Millie's House Nursery & Pre-School, Cambridge Ave

A mud kitchen, gardening and newly hatched chicks gave children practical ways to explore living things at Cambridge Avenue in April 2022. That hands-on character is the strongest thread in the nursery's inspection account, alongside children learning to manage everyday tasks for themselves.

At its April 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good, judged safeguarding effective and found that children, including those with special educational needs or disabilities and those learning English as an additional language, were progressing well. These are dated judgements. The clearest reservation concerned how fully parents could participate in their children's learning.

Millie's House Nursery & Pre-School, Cambridge Ave, in New Malden, accepts children from three months to five years and has 65 places in total. Full-day and half-day attendance sit alongside specific funded afternoon and shorter-day arrangements, giving families several different ways to use the setting.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage is the required framework for children's care and learning, bringing development and education together through play and everyday experiences. At Cambridge Avenue, the April 2022 examples made that practical: sound-making for babies, colour mixing for toddlers and collaborative physical challenges for older children.

In April 2022, babies experimented with instruments and listened to the sounds they produced. Toddlers combined paints with brushes and rollers, then shared their discoveries with friends. Older children assembled an obstacle course, deciding together where equipment should go before practising balancing, jumping and throwing. The activities changed with children's development rather than asking every age to do the same thing.

Small movements received attention too. In April 2022, serving food with spoons and tongs, handling jugs and using painting tools gave children practice controlling their hands. Such tasks connected physical development with useful actions during the day, rather than keeping it solely within an organised activity.

Outdoor and Community Life

In April 2022, outdoor exploration included a mud kitchen, planting and gardening. Caring for newly hatched chicks brought another dimension: children discussed the food and water the chicks needed. Nature became something to look after as well as investigate.

Wooden beams also featured in physical play in April 2022. Running, throwing and balancing gave older children different movement challenges, while babies practised sitting, crawling and walking. For parents, these examples show the breadth of the inspection-era experiences more clearly than a general promise of outdoor learning.

Relationships and Communication

In April 2022, care routines included conversation, songs and attentive interaction during changing, handwashing and meals. Staff modelled considerate behaviour, and children practised sharing turns and treating each other kindly. The practical value was continuity: relationships were built during necessary care as well as during play.

In April 2022, communication and partnership with families needed strengthening so parents could contribute more fully to learning, despite daily feedback and an online progress system already being in use. That distinction matters. Receiving an account of the day and knowing how to extend learning at home are different kinds of support.

Settling-in attendance is charged using the relevant hourly or session rate. Families should include this stage when considering the overall cost of joining, rather than budgeting only for their eventual regular pattern.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

In April 2022, staff worked with parents when concerns arose about children's development. Children also practised dressing, using the toilet and washing their hands independently, with older children managing coats and shoes. These small tasks made independence part of ordinary nursery life. Children also picked up dropped toys in April 2022, learning that their own actions helped keep the play space safe.

The food arrangements observed in April 2022 included cooked meals and snacks, with staff supervising children while they ate. Mealtimes also provided opportunities to practise using cutlery and serving food. The current funded-hours terms make food and consumables free of additional charges, a separate practical consideration from those dated observations.

Sessions and Attendance

The nursery is at 1 Cambridge Avenue, New Malden, KT3 4JY. It opens throughout the year, with weekday opening hours of 8am to 6pm. Full days and half days are attendance options; separately priced early and late periods run from 7.30am to 8am and from 6pm to 6.30pm.

Funded attendance has its own timetable. Extended funding is used in seven-hour days from 11am to 6pm or eight-hour days from 10am to 6pm. To use the full stretched allocation across 51 weeks, children attend at least three days.

Universal funding is allocated to afternoon attendance from 1pm to 6pm during term time. Using the full universal entitlement requires attendance on at least three days per week, with funding allocated to afternoon sessions. Attendance beyond the funded allocation is charged separately. These patterns deserve attention before families choose between half days, funded afternoons and full days.

Enquiries can be made by telephone on 020 8942 8195 or by email to cambridgeavenue@millieshouse.net.

Funding and Paid Extras

Extended Funded Early Education covers the nine-month-to-two-year age band and children over three, with 22 weekly hours spread across 51 weeks; eligible children can start from the term after they turn nine months. Universal Funding provides 15 weekly hours across 38 term-time weeks, starting from the term after a child turns three. Extended entitlement depends on eligibility, and families using it must reconfirm their eligibility every three months.

Food, activities and consumables carry no additional charge during funded hours. Private hours beyond the funded allocation are charged separately. Enrolment also carries a non-refundable registration charge, and settling-in sessions are paid for; current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

• Communication beyond the daily update. Parent participation was the improvement point in April 2022. On a visit, ask how families now contribute to next steps and receive practical ideas for learning at home.
• The funded timetable. Extended funding uses seven- and eight-hour days, while universal funding is assigned to afternoons. Compare those start times with your working day and the additional private hours you would need.
• Settling costs. Settling-in attendance is charged, and the enrolment charge is non-refundable. Include both when reviewing the written quotation.

Cambridge Avenue suits families considering full days or half days, as well as those whose routines fit funded afternoons or later-starting funded days. Its April 2022 strengths were tangible: exploring nature, developing movement and practising independence through daily tasks.

The parent-communication concern deserves equal weight. Families who want to participate closely in learning should use their visit to understand how that partnership works now. The choice rests on both the child's experience and whether the attendance pattern fits family life.