Buttercups at Little Teddies

An astro-grass garden with paved play space gives Buttercups at Little Teddies a practical outdoor identity: children have somewhere to play across the year. This Walderslade nursery has 26 places in total for children aged two to five. Bluebelle Room and Buttercups Room mark the toddler and preschool stages.

At its June 2023 inspection, Ofsted judged the nursery Good overall, found safeguarding effective and assessed support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) positively. That judgement sits alongside specific improvements requested for the daily routine and children's understanding of diversity. Both matter when weighing the learning experience.

Morning, afternoon and full-day sessions serve different childcare needs. The strongest practical combination is shorter preschool sessions alongside an opening window extending from early morning into the evening.

Rooms and Ages

Bluebelle Room serves children aged two to three, while Buttercups Room is the preschool room for ages three to five. Those age bands distinguish the stages of provision, rather than describing the number of children together at any one time.

The garden combines paving with astro-grass, allowing outdoor use throughout the year. In June 2023, children used bicycles, tackled an obstacle course and practised balance on climbing equipment. These were concrete opportunities to develop movement and coordination.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage sets the framework for children's learning, development and care. Here, its everyday meaning can be seen in the June 2023 activities: younger children worked their hands and fingers while digging for treasure in sand, and older children practised listening and taking turns in group activities.

Language had several routes into the day in June 2023. Stories and rhymes introduced vocabulary; staff paired picture prompts and signing with a timetable that showed what would happen next. These methods gave children more than spoken instructions to work with.

There were limits to the organisation of learning at that visit. In June 2023, changes between activities sometimes interrupted children's exploration, with their ideas left behind as the group moved on. Opportunities to develop understanding of diversity in modern Britain also needed extending. For parents, the useful distinction is between offering an engaging activity and allowing enough time to pursue it.

Holiday Club adds a separate out-of-term offer for children aged two to eleven. Activities include cooking, bowling, visits to local parks, sports, films and creative work. These belong to the holiday provision and should not be read as the preschool's daily timetable.

Relationships were a clear part of daily care in June 2023. Children had a key person who understood their individual needs, and staff gathered detailed information from parents when children started. That connection gave practitioners a basis for responding to the child, rather than treating settling and learning as identical for everyone.

Communication with families continued beyond the starting stage in June 2023. Staff shared children's experiences, achievements and development, and offered ideas for learning at home. Individual learning plans for children with SEND drew on information exchanged with parents and other professionals. The current offer includes an onsite SEN inclusion manager, alongside the individual planning described at the June 2023 visit.

The June 2023 day also included reminders about handwashing before meals and guidance for parents on healthy packed lunches. Preparation for the next learning stage involved following instructions, listening to other children and participating in groups. These are useful school-readiness experiences, rather than an admissions advantage.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is 361A Walderslade Road, Chatham, ME5 9LW. Opening hours are 7am to 6.30pm, Monday to Friday, and the nursery operates for 51 weeks of the year.

AM Preschool runs from 9am to 11.30am; PM Preschool runs from 12.30pm to 3pm. Lunch Club occupies the period between them, from 11.30am to 12.30pm. Full-day sessions are also offered. The shorter sessions give families a different attendance pattern from booking a full day, while the lunch period is a separate part of the timetable.

Breakfast Club runs from 7am to 9am and the after-school club from 3pm to 6.30pm. Their school collection and drop-off service serves Tunbury and Walderslade Primary; parents must authorise collection in writing to the school. This is a transport arrangement, with no implication of priority for a school place.

Holiday Club operates outside term time, with sessions from 8am to 6pm or 8am to 3pm. Children bring a packed lunch, and the nursery supplies light snacks during the day. This makes lunch preparation part of the family's holiday-club routine.

Funding and Paid Extras

Government funding and childcare vouchers are accepted. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation. Payment can be made by BACS or cash, and enquiries can be made by telephone on 01634 685 511 or through the contact form.

• Time to finish learning. In June 2023, changes in routine sometimes cut exploration short, and learning about diversity needed extending. On a visit, ask how children now pursue an idea for longer and encounter different experiences of family and community life.
• Supervision following regulatory action. Ofsted's June 2024 complaint outcome required better staff deployment by 1 July 2024 and recorded the provider's confirmation that deployment had been reviewed to cover all areas used by children, with safeguarding retraining planned. Ask how these arrangements operate in practice now.
• The youngest age accepted. The nursery's current age range is two to five, while its baby-room offer extends below that range. Families seeking care for a younger child should establish which provision and age band their proposed place belongs to before booking.
• A funded booking in writing. Government funding is accepted alongside morning, afternoon and full-day provision. Ask for a written quotation specifying the entitlement, attendance pattern and treatment of food and non-food consumables for the proposed booking.

Buttercups at Little Teddies suits families seeking morning or afternoon preschool sessions as well as those wanting full-day attendance. Its all-year outdoor surfaces, named toddler and preschool rooms, and inclusion-manager role give the offer clear practical substance.

The June 2023 Good judgement is a useful starting point, with concrete examples of communication and physical play behind it. A decision should also take account of the learning-time improvements requested then and the June 2024 supervision action. These considerations temper the practical appeal of its morning, afternoon and full-day options.