Gingerbread Mews

Two outdoor areas give Gingerbread Mews a clear physical character: a shared garden with a play house, gazebo and planting patch, alongside a smaller artificial-turf space for babies and toddlers. That separation matters for families choosing care for a younger child, while the larger space offers room for play beyond the indoor rooms.

This charity-run nursery on Fosse Road South in Leicester has capacity for 42 children aged two months to five years. At its 5 August 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated it Good overall and judged safeguarding effective. Those judgements belong to that visit, rather than describing every aspect of care today.

Baby Room, Toddler Room and Pre-School organise the indoor provision. The building was renovated in 2024, and the current opening pattern is term time, with weekday opening hours of 8am to 5pm.

Rooms and Ages

Baby Room combines play resources with a sleeping area and access to the smaller garden, with its learning emphasis on the three prime areas. For a baby, that brings rest, exploration and early development into the same room arrangement, rather than treating outdoor time as something reserved for older children.

Toddler Room extends across adjoining spaces, with a bathroom supporting toilet training and a direct route to the garden for children to move between indoor and outdoor play. Its resources include educational games and toys, giving children different ways to occupy themselves as their independence develops.

Pre-School brings a large indoor room together with outdoor growing space, a sandpit and a Wendy house, while a snack bar gives children opportunities to serve snacks and pour for themselves. These are concrete ways to practise everyday skills before moving on to school.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage provides the framework for children's learning, development and care: play, communication and practical experiences form part of the nursery day. It is the baseline for early years provision. Baby Room also includes resources associated with the curiosity approach; the useful detail here is the room's play resources, rather than a claim that a named approach guarantees better learning.

In August 2022, learning started with topics and incorporated children's interests. Babies practised early words and separating from their main carers, while older children worked on routines and looking after themselves. The progression was practical, connecting learning with what children needed for their next stage.

Imaginative play had a sensory element at that visit. Preschool children incorporated fruit and vegetables into dinosaur play, exploring textures and smells as they invented meals. Babies joined action songs and rhymes, using gestures alongside words. These examples show different forms of participation for different stages of development.

Outdoor and Community Life

The shared outdoor area includes a planting patch and sheltered space beneath the gazebo, alongside the play house. Babies and toddlers also have their own smaller turf area. For parents, the useful combination is space for older children's activity and a separate area intended for the youngest children.

In August 2022, children practised crossing tyres with encouragement and help from a friend, then attempted the task more independently. Outdoor activity was therefore linked with trying again and accepting support, rather than simply providing a break from indoor play.

In August 2022, babies received close attention from staff, and family photographs in the rooms helped children recognise familiar people. Children also took small responsibilities at lunch, distributing tableware, while adults reinforced handwashing and drinking water in warm weather. These everyday routines placed care and independence alongside play.

At the August 2022 inspection, Ofsted found that staff supported children learning English as an additional language by using familiar home-language words alongside English, but identified a need for more consistent teaching and more practical suggestions for parents to extend learning at home. The distinction matters: activity updates and ideas that parents can use are different forms of communication.

The manager also holds the safeguarding lead role. In August 2022, collection arrangements included a password when someone unfamiliar to staff collected a child; this was a dated practice, rather than a promise about today's collection procedure.

A cook prepares meals each day in the nursery kitchen, with fruit and vegetables included. The nursery describes its food policy as vegetarian and excluding nuts, eggs and sweets; families managing allergies should confirm current practice.

Sessions and Attendance

Opening hours are 8am to 5pm, Monday to Friday, across 38 weeks of term-time provision. That calendar is a central part of the decision for working families: the weekday window and the weeks of attendance both need to fit the household's arrangements.

Gingerbread Mews is at 220 Fosse Road South, Leicester, LE3 0FU. Enquiries can be made on 0116 229 9006 or by email to info@gingerbreadnursery.co.uk, and the nursery accepts messages through its enquiry form.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered on a term-time basis. The funding options include 30 hours for eligible working parents with children aged nine months to four years, support of up to 15 hours a week during term time for eligible two-year-olds whose parents receive qualifying benefits, and funded early education for three- and four-year-olds.

Eligibility conditions matter: the working-parent and benefits-based routes depend on the family's circumstances. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation, so the financial decision should use the arrangement for the individual child rather than a headline funding entitlement.

• Term-time calendar. Attendance runs across 38 weeks, with weekday opening ending at 5pm. Consider how both the holidays and that finishing time fit your working arrangements.
• Baby Room resources. Resources linked to the curiosity approach sit alongside a sleeping area and garden access. During a visit, ask how those resources are used with babies and how rest is organised around their individual routines.
• Learning beyond nursery. In August 2022, teaching consistency and practical home-learning suggestions were improvement priorities. Ask for an example of how staff now share a child's next steps and an activity a parent could try at home.
• Food and everyday costs. Meals are prepared in the nursery kitchen, with a policy excluding nuts and eggs. Request a written breakdown covering meals and non-food consumables for your child's attendance, and confirm allergy arrangements where relevant.

Gingerbread Mews suits families seeking term-time care for a baby, toddler or preschool child, with separate stages indoors and two outdoor areas. The planting patch, Wendy house and opportunities for self-service give the offer practical substance. Its 5pm finish and term-time calendar are decisive considerations. The strongest choice will be for a household whose timetable fits those arrangements and which values outdoor play alongside growing everyday independence.