Blackshaw Nursery

A purpose-built nursery within the grounds of St. George’s Hospital gives Blackshaw a clear connection to working family life: it serves hospital staff and families from the surrounding community. Its large garden, gradual settling arrangements and personal record of each child’s development give parents concrete reasons to look beyond that practical location.

Blackshaw Nursery, at 201 Blackshaw Road, Tooting, London SW17 0BZ, has capacity for 58 children aged one to five. At its October 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated it Good overall. The strongest details concern everyday relationships and play, rather than a branded learning programme: familiar adults, songs brought alive with props, and outdoor equipment that gives children room to practise physical skills.

Full-time and part-time attendance are both offered, with place sharing governed by a separate agreement. The important distinction is between the nursery’s opening window and the hours a family’s package permits.

Rooms and Ages

The youngest children are divided between Tiny Tots Room and Tweenie Room, each accommodating 12 children at approximately one to two years, while Toddler Room accommodates 13 at approximately two to three years and Pre-School Room accommodates 21 at approximately three to five years. Those are room capacities, rather than a promise that every room contains that number on any particular day.

Room moves depend on readiness and space in the next group, so birthdays do not trigger an automatic transfer. Families receive a letter identifying the next key person and explaining the move; introductory visits can extend across three weeks when needed. This makes the change a process children can become familiar with, rather than a single abrupt switch.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage supplies the educational framework: children develop language, physical skills, understanding and social confidence through play and age-appropriate activities. Blackshaw’s everyday materials include clay, water, cooking and painting, alongside stories and music. Dressing up and pretend hairdressing add opportunities to use language in imagined situations, while construction and making activities give children something to handle and change themselves.

In October 2023, dinosaur play and puzzles reflected children’s interests, and a pretend shop followed an outing to a local market. The useful connection was between an experience outside nursery and play afterwards: children could revisit what they had encountered instead of treating the outing as a separate event. Singing involved gestures and props, with changes in the adult’s voice encouraging children to join in.

There were limits to that individual approach. In October 2023, activity planning sometimes overlooked what particular children needed or enjoyed, leaving some less involved. That matters alongside the appealing activity list: the practical test is whether a child can engage with what is offered, rather than how many materials are set out.

Outdoor and Community Life

A slide, playhouse and grassed area give the garden several kinds of play, while climbing frames and tricycles provide opportunities for movement. Children use it daily when the weather permits. For a child who prefers active play, outdoor time is part of the ordinary routine rather than something reserved for an outing.

In October 2023, children also used smaller areas connected to indoor play as well as the main garden, practising climbing, jumping and riding. Occasional outings require parental agreement, and entrance costs or refreshments may attract a separate charge. The frequency remains occasional: Blackshaw’s daily outdoor offer rests on its own garden.

Relationships and Communication

Settling starts with a fee-free week, building up time away from a parent gradually. Staff adjust the timetable according to how the child responds, rather than treating the suggested schedule as a fixed test. The key person takes responsibility for this introduction and remains a point of contact for discussions about progress or difficulties.

A daily sheet records food eaten, sleep and accidents, giving parents a practical account of the day. The All About Me scrapbook serves a different purpose: it collects observations, pictures, artwork and developmental milestones, follows the child between rooms and goes home when they leave. Everyday care information and longer-term development therefore have separate records.

The Developmental Starting Points form asks about interests, home language, favourite stories and what helps when a child is upset. That gives staff a starting picture drawn from family knowledge. It also makes small but useful details, such as a child’s particular words or comforter, part of the initial conversation.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the October 2023 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and described positive support for children with SEND through work with outside agencies and help to participate in daily activities. Current SEND arrangements include a SENCO and deputy SENCO, support targets reviewed with families, and access to external help when required. The usual settling period can be extended for a child with SEND or at a parent’s request.

Information passes to the next key person when children change rooms. For a move to another setting, parents receive paperwork to pass on, and a discussion with the new setting can take place with their consent. This is transition support, keeping knowledge about the child available to the adults taking over their care.

A cook working full-time and a kitchen assistant prepare food on site, with vegetarian and medical dietary needs catered for and an allergen list obtainable on request. The nursery’s policy is to avoid intentionally serving nuts, but it warns that accidental traces may still reach food.

Security arrangements include fingerprint access and video entry at both entrances. These are access controls, alongside rules requiring advance notification when an unfamiliar adult will collect a child. They sit separately from the dated safeguarding judgement.

Sessions and Attendance

Opening hours run from 7am to 6pm on weekdays, throughout the year apart from bank holidays and two training days. A usual package permits up to nine hours daily and 45 hours weekly while parents work; additional use requires prior consent. The opening window therefore should not be read as the ordinary daily attendance allowance.

For care before 9am, parents complete the early-shift sheet at least 48 hours beforehand. When a parent is on annual, sick or maternity leave, attendance is restricted to 9am until 5.30pm. These conditions are especially relevant for families planning care around changing shifts rather than the same working day each week.

Place sharing allows children to use different portions of one place. Their attendance must not overlap, and changing the agreed days requires management approval. Private applications and applications associated with hospital employment have separate forms. General enquiries can be made on 020 8672 4789.

Getting There

The nursery has a front entrance on Blackshaw Road and rear access from St. George’s Hospital. Folded buggies can be secured to the rails outside the front entrance using a parent’s own chain padlock, which gives families travelling with a buggy a specific storage arrangement to plan around.

Funding and Paid Extras

Blackshaw offers the universal 15 hours and the additional 15 hours for eligible working families, described together as the 30 hour offer, for children aged one to four. Funding is spread across 52 weeks, with private charges applying to additional hours; entitlement does not expand the maximum weekly package. Parents must provide the required eligibility information and renew their eligibility when required.

Current prices come in the nursery’s written quotation. The fees page explains advance monthly billing, a refundable deposit when a place is offered and six full weeks of written notice before leaving. Notice starts from the following Monday if given midweek. Charges continue during holidays, absence and training closures, so the budget needs to cover the agreed place rather than only days attended.

• Hours around shifts. Ordinary use is capped at nine hours a day, and early care requires advance notification. At a visit, discuss how the agreed attendance will accommodate your working pattern, including the restrictions during parental leave.
• Continuity of place sharing. If a sharing partner leaves, the agreement ends and the remaining family may need to accept full-time care or seek a replacement partner. Continued part-time attendance can be affected if a replacement cannot be found, making the contract consequential for working arrangements.
• Independence and participation. In October 2023, children sometimes had too little opportunity to manage tasks such as shoes or drinks, and planning did not consistently engage each child. During a visit, ask how staff now make room for self-help and adapt activities to individual interests.
• Dietary care and the total bill. The nut policy acknowledges accidental traces, and some outings can carry extra charges. Before accepting a place, confirm current allergy practice and ask the written quotation to clarify meal and non-food consumable costs. Visits can be arranged by telephone after an application has been acknowledged.

Blackshaw suits families seeking either full-time attendance or part-time place sharing, especially those whose working lives connect with the hospital site. Its garden, gradual introduction to care and All About Me scrapbook make the offer tangible: space to play, time to settle and a record that follows the child.

The decision also needs to account for package limits and the dependence of place sharing on a partner. The October 2023 concerns about independence and individual planning also matter when weighing the garden and settling arrangements. This is a practical choice with recognisable daily arrangements, best assessed against the family’s actual working pattern and the child’s response to settling.