Allexton Day Nursery

An enclosed garden, a dedicated room for children’s individual healthcare needs and outings to the Leicester Riverside Festival give Allexton Day Nursery a clear identity. Based at West End SureStart Children's Centre in Leicester, it combines everyday play with practical support for children who need additional help. The inclusion arrangements deserve close attention from families weighing how care will work for their own child.

Ofsted rated the nursery Good at its 16 February 2022 inspection. The current age range is 2 to 60 months, with capacity for 86 children in total. Morning, afternoon and full-day bookings give families different ways to organise attendance; the shorter patterns have more than one start or finish time.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the framework for learning through play, communication, movement and developing relationships. Activities are matched to children’s development, while the key person system connects that learning with an adult who gets to know the child’s individual needs. This is the foundation of the nursery day, rather than an additional branded curriculum.

In February 2022, physical activities included squeezing fruit for juice, moving liquid with pipettes and a play dough disco. These gave children different ways to exercise their hands and fingers. The interest lay in doing something purposeful: making juice or controlling a small tool brought movement into an activity with a visible result.

Books served different purposes for different ages in February 2022. Babies anticipated a familiar peekaboo moment in a story and wanted it repeated, while preschool children consulted books about dinosaurs and used words describing animals and their diets. Those examples show the breadth of the day more clearly than a general promise of educational play. Familiar stories invited participation; reference books gave older children something to investigate.

There was also a teaching limitation in February 2022. During an activity involving flower stems, petals and tweezers, staff missed a chance to develop children’s understanding of the flowers themselves. The improvement action was to use unplanned moments more effectively to stretch children’s thinking. For parents, the useful distinction is between providing an engaging activity and extending the conversation it creates.

Outdoor and Community Life

A spacious, enclosed garden provides an outdoor setting within the nursery. Beyond it, regular outings across Leicester include parks, libraries and museums, alongside local events such as the Leicester Riverside Festival. Children therefore encounter places used by the wider community as well as their familiar nursery surroundings.

Trips are planned to introduce other environments and broaden children’s experiences. Risk assessments form part of those arrangements. The nursery’s relationship with the SureStart Children's Centre also gives it connections with childcare professionals from different agencies, adding a practical community dimension to its setting on Catesby Street.

Relationships and Communication

Each child has a key person who builds an understanding of their needs and shapes activities accordingly. That gives parents a clear relationship around which to discuss development, rather than relying only on general information about the group. Working with families is part of the nursery’s care model.

In February 2022, parents and children joined weekly cook and eat sessions covering nutrition and suitable portions. These brought families into a practical activity they could use at home. During that same period, children practised everyday independence by putting on outdoor clothing, with staff demonstrating how to fasten coats and encouraging attempts to do it themselves. Preparation for the next stage of learning included these ordinary self-care tasks.

A formal complaints procedure is explained when a child’s placement begins. Families can also raise a concern with a manager, giving them a direct route for addressing a problem with the service.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

A dedicated SEND and SENCO team works with the area SENCO and professionals from several agencies, and a separate room supports inclusion and individual healthcare needs. Training covers practical matters including tube-feeding, epilepsy and sensory processing needs. Speech therapists, health visitors and behavioural specialists are among the services working with the nursery. These are concrete mechanisms for planning support around a child.

At the February 2022 inspection, Ofsted found effective safeguarding, exceptionally strong support for children with special educational needs or disabilities, and strong help for children learning English as an additional language. In February 2022, communication support included signs, facial expressions, symbols and familiar words from children’s home languages. The current safeguarding structure includes a Child Protection Manager and deputy, with a lead in each room; those roles describe the arrangements rather than providing a fresh inspection judgement.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is West End SureStart Children's Centre, Catesby Street, Leicester, LE3 5PB. Opening hours are 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, and the nursery operates across the year, closing for bank holidays and Christmas.

Bookings include a full-day rate and morning sessions from 8am to 1pm or 9am to 1pm. Afternoon sessions run from 1pm to 6pm or 1pm to 5pm. An hourly rate also supports booking by the hour, while full-week, five-morning and five-afternoon rates provide further attendance options. The different afternoon finish times are useful when a family needs care beyond lunch but does not need the entire opening day.

Placement enquiries use a form with space for a message and a mobile contact number. This provides a straightforward way to introduce the child and the attendance pattern being considered.

Funding and Paid Extras

In February 2022, the nursery provided funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children. That is a dated participation statement, rather than a promise about a family’s current eligibility or funded booking arrangement.

Breakfast, lunch with pudding and tea with pudding are charged separately from childcare. The menu changes on a four-week cycle, and the nursery’s dietary arrangements cover allergies and food intolerances, with allergens identified alongside dishes.

Current prices come in the nursery’s written quotation; the fees page sets out the charging structure. Fees rise annually in September, and the terms include charges for late payment and late collection. Bank holidays and nursery closures carry a reduced charge, including a week between Christmas and New Year; fee-paying clients also have a two-week holiday allowance at a reduced charge. These terms matter when comparing the cost of booked attendance with the days a child actually attends.

• Thinking beyond the activity. The February 2022 improvement action concerned missed opportunities to extend children’s thinking. During a visit, explore how practitioners now turn children’s unexpected questions or discoveries into further learning.
• Individual healthcare support. A dedicated room and SEND and SENCO team are substantial practical arrangements. Discuss how these would be used for your child and how the nursery would work with the professionals already involved in their care.
• Funding and the complete quotation. Separately charged meals and closure charges affect the overall budget.
• Dietary planning. The rotating menu identifies allergens and the nursery caters for food intolerances. Families managing an allergy should confirm the current preparation and serving arrangements for their child.

Allexton suits families considering morning sessions, afternoon care or full-day attendance, with several shorter-session timings to choose between. Its enclosed garden and community outings give children experiences within and beyond the nursery, while the dedicated healthcare room and SEND team give inclusion a practical shape.

The Good judgement belongs to February 2022, and the teaching improvement point deserves a focused conversation. For families whose decision turns on individual support, the strongest next step is to examine how the nursery’s specific arrangements would translate into their child’s daily care.