St Olave's Nursery

Imaginative play gives St Olave's Nursery its character: in March 2024, children assembled their own airport story, collecting props themselves rather than waiting for adults to direct the action. Resources were within children's reach. That gave them room to make decisions and develop an idea together.

At its March 2024 inspection, Ofsted judged the nursery Good overall and safeguarding effective. The setting has 40 places in total, with an early-years age range of 6 to 60 months, at Church Walk in Streatham Vale. Full-day, half-day and term-time attendance provide different ways to organise childcare.

The Early Years Foundation Stage provides the framework for learning and care, encompassing children's language, physical development, relationships and exploration through play. At St Olave's, indoor resources and an equipped outdoor play area give children different settings for those experiences. The garden matters here, rather than serving simply as a break from indoor activity.

In March 2024, children searched for worms, handled them carefully and used the garden to act out a bear hunt. Moving between running, stamping and quieter steps brought physical movement into storytelling. These are concrete examples of how outdoor play can combine imagination, coordination and attention to living things.

Indoors that month, an activity using oats, brushes and other implements encouraged children to experiment with marks. Staff also extended a conversation about bodies by asking children to imagine having no bones; children responded through movement. Both examples show adults building on an idea instead of supplying every answer.

There was a qualification to that picture. In March 2024, some children encountered a phonics scheme before they were developmentally ready for it. Reviewing literacy teaching for older children was therefore an improvement priority. For parents, the useful distinction is between encouraging early communication and introducing formal teaching at the right stage for each child.

Respect showed up in everyday routines in March 2024: staff sought children's permission before intimate care, while children helped shape the nursery's behaviour rules. Sharing, taking turns and polite exchanges were practised during ordinary play. This made expectations something children participated in, rather than simply instructions from adults.

At the March 2024 inspection, Ofsted found that visual cues, words in children's other languages and the special educational needs coordinator's assessments and work with professionals supported inclusion and children's progress. That is a specific account of support in practice, with assessment linked to outside expertise.

Emotional learning was also visible that month. Stories and facial expressions helped children explore feelings, and adults demonstrated responses to sadness and anger. Parents received updates that helped them continue learning at home. Together, these practices connected the nursery day with conversations beyond it.

Staff development needed more structure. In March 2024, training, peer observation and coaching were in place, but supervision meetings were not arranged regularly enough to give staff consistent opportunities to reflect on their work. This was the other improvement priority, alongside literacy teaching.

Sessions and Attendance

Opening hours are 7.45am to 6pm on weekdays. Attendance options include full days, half days, mornings, afternoons and flexible hours, with both shorter and longer placements and term-time attendance.

Funded morning sessions run from 9am to noon, and funded afternoons from 1pm to 4pm; both operate during term time and exclude meals. These shorter blocks offer a different attendance pattern from a full day. After-school care includes collection from local schools, while holiday clubs and after-school provision exclude Christmas.

Funding and Paid Extras

Eligible families can use 15/30 Hours funding. Meals are included with non-funded care; funded sessions exclude them, with lunch charged separately or supplied by parents. An in-house team prepares warm food.

A deposit is required and is refundable within six weeks of a child starting. Leaving requires four weeks' notice. Families can request a current written quotation through the contact form, email or telephone, so the attendance pattern and its charges can be considered together.

• Literacy at the right stage. March 2024 brought an improvement priority around phonics readiness. During a visit, ask how staff decide when an older child is ready for more formal literacy work.
• Staff reflection. Supervision was insufficiently regular in March 2024, despite training and coaching. Ask how reflective meetings now fit into staff development.
• Funded sessions and everyday supplies. The term-time morning and afternoon blocks exclude meals.

St Olave's suits families considering full-day attendance as well as half days or shorter term-time funded sessions. Its strongest character comes from the March 2024 examples of child-led imaginative play, garden exploration and emotional learning, rather than a branded programme.

The Good judgement provides a positive inspection position, but literacy readiness and regular staff supervision remain the two dated improvement priorities to weigh. For parents, the decision combines an adaptable attendance offer with a clear picture of the practices that deserved attention.