladles for counting and imaginative play. Staff also used pictures and repeated words to support emerging language.

Outdoor and Community Life

The top yard's herb and vegetable garden gives children a practical role in growing food, including carrots, peas and tomatoes. A water butt collects rainwater for plants and outdoor play, and a bug hotel provides opportunities to observe insects. Meadoway's Sustainability and Climate Change policy connects these activities with everyday recycling and conserving resources. Children can take part in the work, rather than only hear adults explain it.

Outdoor provision extends beyond planting. A raised play area includes a mud kitchen and growing patch; other spaces support bikes, balancing and construction. Seating behind the nursery provides a place for stories and conversation outdoors. These different uses make the grounds relevant to both active play and quieter interaction.

Preschool children also take trips in the explorer bus and visit Peggy's Patch to see animals. Outings are planned around children's interests, with consent and individual support needs taken into account.

Relationships and Communication

Each child has a keyworker responsible for following their care and development. Settling includes opportunities to become familiar with staff before starting, information from families through All about me sheets and home-made books linking nursery and home. Moves between rooms include time in the next room before the full change. For families, this makes transition a process rather than a single abrupt move.

Communication has several routes. Monthly development summaries are shared with parents, while keyworkers are available for conversations at either end of the day. Class Dojo carries newsletters; consultation appointments provide space for a fuller discussion.

Parents of two-year-olds are invited to discuss progress with the key person. Preschool families have a welcome meeting in August and a school-transition meeting around June. When children move on, staff share transition information and can liaise with the receiving setting. For children receiving targeted support, that handover can include their learning plans and access arrangements.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

SEND support has defined mechanisms. The SENCO works with the keyworker, parents and outside professionals on Targeted Learning Plans, reviewing progress against individual targets. Visual timetables, communication books and prompt cards are among the resources used, while furniture can be rearranged for mobility aids or specialist equipment. The value is in adapting communication and activities to the child, rather than expecting every child to engage in the same way.

At the October 2021 inspection, Ofsted found that the SENCO recognised additional needs promptly and coordinated effective plans with other professionals, but staff did not consistently extend learning during spontaneous activities or give quieter children enough help to participate. Both improvement points matter when assessing how staff respond to a child who needs encouragement or a greater challenge.

Current safeguarding arrangements include designated lead roles held by the manager and deputy, alongside staff training and paediatric first aid cover.

Rest is accommodated through quiet areas and sleep mats, with lie-flat prams for younger children when requested. A cook prepares homemade food from scratch each day, using a three-week menu rotation. Dietary arrangements cover preferences including vegetarian and halal food, and the nursery's allergy procedures include displaying allergen information in rooms.

Sessions and Attendance

The nursery is at 7 Regent Road, Church, Accrington, BB5 4AR. It opens Monday to Friday from 7.30am to 6pm across the year, closing for bank holidays and Christmas.

Enquiries can be made by telephone, email or in person. Meadoway takes neither a deposit nor an administration fee. A retainer may be requested to secure a child's place, with that payment then covering the first week.

Getting There

A small car park sits opposite the nursery, with on-street parking also described nearby. Access from the public footpath is level, although the adult toilet cubicle has restricted space, a relevant consideration for anyone needing accessible facilities.

Funding and Paid Extras

Meadoway offers funded childcare, with entitlements expressed over 38 weeks: eligible children can access up to 30 hours from the term after reaching nine months and 15 or 30 hours from the term after turning two, and three- and four-year-olds have the 15-hour entitlement with a possible 30-hour entitlement where eligible. Participation in funding does not itself establish an individual family's eligibility or attendance arrangement.

Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

• Quiet children and spontaneous play. The October 2021 improvement points concerned participation and extending learning as play developed. During a visit, ask how staff notice a child hanging back and how they add challenge to an activity the child has chosen.
• Attendance across the year. The opening window runs from 7.30am to 6pm, with bank-holiday and Christmas closures. Ask which booking pattern fits your required days and how those closures affect your arrangement.
• The funded quotation. Funding entitlements are expressed over 38 weeks, while the nursery opens across the year. Ask for a written breakdown covering funded delivery, private hours, meals, non-food consumables and any optional activities.
• Access beyond the entrance. Level access from the footpath is useful, but the adult toilet has limited space. Families needing accessible facilities should discuss their requirements and view the relevant areas during a show-around.

Meadoway suits families who value separate spaces as children develop, practical independence and substantial outdoor play. The baby garden, preschool annex and growing projects give that proposition substance. Keyworker communication and targeted support arrangements add useful detail for parents who want to understand how their child's day will be organised.

The October 2021 Good judgement also identified weaknesses in extending spontaneous learning and supporting quieter children.