Wild Monkeys Childcare

A 140ft garden and Forest School sessions several times a week give Wild Monkeys Childcare its clearest character: outdoor learning is part of the ordinary week. Bug hunts, natural materials and year-round garden use put that approach into practice. For parents seeking regular contact with nature, there is substance behind the name.

At its 28 October 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated Wild Monkeys Outstanding, with strong findings on language development, independence and the way activities were tailored to individual children. That judgement belongs to 2022. The current setting is the Forest nursery at 29 Glynn Road, Peacehaven, BN10 8AT, caring for children aged 0 to 60 months.

Attendance combines selectable session times with an all-year offer.

Rooms and Ages

Robins covers the youngest children, Hedgehog babies, Squirrel toddlers and Foxes the oldest children before school.

The Forest manager holds the designated safeguarding lead role, supported by a deputy manager. Robins, Squirrel and Foxes have room leadership, with deputy leadership in Hedgehog, separating whole-nursery oversight from responsibility within each group.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS guides children's learning, development and care through play, observation and planned activities. It is the common early-years framework, rather than an extra particular to Wild Monkeys. Here, Development Matters guidance helps shape the curriculum: staff observe children's interests and development, then use those observations to plan what comes next.

A shared book starts each fortnight's activities. The title becomes a starting point for discussion and play, with activities changing as children's interests develop. Resources also rotate in response to celebrations and changes in the world around them. This gives learning a recognisable thread while leaving room for children to take it in different directions.

Forest School adds practical outdoor experiences alongside that framework. Sessions happen several times a week, using either the garden or local natural areas; activities include searching for insects, making things from natural materials and using those materials for imaginative play. The garden remains in use throughout the year, including in poor weather. Outdoor clothing therefore matters to participation, rather than being needed only for occasional trips.

In October 2022, adults used questions during storytelling to draw children into the narrative, and revisited planned songs and rhymes. Number work was equally specific: children who could say a number sequence but did not recognise the written numerals received teaching on that next step. Teaching addressed the child's next step.

Outdoor and Community Life

Growing fruit and vegetables extends the outdoor offer into food. Children help grow fruit and vegetables, connecting outdoor activity with learning about food. It is a concrete connection between garden activity and everyday eating.

Wicket the Wild Monkey, the nursery's mascot, joins outings and story activities and models routines such as sitting at the lunch table or using a potty. A familiar character gives staff another way to demonstrate behaviour at children's level. It is a small detail, but one that makes this setting recognisable.

Relationships and Communication

Settling is organised around the individual child. Parents can attend stay-and-play sessions, and time apart is built up through taster sessions according to the child's needs. A key person is assigned, with information from home helping staff plan care. Transition bags or boxes can include favourite books, toys and family photographs, providing familiar material as relationships develop.

Famly is the online learning journey used to share development and daily information, including eating and sleeping. During a child's observation period, parents are invited to contribute information about interests, development or significant events at home; the resulting observations are then shared through the app. This gives parents a role in planning, rather than only receiving an account afterwards.

In October 2022, families took home nature bags to collect natural objects with their children. Those finds returned to number activities and conversations about the natural world. The link between home and nursery learning was practical: something a child collected could become something to count or discuss.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the October 2022 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and SEND support contributing to substantial progress, including the use of additional funding for individual support. These are dated inspection findings, rather than a promise about the support any particular child will receive.

The Local Offer sets out how support is planned: parents and the key person discuss concerns privately, the SENCO helps organise next steps, and advice from the Area SENCO can be sought with parental permission. Visual timetables and now/then boards can help children understand routines; support targets are reviewed with parents. The emphasis is on identifying the child's needs and agreeing practical adjustments.

School transition can include sharing successful strategies and learning records, arranging review meetings, and creating a photograph book of the next setting. New practitioners can be invited to discuss the child's strengths and needs. This is preparation for a change of setting, with familiar information travelling alongside the child.

Sessions and Attendance

The nursery opens Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm, for 51 weeks of the year, with bank-holiday closures and approximately a week closed over Christmas. A minimum booking of two three-hour sessions per week applies. Sessions can start at 8am, 9am or 1pm, and finish at 1pm, 3pm, 4pm, 5pm or 6pm.

Funded session options are 8am to 4pm and 9am to 5pm, with 9am to 3pm also offered for the 15-hour entitlement. Only one funded session can be used each day. These choices need to be read alongside the allocation of funded and private hours: a session's length does not mean every hour within it is funded.

Enquiries can be made by telephone on 07818 50 54 69. Fees for booked hours remain payable when a child is on holiday or off sick; nursery closures are not charged. This makes the regular booking a financial commitment as well as an attendance plan.

Getting There

The address is 29 Glynn Road, Peacehaven, BN10 8AT. The driveway accommodates up to three cars in marked spaces; when it is full, considerate road parking is requested, keeping driveways, dropped kerbs and pavements clear.

Funding and Paid Extras

The Forest nursery offers 15 and 30 hours EYEE, subject to eligibility, stretched across 47 weeks. The stated weekly allocations are 12 or 24 hours respectively. Opening for 51 weeks means some open weeks sit outside that funded calendar: attendance during the specified non-funded weeks is charged privately, and opting out of those weeks requires one month's notice.

Additional hours are charged separately. Optional uniform and chargeable outings or events also sit outside childcare funding, with event costs communicated beforehand so parents can decide whether their child participates. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation; the opening times and fees page is the starting point for the attendance terms.

Food is prepared in-house, with seasonal menus rotating over three weeks; the nursery publishes a peanut-free policy covering its meals and food brought from home. For private hours, snacks and drinks are included, breakfast and lunch cost extra, and the 5pm to 6pm rate includes hot dinner; under the funded offer, snacks and water are provided and parents supply lunch.

• Funding calendar. Care runs across 51 weeks, while funding is stretched over 47. Before booking, ask for a written breakdown showing funded hours, private hours and the effect of attending during the non-funded weeks.
• Outdoor participation. Forest School runs several times a week and the garden is used throughout the year. During a visit, discuss how the outdoor routine works for your child's age and what clothing they need.
• Food and allergies. The peanut-free policy applies to nursery food and lunchboxes. Families managing allergies should confirm current handling arrangements, including food used in play and the lunch their child will bring.

Wild Monkeys suits families seeking regular Forest School activity, age-stage groups and detailed communication about development. Its 2022 Outstanding judgement provides a strong dated assessment.

Shorter sessions with afternoon starts and longer 8am to 4pm or 9am to 5pm funded-session patterns serve different routines. Families needing care during the non-funded weeks must budget for private charges.