Sankofa Day Nursery

A large garden, play-led learning and a setting with capacity for 20 children give Sankofa Day Nursery a clear identity. This Peckham nursery cares for children aged 2–5 in purpose-built premises just off Ilderton Road. Outdoor activity is a substantial part of its offer, with gardening, nature hunts and a climbing frame and slide giving children different ways to use the space.

At its 26 November 2024 inspection, Ofsted judged the nursery Good overall and found safeguarding effective. The detail behind that judgement matters: conversation, emotional expression and practical independence featured throughout the day. There was also a specific improvement point about giving children more freedom to choose resources themselves.

Families can choose full-day or half-day attendance, with flexible additional hours and term-time-only options alongside the year-round offer. That breadth makes the nursery relevant to more than one working pattern.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS provides the framework for children's learning, development and care: here, play, conversation and everyday tasks bring language, physical skills, creativity and early mathematics into the day. Activities include puzzles, drawing and construction with blocks, while talking, songs and listening give children opportunities to express themselves. Play supplies the starting point; adults help extend it.

In November 2024, staff used a collage activity to discuss different kinds of bikes, explaining unfamiliar vocabulary as the conversation developed. Another activity involved picking up miniature dinosaurs with tweezers, sorting them by colour and comparing quantities. These examples show how a single task can combine hand control, words and counting rather than treating each as a separate lesson.

Choice deserves attention too. In November 2024, children selected among indoor and outdoor activities that adults had prepared, but opportunities to pursue their own interests by choosing further resources needed extending. The distinction is useful for parents: choosing from an adult's selection is different from deciding what to investigate next.

Outdoor and Community Life

The garden provides room for active play as well as quieter exploration. Nature Scavenger Hunt involves searching for natural objects, including rocks and leaves; gardening introduces planting, watering and changes as plants grow. Music and Movement takes singing, instruments and dance outside. These are concrete uses of the outdoor space, rather than a garden that serves only as a break from indoor learning.

A climbing frame and slide add opportunities for physical challenge, while outdoor messy play includes mud and finger painting. Children can work with movement, textures and materials across the day.

Learning can continue at home through named family resources. Rainbow Fruit Kebabs combines arranging fruit with counting and talking about colours and textures; Mini Pita Pizzas lets children choose toppings and discuss ingredients. These are home activities, rather than promises about the nursery's daily menu. They give parents practical ways to connect ordinary family tasks with children's learning.

Relationships and Communication

Every child has a key person. The Famly app carries photographs, daily information, learning observations and messages from that practitioner, and parents can send messages back to staff. This gives families both an account of the day and a direct route for sharing information that may affect their child.

In November 2024, children used a greetings board to communicate their feelings and preferred greeting. Staff also signalled what would happen next in the daily routine. These small mechanisms make emotions and expectations easier to express, especially before children can explain everything in words.

Practical self-care was woven into the day in November 2024: children helped themselves to drinking water, practised hygiene and received support with toilet training through cooperation between staff and parents. Regular sessions with a yoga teacher introduced breathing and relaxation. The emphasis was on usable habits, from recognising feelings to managing personal needs.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the November 2024 inspection, Ofsted found that individual planning, work with parents and other agencies, communication pictures and targeted use of inclusion funding supported good progress for children with SEND and those learning English as an additional language. The current team structure includes a special needs coordinator, a designated safeguarding lead and a deputy safeguarding lead, giving those responsibilities identifiable roles.

A nursery cook prepares meals, and Sankofa holds Bronze HEYL, an award recognising healthy eating in early years provision. For funded attendance, meals and snacks fall within the optional consumables charge described below.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is 14 Sharratt Street, London SE15 1NR. Opening hours are 8am to 5.45pm, Monday to Friday, across 50 weeks of the year; closures include Bank Holidays and a two-week Christmas break. Those closures matter when planning care around work.

Full-day and half-day sessions are offered, together with additional hours that can be added flexibly to a chosen session. Term-time-only attendance is another option. Funded sessions can be arranged around a family's schedule, and funded hours can be spread across more days or concentrated into fewer. Enquiries can be made by email or through the contact form.

Getting There

Sankofa sits just off Ilderton Road, near South Bermondsey station, which has direct links to the city. That provides a useful public transport reference for families combining nursery attendance with a commute.

Funding and Paid Extras

Sankofa accepts 15-hour and 30-hour funding schemes according to children's ages and eligibility. Its care starts at age 2, so the broader funding scheme's younger age bands do not change the nursery's accepted ages. Private additional hours are also offered.

Funded hours cover childcare and early education. An optional, separately charged Consumables Fee covers snacks, meals and activity materials such as paint and cooking ingredients; families may instead supply their own items where appropriate. Parents bring nappies and wipes when needed, together with sun cream. Food and activity supplies therefore need distinguishing from personal care items when planning what to pay for and what to pack.

Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation. The funding and fees page explains the charge structure and the funding options.

• Children's control over play. The November 2024 improvement point concerned choosing resources independently. During a visit, ask how children now access materials and develop an idea beyond the activities adults have set out.
• Your actual attendance pattern. Full days, half days and term-time-only attendance serve different needs. Ask how your proposed pattern fits with funded hours and the Christmas and Bank Holiday closures.
• Food and personal supplies. Funded meals and activity materials sit within an optional charge, while nappies, wipes and sun cream come from home. Discuss how supplying alternatives would work for your child, including any dietary or allergy requirements.
• Meeting the setting together. Free Stay and Play sessions let children explore activities and the outdoor area while parents meet staff. Tour requests allow a preferred date and time, but the visit is confirmed only after the team replies.

Sankofa suits families with children aged 2–5 seeking either full-day attendance or shorter half-day sessions, with term-time-only care adding another useful choice. Its garden has tangible uses, its communication arrangements connect home and nursery, and the November 2024 examples give substance to the play-led approach.

The key judgement for families is how the adult-supported day balances guidance with children's own decisions. Resource choice remains the most useful point to explore, alongside the practical fit of attendance and optional charges.