Flying Start Day Nursery, Moorlands and Barnesmead

Space topics, seasonal park outings and kindness notes give the Moorlands nursery a recognisable character: children have explored Jupiter, looked for daffodils and left small gifts for neighbours to discover. These are March 2024 examples of learning that connects conversation, practical activity and the world beyond the nursery.

At its 8 March 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good and found safeguarding effective, while requiring more consistent health messages and better support for staff whose interactions did not reliably extend children's learning. That balance matters. There is plenty of purposeful activity, but the detail of how adults support it deserves attention.

The nursery at The Marld in Ashtead has capacity for 58 children, with an accepted age range of 3 to 60 months. This review concerns the Moorlands address, despite the combined registered name. Its weekday opening window is 8am to 6pm.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage sets the requirements for children's learning, development and care: in daily life, that means building communication, physical skills and independence alongside play. It is the common framework for early years provision, rather than a separate branded programme here.

In March 2024, space provided one concrete topic for conversation, with children confidently naming Jupiter. Stories offered another route into language. During We're Going on a Bear Hunt, children contributed movements and words, while older children also handled books independently. These examples show two different ways to participate: shared storytelling and self-directed exploration.

Preparation for school included an emphasis on social confidence and emotional development. In March 2024, children practised feeding themselves, handling cutlery and putting on coats. Such tasks connect readiness for the next stage with everyday independence, rather than reducing it to formal learning activities.

The important qualification is consistency. In March 2024, adults sometimes missed opportunities to adjust questions or activities to children's existing understanding. Some also cleaned children's noses for them instead of helping them practise the task. A busy programme needs responsive adult support if children are to take the next step themselves.

Outdoor and Community Life

Large outdoor spaces supported running, jumping and bicycle riding in March 2024. Younger children also made marks with paintbrushes. Together, these activities gave children opportunities to practise both whole-body movement and finer hand control.

Local outings connected learning with seasonal change: children visited parks to examine daffodils. Another March 2024 example involved making tea lights with kind messages and hiding them for people in the community to find. The former brought a topic into a real setting; the latter gave an activity a social purpose beyond the nursery room.

Settling was tailored to individual children in March 2024. Families shared care information through forms and introductory visits, and familiar comforters helped children adjust. Getting to know the key person was part of that process, giving parents a relationship around which to organise the move into nursery care.

At the March 2024 inspection, Ofsted found that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities received very good support, with frequent parent contact and access to relevant agencies helping staff plan their next learning steps. That is a dated finding about the support children received, rather than a blanket promise about every future need.

Across rooms, staff cooperation supported children as they moved into their next group in March 2024. Adults also modelled behaviour and acknowledged positive choices. These everyday interactions matter because transitions and social expectations are part of the nursery experience, alongside planned activities.

Health messages were less consistent. In March 2024, children sometimes ate food that had fallen during messy activities without receiving clear guidance from staff. This is a specific concern about everyday practice and sits alongside the separate improvement needed in how adults developed children's learning.

Moorlands is at The Marld, Ashtead, Surrey, KT21 1RW. Its contact number is 01372 279935, keeping enquiries directed to this address rather than the separately identified Barnesmead site.

Opening hours are 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday. The nursery operates throughout the year and closes on Bank Holidays. This makes the closure calendar a practical consideration for families arranging weekday care.

In March 2024, the nursery provided funded early education for children aged two, three and four. That dated participation should be kept separate from the terms of a family's proposed booking.

• Adult interaction. March 2024 findings identified uneven questioning and adaptation of activities. During a visit, ask how staff now help children with different starting points extend their learning.
• Everyday health habits. March 2024 findings called for clearer, more consistent health guidance. Ask how staff handle food used in messy activities and teach children to manage personal care themselves.
• Year-round planning. Weekday opening runs from 8am to 6pm, with Bank Holiday closures. Match that calendar to the cover your family needs.

Moorlands merits consideration for families seeking year-round weekday care with outdoor movement, storytelling and learning connected to the local community. Its March 2024 examples give substance to that character. The decision should also weigh the two clear improvement priorities: consistent health guidance and adult interactions that help each child progress beyond an activity's starting point.