Magdalen Nursery, Sutton

A converted church, a treehouse themed room and a baby room capped at six children give Magdalen Nursery, Sutton a recognisable character. The building offers more than an unusual backdrop: art spaces, a library and the Construction Zone give children different ways to pursue an interest, while the youngest children have their own smaller space.

Children are accepted from 3 months to 5 years, with 75 places in total. At its July 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good and found safeguarding effective. That is a dated judgement, rather than a fresh assessment of today's care.

The strongest practical distinction is between the small baby room and the more expansive spaces for older children. Attendance choices include paid days and funded-only arrangements, with the detail of charges and nursery-selected days making the choice of package consequential.

Rooms and Ages

The baby room accommodates up to six children each day in a dedicated space. For parents choosing care for a very young child, that room maximum is more useful than the whole nursery's capacity: it describes the scale of the immediate environment, rather than the number of children across the setting.

Five classrooms occupy the converted church. The larger indoor space combines a treehouse themed room with art areas, a library and the Construction Zone; resources are positioned within children's reach, allowing them to choose materials for themselves. These are concrete opportunities for making, reading and imaginative play, rather than a single activity shared by everyone.

Upstairs, the preschool classroom emphasises independence and preparation for school through a mixture of structure and freedom. Its position and purpose distinguish it from the baby provision, while the wider indoor spaces allow children to follow their interests.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the common educational foundation: children's learning encompasses communication, physical development, relationships and early understanding through their everyday experiences. It is the baseline for provision here, rather than a special programme offered instead of it.

Debutots adds storytelling through movement and sensory experiences, developing into drama, role play and children retelling stories as they get older. That progression gives the programme substance: younger children can participate physically, while older children have opportunities to recreate a narrative in their own way.

In July 2022, activities based on The Three Little Pigs included model-making from discarded materials, pretend play, dough, sensory exploration and writing. The same story became a starting point for several kinds of activity. Individual learning plans also addressed each child's next developmental step, rather than treating age alone as the guide to what came next.

Language practice was a point for improvement in July 2022. Adults sometimes dominated exchanges with younger children, leaving too little room for them to respond; staff needed to develop their support for children's conversations. Storytelling opportunities and the quality of an adult's response are separate considerations, and both matter.

Outdoor and Community Life

A large garden gives children space to run and explore nature, with different activity areas intended for use across the weather. Regular outings extend experiences into the surrounding community and further afield. The useful distinction is between outdoor play within the nursery and opportunities to encounter places beyond it; the outings are regular, rather than tied to a stated weekly timetable.

Relationships and Communication

Settling sessions take place in a child's base room after a place is confirmed, preferably shortly before the start date. This makes the transition a planned sequence with the room the child will actually use. Emergency admissions can involve a different settling arrangement to accommodate the family.

In July 2022, babies developed familiarity with their key person, and staff used affection, bubbles and sensory experiences to help when they became upset. Relationships with parents were also part of settling.

Daily routines needed closer attention in July 2022: staff did not consistently adjust them to each child's needs. For babies whose sleep or feeding patterns are changing, adapting routines to individual needs matters.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the July 2022 inspection, Ofsted found that staff supported children with SEND and children learning English as an additional language through work with outside agencies, home-language word cards and the use of other languages in conversation. The finding identifies practical support mechanisms, rather than a general promise that every need can be met.

Independence also featured in July 2022, when preschool children helped themselves to lunch and cleared up afterwards, while older children had opportunities for meditation or rest. Those everyday tasks connected care with learning to manage personal needs and shared routines.

Sessions and Attendance

The nursery is at 44 Cheam Road, Sutton, SM1 2SS. Opening hours are 7.30am to 6.30pm on weekdays, with closures for bank holidays and Christmas week; funded provision is stretched across 51 weeks.

Funded-only attendance runs from 8am to 6pm. Private attendance is priced for two, three, four or five days, while funded-only arrangements use one day for the 15-hour entitlement or two days for the 30-hour entitlement. These funded-only patterns do not use the entire annual entitlement: the stated maxima are 510 and 1,020 hours respectively.

For funded-only attendance, the nursery chooses the days and prioritises Mondays and Fridays. This is a durable allocation rule, not a statement about places currently free. It matters if a family's work pattern depends on particular weekdays.

Applications enter a waiting-list system. Existing families seeking an internal transfer take priority, and bookings covering more full days take precedence over those covering fewer days. A place offer is made in writing and requires written acceptance and agreement to the terms.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funding includes 15 hours for eligible two-year-olds receiving government support, the universal 15-hour entitlement for three- and four-year-olds, and 30 hours for eligible working families with children from 9 months to 4 years. The stretched model spreads entitlement across the year, so the weekly funded allocation is lower than the headline entitlement.

Magdalen All Inclusive Package combines additional hours, food, consumables and activities in one package. The complete package using the 30-hour entitlement requires at least three attendance days; the two-day funded-only pattern is a separate option. Magdalen Options Menu separates those additions, allowing families to select services. Opting out of additional charges may exclude children from certain activities and resources, while core EYFS provision remains free. Funded-only attendance has a no-cost option, while the government-supported and universal all-in arrangements charge for food and include the other extras. Meals and non-food consumables therefore vary by package: they are included in the complete package and charged as selected additions under the options arrangement, rather than universally included with funded hours.

Chefs prepare meals fresh each day for the meal package; families supplying their own food must use ice packs because it cannot be refrigerated or reheated at nursery. The packed-food policy excludes nuts and nut products and requires ingredient labelling and three snacks daily.

The waiting-list registration charge is non-refundable, but it is waived for government-funded-only attendance without additional services, with settling sessions taken within the funded entitlement. An accepted offer normally requires a refundable deposit credited against the final invoice, while funded-only attendance without extra services may require a refundable deposit subject to its separate conditions.

Fees are spread into equal monthly payments, and absence through illness or holidays does not produce a refund or deduction. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

• Individual routines. In July 2022, routines were not consistently adapted to individual children. During a visit, ask how the baby room now accommodates changing sleep and feeding needs.
• Conversation practice. In July 2022, younger children sometimes had too little opportunity to respond during conversations. Ask how practitioners allow time for children to contribute during stories and everyday exchanges.
• Funded days and entitlement. Funded-only attendance uses nursery-selected days and does not maximise the annual entitlement. Compare the proposed days and total funded hours with the package that includes additional paid hours before accepting an offer.
• Packed food and allergies. Home-provided food cannot be chilled or warmed by the nursery, and the policy excludes nuts from packed meals. Allergy-affected families should confirm current practice and discuss how their child's food will be handled.

Magdalen Sutton suits families drawn to a small baby room, generous shared play spaces and storytelling that develops from movement into drama. The converted church, Construction Zone and Debutots give the offer a clear identity. The July 2022 Good judgement provides a positive inspection position, with conversation practice and individual routines supplying the necessary balance.

Its attendance model serves families booking two to five paid days as well as those choosing one- or two-day funded-only patterns. The latter involves nursery-selected weekdays and a reduced use of the full entitlement. Choosing between those arrangements, and between inclusive services and separate additions, is central to whether the nursery fits family life.