Toddle-Inn

Six children is the limit in Bear Cubs, Toddle-Inn’s baby room, where a separate sleep room and routines shaped around each baby give families concrete details to weigh. This Romford nursery has capacity for 30 children aged three months to five years. Its youngest room deserves attention from parents choosing their baby’s first childcare setting.

At its June 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated Toddle-Inn Good. The main improvement concerned early writing: staff needed a better understanding of how to guide children’s literacy development. That is a useful counterweight to the account of children exploring nature, choosing library books and becoming more independent.

Full days, mornings and afternoons are offered, with additional care around those sessions. Meals and everyday essentials are included, which simplifies what families need to pack and budget for.

Rooms and Ages

Bear Cubs takes children from three months to two years, with a maximum of six. Sensory experiences include sounds, textures and movement; songs and stories bring early communication into the day. The small published room cap gives parents a clear measure of its scale, separate from the nursery’s total capacity.

A separate sleep room gives rest its own space. Feeding, sleep and comfort follow each baby’s familiar routines, discussed with parents, while the garden provides opportunities for movement and exploring nature. These arrangements make the room’s practical care as relevant as its play resources.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage guides planning in Bear Cubs: practitioners observe children’s interests and use them to shape experiences such as sensory play, stories and movement. For parents, that means learning is connected to what their baby enjoys exploring. It is the framework for the room’s work, alongside its individual care routines.

In June 2023, communication, social skills and independence shaped the nursery’s learning priorities. Caring for pet snails gave children a reason to investigate living things, including their habitats and food. Staff also taught children new words, helping them build their vocabulary.

Books also led beyond the nursery in June 2023. Preschool children visited the local library, chose books to bring back and discussed factual reading with staff. The practical appeal is the connection between selecting a book, hearing it read and using new words in conversation. Writing needed more consistent guidance, however, especially when children developed mistaken ideas during activities.

Outdoor and Community Life

In June 2023, outdoor play included climbing equipment, ball games, jumping and running. Regular outings took children to a local park and farms, extending their experiences beyond the premises. The frequency matters: these were regular outings, with no fixed weekly schedule attached to that finding.

For Bear Cubs today, garden experiences sit alongside sensory and creative play. Babies can explore movement, nature and seasonal changes, with activities shaped around their interests. Outdoor learning therefore has a place in the youngest children’s day as well as in the older inspection account.

Individual routines are central to Bear Cubs. Parents discuss feeding, comfort and sleep with staff, and settling visits proceed at the child’s pace. Updates cover nappies, meals, naps, activities and wellbeing, giving families a practical picture of how their baby’s day has gone.

Continuity has a concrete basis in the team’s tenure. The manager and deputy have each worked at Toddle-Inn for over 14 years, and several other practitioners have been there for at least seven. Familiar staff can help sustain relationships as children and families get to know the nursery. Practitioners also refresh their first aid, safeguarding and early years knowledge through training.

At its June 2023 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and described staff adapting their interactions for children with learning delays, working with other professionals to obtain additional advice and support. Those are dated findings about practice, rather than a general promise about every child’s needs.

In June 2023, key persons knew children’s developing abilities and used that knowledge when planning their next learning steps. Families received information through an online app about routines and learning, together with ideas for supporting development at home. That links the nursery day with what parents can do themselves.

A nursery chef prepares meals and snacks each day, with vegetarian, vegan, cultural and religious dietary requirements accommodated. The nursery works with families on allergies and food intolerances, discussing menus where individual support is needed.

Toddle-Inn is at 105 Heath Park Road, Romford, RM2 5XH. Telephone enquiries and nursery tour bookings use 01708 456123.

Sessions and Attendance

The nursery operates across 52 weeks of the year. A full day runs from 8am to 6pm; morning sessions run from 8am to 1pm, and afternoons from 1pm to 6pm. Half days are also offered. These give families several attendance patterns to consider against work and other commitments.

Early starts begin from 7.30am, with late finishes until 6.30pm. Wraparound and flexible additional paid care can sit before, after or alongside funded hours, subject to availability and the nursery’s arrangements. The distinction matters for budgeting: funded entitlement and the extra childcare a family buys are separate parts of the calculation.

Funding and Paid Extras

Eligible working families with children aged nine months to school age may receive up to 30 funded hours for 38 weeks each year, subject to government rules, valid codes, nursery availability and current terms. Universal funding provides 15 hours for three- and four-year-olds from the relevant term, subject to the nursery’s availability and terms; some two-year-olds qualify through additional support criteria, with participation subject to those arrangements too.

Term-time or stretched arrangements are offered, with stretching dependent on the nursery’s current arrangements and availability. Stretching means using fewer funded hours each week over more weeks. Funded families receive an individual calculation that takes account of entitlement, sessions and additional paid hours.

Meals, snacks and drinks are included at no extra cost, as are nappies, wipes and sun cream; the funding guide also includes meals and everyday essentials for funded childcare. This reduces the number of routine items parents need to supply. The fees and funding page explains the charge structure. For current prices, ask the nursery for a quotation.

• Early writing. In June 2023, guidance during writing activities needed strengthening. A visit is an opportunity to discuss how staff now respond to children’s early attempts at writing.
• The baby-room fit. Bear Cubs has a six-child maximum, individual routines and a separate sleep room. During a tour, discuss how your baby’s feeding and sleep pattern would work within that arrangement.
• Combining funding and sessions. Stretched funding and extra paid care depend on the nursery’s arrangements and availability. Review the personalised calculation against the morning, afternoon or full-day pattern your family wants.
• Dietary requirements. The chef and nursery team work with families on individual needs. Families affected by allergies should confirm current meal preparation and menu arrangements.

Toddle-Inn suits families considering morning or afternoon sessions as well as full days, with extra care around them where arrangements allow. Bear Cubs provides the clearest current detail: a six-child cap, separate sleep space and routines agreed with parents. Included meals and everyday essentials add practical value across the nursery offer.

The June 2023 Good judgement provides a dated quality reference, with early writing the point requiring attention. For families weighing baby care and flexible attendance together, the room arrangements and session choices give this nursery a clear identity.