Rosewood Montessori Day Nursery & Forest School

A dedicated Forest School garden gives Rosewood its strongest identity: outdoor exploration sits alongside Montessori learning, with sport, computing and music adding different experiences for preschool children. This Myrtle Avenue nursery in Ruislip accepts children from three months to five years and has 45 places in total. The garden matters here. Nature is part of the learning approach, rather than simply somewhere to let off steam.

At its September 2023 inspection, Ofsted judged Rosewood Good overall and found safeguarding effective. That assessment provides a useful dated benchmark, while the current offer combines sensory experiences for babies, reading and music for toddlers, and named activities for older children. Full-day, morning and afternoon bookings give families different ways to organise attendance.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage provides the framework for children's learning, development and care: play supports communication, independence and exploration. Rosewood combines this with Montessori values and Forest School, an approach centred on learning through outdoor experiences. Its curriculum connects children's understanding of themselves with wellbeing, family relationships, the natural world and learning through investigation.

Those ideas have concrete expressions. Babies have sensory areas to explore; toddlers have music and reading corners. Preschool children take part in Super Star Sport for PE, Click IT for computing and Tiny Mites for music. These additions give older children different ways to participate, from movement to technology and shared musical activity. They also make the nursery's offer easier to picture than a curriculum label alone.

Independence is a recurring emphasis. In September 2023, older children fetched their meals and took them to their tables, while younger children practised serving food with tongs. Getting ready to play outside was another opportunity to do things for themselves. These are small tasks with a practical purpose: preparing for school includes managing everyday routines, as well as joining learning activities.

Outdoor and Community Life

The dedicated Forest School garden supports a curriculum that includes gardening, exploring living things and learning to judge manageable risks. Outdoor learning gives children material to investigate and talk about, connecting physical activity with questions about the world around them.

In September 2023, children investigated worms and used the discoveries to talk about size, feelings and kindness. The mud kitchen became a pretend restaurant, while muddy water offered a different way to make marks. Moving large boxes and rearranging furniture for their play also involved physical effort. Outdoor play brought several areas of learning together in the same activity.

At that time, waterproof clothing supported outdoor play in different weather, and babies had their own outdoor area with a slide. Children also experienced storytelling visitors, computer activities and theatre outings. Those examples describe the nursery day in September 2023; the current named preschool activities provide the clearest account of today's additions.

There were teaching points to address, too. In September 2023, staff sometimes watched play rather than helping children take their learning further, and their own attention during group activities was inconsistent. The distinction matters: providing an engaging activity and extending what a child learns from it are separate tasks.

Relationships and Communication

In September 2023, settling arrangements helped children become comfortable with nursery, and staff planned activities around individual interests. Electronic updates and progress reports kept parents involved. Shared chatter books, containing family pictures and significant experiences, gave children something familiar to discuss between home and nursery.

These books connected conversation with children's own lives. Family celebrations and holidays became starting points for using new words, rather than language practice being confined to an adult-led activity. For parents, the useful element was the connection between home experiences and what children talked about during their day.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the September 2023 inspection, Ofsted found that the SENCo coordinated effective support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, working with key persons, other professionals, health visitors and local children centres. That is a specific account of how support worked at the time, rather than a general promise about inclusion.

Meals are made fresh in the nursery's own kitchen each day, using seasonal ingredients. In September 2023, parents supplied details of children's diets, allergies and care needs before they started, and staff encouraged children to try foods while respecting their preferences. The practical message for families is that eating was treated as both a care routine and an opportunity for children to make choices.

Sessions and Attendance

Rosewood is at 16 Myrtle Avenue, Ruislip, HA4 8RZ. Opening hours run from 7.30am to 6.30pm on weekdays, with 51 operating weeks each year; public holidays and a Christmas week are excluded.

The core full-day booking runs from 8am to 6pm. Morning attendance is 8am to 1pm, and afternoons run from 1pm to 6pm; a full-week pattern also uses the 8am to 6pm window. Early Start covers 7.30am to 8am, while Late Finish covers 6pm to 6.30pm. The opening window therefore extends beyond the standard sessions.

Bookings require at least four morning or afternoon sessions, or two full days, each week, including a Monday or Friday. That condition matters as much as the session length when fitting attendance around work. A dedicated buggy store provides somewhere to leave a buggy during the day, and enquiries and tour bookings can be made through the branch's contact route.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered for children aged nine months to four years, including the 15-hour and 30-hour entitlements and 2 Help funding. The standard arrangement stretches funding across the operating year: the annual 570-hour entitlement becomes 11.17 hours each week, and 1,140 hours becomes 22.34. Funding can be used alone or combined with paid attendance; funded sessions fall within the 8am to 6pm window, subject to the nursery's stated conditions.

Private-session fees include meals and consumables. During funded hours, meals, consumables and enrichment are charged separately through the optional Essentials Package; parents can opt out by contacting the manager before term begins. Consumables cover items such as wipes, nappies, nappy bags, creams and suncream. Families opting out may need to supply suitable alternatives or handle collection and disposal of consumables, depending on nursery policy.

Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation. A registration charge and a deposit apply except to fully funded places; the deposit is credited against the final invoice. Payment is monthly in advance, and permanent session changes or cancellations require one calendar month's notice. Bank-holiday charges continue, and sickness or holidays do not attract exchanges, credits or refunds.

• The weekly pattern. The minimum booking includes a Monday or Friday, whether choosing full days or morning and afternoon sessions. Use a tour discussion to work through how that requirement fits your intended week.
• Teaching during play. September 2023 improvement points concerned extending learning during play and staff modelling attention in groups. Ask for a current example of how practitioners develop a child's interest beyond the initial activity.
• Funded extras. The Essentials Package is optional during funded hours, with an opt-out deadline before term starts. Discuss the alternative arrangements before deciding which package suits your family.
• Baby care. Sensory areas are part of the baby offer, and the whole nursery has 45 places. On a visit, ask how many babies usually share the space and how their individual sleep routines are organised.

Rosewood suits families seeking Montessori learning with outdoor exploration, whether they need full days or a pattern of morning or afternoon sessions. Its Forest School garden and named preschool activities give the offer a clear character. The September 2023 Good judgement is a useful benchmark, balanced by specific teaching improvements to discuss. For families using funding, the stretched hours and optional extras deserve close attention alongside the minimum weekly booking.