Liz Day Care Centre Kempe Hall

Small acts of independence give Kempe Hall its clearest character: children pouring drinks, clearing dishes and learning to manage the ordinary tasks of the day. At its May 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good and judged safeguarding effective. That assessment provides a useful starting point, alongside two material concerns about staffing and opportunities for indoor physical activity.

Liz Day Care Centre Kempe Hall occupies 46 Kempe Road in Enfield, EN1 4QS, and has capacity for 46 children aged 3 to 60 months. Nursery care sits alongside separate school-age provision, including breakfast care, after-school collection and holiday care. Families should distinguish those services when considering the setting: activities and attendance patterns attached to the holiday club are not descriptions of the nursery day.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage sets expectations for children's learning, development and care: everyday play supports communication, movement, relationships and growing independence. Here, the strongest detail comes from the nursery day in May 2023, when conversation, stories and practical tasks gave children opportunities to practise those skills.

In May 2023, staff extended pretend play through conversation. A game involving toy animals and imaginary snow became a discussion about cold weather and suitable clothing. Talking about the imagined weather and what to wear helped children build vocabulary and practise sentence structure. Familiar stories also encouraged children to participate through actions and repeated words.

Practical independence ran through the same day's routines. Children served themselves water and dealt with spills; younger children emptied bowls and put dishes away. Using cutlery and remaining at the lunch table were also part of the expectations. These are useful examples for parents who want self-care to develop through daily practice.

Outdoor and Community Life

In May 2023, physical play included tricycles, balancing beams, steps and a slide. Smaller movements were practised through chalk and pen marks, fruit-serving tongs, pouring and construction. The garden gave children opportunities to move, but children choosing to remain indoors had too little active play. That distinction matters: an outdoor offer alone did not meet every child's needs throughout the day.

Separate holiday provision adds outings to the school-age offer. Weekly trips include destinations such as Forty Hall and Jump in, with extra charges potentially applying. These belong to the holiday club, rather than the nursery curriculum. Their practical value is in extending a school-holiday day beyond activities at Kempe Hall.

Relationships and Communication

In May 2023, children sought staff out to share their play and for physical reassurance. Predictable group routines helped them understand the sequence of the day, while children sometimes comforted an upset friend. These examples put relationships into concrete terms: affection, familiarity and learning to recognise another child's feelings.

Communication with parents also had a practical shape in May 2023. Staff shared updates through conversations and an app, including information parents could use to support learning at home. The current complaints procedure starts with a child's key person or room manager, then moves to the nursery manager and a formal meeting if needed. This gives families a clear sequence for raising a concern.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the May 2023 inspection, Ofsted found that staff used external professionals' recommendations effectively to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Current arrangements include a Special Education Needs Coordinator offering advice, support for children learning English as an additional language, and changes to the environment where practicable. These are specific mechanisms families can discuss in relation to their own child.

Behaviour support includes a coordinator responsible for guiding staff and parents. The policy excludes physical punishment and withholding food as a consequence, and involves parents when unwanted behaviour needs addressing. Prescription medicines require parental authorisation, suitable labelling and the original container; long-term medicines such as inhalers can also be administered.

In May 2023, staffing fell short of the required qualification coverage, with an action deadline of 30 June 2023. Leaders were supporting less experienced colleagues through modelling, training and supervision at that time. The dated shortfall remains an important point to discuss alongside the positive assessment of children's care.

Sessions and Attendance

Opening hours are 7.30am to 6.30pm, Monday to Friday. The nursery operates across the year, closing on bank holidays and for one week at Christmas. Enquiries can be made by telephone, email or the contact form.

Kempe Hall's Before and After School Club serves Capel Manor and Holiland Primary Schools. Breakfast care begins at 7.30am and continues until school drop-off; after-school care includes collection and runs until 6.30pm. This is a collection arrangement, rather than a school-admissions benefit.

The Holiday Club runs during school holidays, with an operating window of 7.30am to 6.30pm and both half-day and full-day bookings. Care on strike days and inset days depends on staffing. Holiday meals are included, and age-appropriate activities form part of the day. These details make the club relevant to families arranging care around school closures as well as ordinary holidays.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered for qualifying children, with terms referring to 15 hours and, for some children, 30 hours of nursery education each week. The funding reduction depends on the sessions attended. Families should obtain a current written quotation covering their intended pattern and any private hours through the fees page.

There is a non-refundable registration charge, while a deposit is not required. Those are separate parts of the joining cost: the registration payment is retained, rather than functioning as a refundable deposit.

A cook prepares food on site, with breakfast, hot lunch, afternoon tea, snacks and drinks served, and a menu displayed each week. Special diets can be accommodated on request; holiday-club meals are included in its fee.

• Staffing follow-up. The May 2023 staffing shortfall carried a 30 June 2023 deadline. At a visit, ask how the team now addresses that finding and supports less experienced practitioners.
• Movement indoors. In May 2023, children staying inside had insufficient opportunities for active play. Ask to see how indoor movement now fits into the day, including for children reluctant to use the garden.
• The complete quotation. Funding reductions depend on attendance, and holiday outings can attract additional charges. What does your written quotation include for nursery meals and consumables, including during funded hours?
• School-age fit. Collection serves Capel Manor and Holiland Primary Schools, while strike-day and inset-day care depends on staffing. Families using the club need an arrangement that matches their child's school and closure dates.

Kempe Hall suits families looking for nursery care across the year and, separately, school-age breakfast care, after-school collection or half-day and full-day holiday bookings. Its May 2023 day-to-day examples give substance to the emphasis on independence and communication. The staffing shortfall and uneven indoor physical activity deserve direct follow-up before choosing the setting. The decision rests on both: the useful everyday practice and how those dated concerns have been addressed.