LaDel's Day Nursery

A large outdoor area gives LaDel's Day Nursery room for sandpit play, gardening and physical activity. Its position at Highbury Community Centre in Thornton Heath is easy to recognise. The deciding issue for parents is safeguarding: the compliance action dated 4 May 2026 required immediate improvements.

At its February 2024 inspection, Ofsted judged the nursery Good overall and found good-quality education. On 4 May 2026, Ofsted identified inconsistent safeguarding and welfare practice, including weaknesses in recognising concerns, managing hazards and keeping records, and required immediate improvements. That later action is the latest published regulatory position as at 6 October 2026; it should frame any decision about joining.

There is capacity for 62 children, with a current age range of nine months to five years. Full-Time, Daily Sessions, mornings, afternoons and term-time funded patterns give families several attendance options.

Rooms and Ages

Baby Room routines are organised around individual feeding, sleep and play preferences rather than a rigid timetable. The routine covers babies from three to 18 months, while the nursery's current accepted age range begins at nine months. For a baby within that range, the practical emphasis is continuity with home: adults observe cues and adapt the day accordingly.

The Baby Program covers three months to two years and adds sensory toys, soft furnishings and subdued lighting, alongside songs, stories, gestures and simple signing. Physical experiences include tummy time and support for standing. These are activities, rather than a promise that children will reach milestones on a particular schedule.

For older children, the Toddler Program, for two to three years, combines imaginative play with conversation, movement and small responsibilities such as putting toys away. The Pre-School Program, for three to five years, uses rhyming, counting, storytelling and practical tasks to prepare children for the next stage. Drawing, cutting and puzzles sit alongside learning to tidy and get ready for outdoor play. Programme age bands describe the learning offer; they are separate from the whole nursery's accepted ages.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the framework for learning and care: children develop communication, early literacy and number skills through play and planned activities. Here, structured experiences sit alongside activities children choose themselves. Families also contribute songs, recipes and cultural activities, making home experience part of the nursery day.

Growing Minds brings together creative play, early number work and opportunities to talk about feelings. Stories use puppets or props, while counting, sorting and measuring games introduce mathematical ideas through practical activity. Its Mindfulness Moments are short breathing or sensory activities; Feelings Talk gives children practice in naming emotions. These activities sit alongside the EYFS requirements for learning and care.

Music is used daily, with familiar songs including Old MacDonald Had a Farm and Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star. Singing gives families something recognisable to share at home. The forthcoming calendar also includes Black History Month in October 2026, with stories, art and music, and World Book Day on 4 March 2027, when children can dress as a favourite book character.

Outdoor and Community Life

More than 2000 sqm of outdoor space supports puddle play, picnics and time in the sandpit. Gardening adds planting and looking after growing things. This is a substantial physical part of the offer, rather than outdoor learning confined to occasional outings.

In February 2024, children used tricycles and a fixed climbing frame, while younger children made chalk marks and explored with magnifying glasses. Older children also worked together on a tower made from foam bricks. Those examples show how movement, experimentation and cooperative play fitted together at that time; they are not a guarantee of today's equipment or routines.

Relationships and Communication

Each child has a Key Person, giving families a consistent adult around whom to build care arrangements. Gentle settling sessions are part of the approach, and parents can telephone for updates. The application form gathers information about separation, favourite activities, feeding and comfort, so the starting point includes what families already know about their child.

The Blossom Parent App carries messages, photographs and updates, supported by email reminders and newsletters. That gives parents more than one route for following nursery life. For babies, sleep preferences and familiar ways of providing comfort form part of the application information, giving staff a starting point for continuity with home.

In February 2024, some babies occasionally waited too long for help when unsettled during busy early periods. Another improvement concerned everyday care: adults sometimes put on bibs or cleaned faces without first explaining what would happen. Both points matter because responsive comfort and predictable routines are part of a young child's experience, not just administrative arrangements.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

A SENCO works with families of children with additional needs. Application information includes existing speech therapy, physiotherapy and Portage support. Personalised Healthcare Plans cover children with allergies or medical conditions. These are mechanisms for planning support, rather than a blanket assurance about how every need will be met.

On 4 May 2026, leaders were required to revise safeguarding procedures, improve hazard management and risk assessments, and strengthen record systems. Its outcome also stated that there were no identified risks at that time and that immediate care needs were being met. That qualification sits alongside, rather than cancels, the finding that safety and security were inconsistent.

Meals are cooked on site by a kitchen team, with a menu arranged across five weeks. The packed-lunch policy excludes nuts and nut products, prohibits food sharing and requires suitable temperature control; packed food cannot be reheated.

Preparation for school includes practising self-care and turn-taking, sharing transition information with parental permission, and contacting Reception teachers where possible. This is practical transition work. Families still make a separate application for a school place.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Highbury Community Centre, Highbury Avenue, Thornton Heath, CR7 8BQ. Opening hours are 7.30am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, across the year, with closures on bank holidays and for one week at Christmas. Enquiries can be made by telephone, email or the contact form.

Full-Time runs from 7.30am to 6pm; Daily Sessions run from 8am to 6pm. Morning bookings cover 8am to 1pm, and afternoons 1pm to 6pm. The application distinguishes full-time attendance, five days a week, from part-time attendance, and offers term-time-only or year-round attendance choices.

For 15 Hours Funded, the term-time patterns are 9am to noon over five days, or 9am to 2pm over three days. For 30 Hours Funded, families can use 8.30am to 4pm over four days, or 9am to 3pm over five days. These different distributions matter: the same entitlement can cover shorter daily attendance or fewer, longer sessions.

Admissions priority begins with looked-after children, followed by children with SEND whose needs the setting can appropriately support, vulnerable children, siblings and local children. The admissions policy allows preference for full-time applications over part-time applications according to room availability, staffing capacity and operational needs. The waiting list considers those priorities and the enquiry date when places are offered.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare includes 15-hour and 30-hour options for eligible families, with provision extending to eligible nine-month-olds as well as two-, three- and four-year-olds. The funded session patterns operate during term time. Working-parent codes require validation by the nursery and eligibility reconfirmation every three months.

Snacks are included in nursery fees, while breakfast and lunch carry separate charges; funded sessions that include lunch allow a packed lunch instead of purchasing it. Parents supply sun cream. A registration charge and deposit form part of joining, and a late-collection charge applies after the booked session finishes. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation, allowing families to distinguish attendance costs from food and joining charges.

• Safeguarding action. Immediate improvements to safeguarding, premises checks and record-keeping were required on 4 May 2026. Before committing, ask what subsequent regulatory outcome has been published and how the required changes operate in daily practice.
• Baby care and routines. February 2024 concerns involved delayed comfort for unsettled babies and insufficient explanation before personal care. During a visit, ask how the Baby Room handles busy periods and prepares children for what happens next.
• Attendance priorities. Morning, afternoon and funded patterns provide alternatives to full-time attendance. The admissions policy permits preference for full-time applications according to room availability, staffing capacity and operational needs; ask how this applies to your intended pattern.
• Food and allergies. Packed lunches are an alternative to purchased lunch, with restrictions on nuts, sharing and reheating. Allergy-affected families should confirm current practice and agree the Healthcare Plan before attendance.

LaDel's has practical appeal for families wanting morning or afternoon sessions, year-round attendance or a term-time funded pattern. Its outdoor space, sensory baby activities and named Growing Minds experiences give the offer substance. The Key Person arrangement and parent app also provide useful structures for family communication.

The safeguarding position prevents an unqualified recommendation. The welfare weaknesses identified on 4 May 2026 carry substantial weight in a current decision. The outdoor and learning offer cannot outweigh concerns about safeguarding procedures, hazard management and record-keeping.