The Lodge Preschool and Nursery

The Lodge Preschool and Nursery is a setting at 88 Southborough Road, Bromley, BR1 2EN, caring for children from birth to five. Ofsted judged it Good in August 2021, with Outstanding judgements for behaviour and attitudes and personal development. That inspection is now historic, but its branch-level detail shows a calm, purposeful setting where children settled quickly and made good progress.

In August 2021, children across the age range appeared secure with familiar adults and ready to communicate. The practical detail is strong: younger children practised hand-to-eye coordination with a golf club and ball, and older children painted while lying on their tummies outdoors to strengthen muscles used for pencil control.

The Early Years Foundation Stage sets the educational programmes, goals and assessment points for an English nursery. In daily practice, this means learning through play across communication, physical development, personal and social development, literacy, mathematics, understanding the world and expressive arts. In 2021, books were a clear strength here. Children used cosy reading areas carefully, listened intently to expressive stories and predicted what might happen next. This combination matters: stories build attention and language, while tummy-time and outdoor painting connect physical strength to later mark-making. The approach seen that day did not separate care from learning. Comfort, conversation and challenge sat within ordinary routines.

Concentration was another clear marker. In August 2021, children sustained attention, behaved extremely well and showed strongly positive attitudes to learning. Younger children explored calmly, while older children joined in with stories and anticipated what would happen next. Those observations point to children who could engage deeply rather than simply move between activities.

Secure relationships carried real weight in August 2021. Babies and toddlers sought reassurance and cuddles from familiar adults, and children formed trusting bonds with their key person. Recordings in home languages comforted children learning English, while children with special educational needs and disabilities received effective support.

Safeguarding was effective at that inspection, when staff understood their safeguarding responsibilities. Parents also praised the individual support children received from settling through preparation for school. In August 2021, staff consistently helped children understand feelings and behaviour, while the manager prioritised staff development and wellbeing. Stable, supported adults are important because the youngest children depend on familiar responses and older children need practitioners who know when to extend an idea.

The 2021 report identified one precise improvement point: staff needed stronger support to recognise spontaneous opportunities and use them to extend learning. This is a meaningful question for families, because good planned activities are only half of early-years teaching; skilled practitioners also build on the unexpected comment, discovery or interest that emerges during play.

The setting is at 88 Southborough Road, Bromley, BR1 2EN. It cares for children from birth to five. Its booking model includes full-day attendance; families should discuss which days can form the required pattern. Families should request a current provider-specific quotation for prices and terms. The Southborough Road address and birth-to-five age range make the essentials clear, while the precise pattern will decide whether care fits working hours and family routines.

• Inspection age. The detailed practice evidence dates from August 2021, so compare its strengths with what happens for the relevant age group now.
• Daily arrangements. Discuss the required attendance pattern alongside food, consumables and funded-hours terms before accepting a place.
• Spontaneous teaching. Ofsted's 2021 improvement point asked leaders to help staff recognise unplanned opportunities and deepen children's learning; explore how this now works in practice.

This is a setting with a credible inspection-era picture of affectionate relationships, purposeful play and exceptional attitudes to learning. The age of that evidence matters, and the improvement point gives parents a useful lens for a visit rather than a reason to dismiss the setting.

The Lodge best suits families who value secure key-person bonds, serious attention to books and plenty of physical and outdoor learning. The 2021 inspection found highly positive attitudes and behaviour, with a precise development point around spontaneous teaching. Families seeking either full-week care or part-week attendance should establish the current patterns directly because those arrangements will shape whether the setting fits family life.