Butterflies Child and Baby Care Services

Dough, stories and conversation give Butterflies its clearest educational character. In May 2023, children chose ingredients for dough, talked through shared activities and explored books in different ways according to their age. These everyday experiences put language into use rather than keeping it for a separate lesson.

At its May 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good and found safeguarding effective, with strengths in communication, independence and support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. The judgement came with two practical improvements: more demanding questions to extend children's thinking, and better teaching about healthy food choices.

Based at Edmonton Sports and Social Club on Church Street in Edmonton, Butterflies has capacity for 45 children, with a current age range of one month to five years. Full-day and half-day attendance offer different ways to organise care around family routines.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) framework connects learning with care: children develop through play, planned activities and experiences shaped around their development. It is the shared foundation for early-years provision. Butterflies adds a topic-based curriculum that also takes account of children's interests, using ongoing assessments to decide what comes next.

Parents contribute information about their child's development during settling, then receive a progress report each term and an invitation to add their own observations. That creates a useful exchange between home and nursery: planning can draw on what a child does in both places. The curriculum page explains this approach.

In May 2023, dough-making involved children selecting colours and flavours, while staff added words to describe ingredients and textures. A jelly activity returned to earlier learning about the senses. The practical value is clear: familiar materials gave children something concrete to discuss, and activities connected new learning with earlier experiences.

Storytelling also changed with age in May 2023. Older children performed stories, toddlers anticipated familiar plot developments, and babies looked at books alongside adults and practised turning pages. However, questions during stories did not consistently push children's understanding further. Enjoyment of books was a strength; the next step was to make the discussion more searching.

Outdoor and Community Life

Physical play had substance in May 2023. Babies explored a low-level frame, while older children balanced on tyres and used climbing equipment. Chalk, brushes and tools for picking up small items brought hand movements into outdoor activity too. The opportunities served different stages of development, from early climbing to more confident balancing.

In May 2023, parents joined nursery events including the graduation ceremony, Mother's day and Valentine's day. These celebrations gave parents opportunities to participate in nursery life beyond everyday updates.

Relationships and Communication

Settling is gradual. Parents can remain with their child until they feel ready to leave, and staff work with the family during the introduction to nursery routines. This gives the first weeks room to respond to the child, rather than requiring an immediate separation.

Famly, the online communication system, lets parents see their child's nursery experiences and contribute comments or experiences from home. It complements the termly developmental reports with a more immediate exchange. Families can share something a child has enjoyed or achieved outside nursery, giving practitioners another starting point for conversation and planning.

Each child has a cot or bed for rest. That is a useful physical provision for families whose child still needs sleep during the day, alongside the learning and activity programme.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

Support for learning difficulties and disabilities includes working with outside agencies and gathering information about a child's particular needs. At the May 2023 inspection, Ofsted found that families and practitioners worked with the coordinator for special educational needs and outside agencies to arrange prompt support, while adapted activities enabled children to participate in the curriculum.

In May 2023, children practised everyday independence by serving food, clearing their plates and washing their hands. These routines gave them repeated opportunities to manage small tasks for themselves and contributed to preparation for school. The improvement concerning healthy eating was about explaining the benefits of food choices, rather than simply serving healthy meals.

Collection arrangements require details and a photograph for authorised adults. Until the authorisation form is held, collection is restricted to the main carer. Families need to organise that paperwork before another adult takes responsibility for collecting their child.

Sessions and Attendance

Butterflies opens Monday to Friday, normally from 8am to 6pm, across 50 weeks of the year, excluding bank holidays. Attendance can cover a whole week, part of a week or individual sessions. Paid half days run from 8am to 1pm or from 1pm to 6pm, giving families a choice between morning and afternoon care.

For term-time funding, the 30-hour pattern is three days from 8am to 6pm across 38 weeks. The 15-hour pattern can use the morning or afternoon half-day windows across 38 weeks, with only one funded session chosen on a day. These are specific attendance arrangements, rather than a promise that any combination of days can be secured.

Applications are held on a waiting list. An offer is made by telephone and then followed up in writing. General enquiries can be made by telephone, email or the contact form. The nursery's address is Edmonton Sports and Social Club, Church Street, Edmonton, N9 9HL.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare includes the 15-hour arrangement for three- and four-year-olds and the 30-hour arrangement for eligible working families with children of those ages, alongside funding for eligible two-year-olds. Entitlement can be used during term time or spread across the year; the year-round calculation covers 48 weeks, with additional weeks charged privately. Eligibility conditions apply, and private childcare is also offered.

Breakfast, lunch, tea and snacks are supplied according to attendance; meals during funded sessions carry a separate charge. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation, and the fees page sets out the attendance and funding structure.

Fee-paying parents pay a deposit credited towards the final month's fees when notice is given, rather than returned as cash, alongside a non-refundable registration charge. For monthly attendance, ending the place or changing attendance times requires at least one month's written notice, or fees in place of notice. Fees remain payable during sickness and holidays, and missed attendance cannot be replaced with another session.

• Learning beyond the activity. The May 2023 improvements concerned extending children's thinking through questions and explaining healthy food choices. During a visit, ask how staff now build those conversations into stories and mealtimes.
• The funded timetable. Morning and afternoon windows sit alongside the three-day, 30-hour pattern, and only one funded session can be chosen each day. Discuss the intended weekly pattern before committing, including how stretched funding and separately charged meals would work for your family.
• Baby routines. Every child has a cot or bed, and settling can include a parent staying. At a visit, ask how your baby's sleep routine will be managed.
• The financial commitment. The fee schedule dates its prices to November 2019, while the terms require notice for monthly attendance and credit the deposit against the final month. Obtain a current written quotation covering the whole arrangement before signing.

Butterflies suits families seeking either full-day attendance or morning and afternoon half days, with an interest in play-based learning and regular communication through Famly. Its most useful practical features are gradual settling, individual rest provision and a funding structure with defined attendance windows.

The May 2023 judgement gives a positive, dated assessment, supported by concrete examples of language learning and growing independence. The two improvements remain sensible questions for a visit. The decision is likely to turn on how the attendance pattern, settling arrangements and overall quotation fit the family's week.