Children 1st Newark Centre Nursery School

A town-centre nursery with a spacious garden and connections beyond its walls: Children 1st Newark Centre Nursery School combines outdoor play with library trips, summer outings to the market square and support for the Children’s Bereavement Centre. That gives its Newark setting a clear identity. Community life is part of the offer, alongside everyday care and learning.

At its March 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good, found safeguarding effective and reported good progress for children, including those learning English as an additional language. Those findings provide a dated assessment of practice, rather than a judgement on everything happening today.

The nursery has 68 places in total and accepts children from 2 months to 5 years. Attendance choices include mornings, afternoons and several day lengths, giving families more than one way to organise childcare.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage provides the framework for children’s learning, development and care: play, conversation and everyday routines help children develop language, physical skills and independence. The group-wide Cooking together offer adds practical cookery experiences: children explore ingredients, develop cooking skills and have opportunities to learn about growing food.

In March 2023, communication was a central emphasis. Staff used songs, repeated language and conversations during play to encourage children to speak. Books also prompted discussion, including looking at animal pictures together. For parents, these examples make the approach tangible: language developed through shared activity, rather than only through a separate teaching session.

The same visit captured different experiences across the age groups. Babies practised balancing with adult support and experimented with posting shapes; toddlers learnt to share play-dough tools; preschool children baked and followed recipe instructions. These are snapshots of the nursery day at that time. They show how physical development, cooperation and listening could be practised through ordinary play.

Outdoor and Community Life

A spacious garden provides an outdoor setting for exploration and activity. In March 2023, preschool children threw balls towards buckets and used counters to keep track of their scores. Movement and early number work came together in one game. Binoculars also gave children another way to investigate their surroundings.

Beyond the garden, children visit the local library, with outings to the market square during summer. These bring books and familiar town spaces into their experience of the wider world. Neither outing needs an elaborate destination to give children something new to notice and discuss.

The Children’s Bereavement Centre is the nursery’s chosen local cause, supporting families affected by bereavement or terminal illness. Fundraising plans throughout the year include sponsored challenges, dressing-up days and bake sales. Families can take part in a shared local project, while children encounter practical examples of helping others.

Independence featured strongly in March 2023. Children helped themselves to food, poured drinks and used cutlery, practising everyday tasks with staff support. Photographs on their meal place mats and sleep mats helped them recognise their own spaces. These small details connected care routines with a sense of belonging.

Communication with home also formed part of practice in March 2023. Staff discussed learning with parents and suggested ways to continue it at home, including activities to support speaking. For families, that made the conversation about development useful beyond the nursery day.

An onsite chef prepares meals, using local ingredients where possible; menus accommodate different dietary requirements. Food preparation happens at the nursery, giving meals a practical connection with the cookery activities children experience.

There were also two clear weaknesses in March 2023: children needed more consistent teaching about oral health, and adult responses sometimes missed opportunities to develop their learning further. One example involved babies making patterns in play dough without staff extending the activity. Warm encouragement and the next useful learning step are different things; both matter.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Martin Foster House, Appletongate, Newark, NG24 1JY. Five booking patterns cover different parts of the day: Business Days run from 8am to 6pm, Nursery days from 8am to 5pm and School days from 9am to 3pm. Mornings run from 8am to 1pm, while Afternoons run from 1pm to 6pm.

That choice has practical value. A family can choose a shorter day, a morning or afternoon session, or the longest day according to its routine. The School days label describes a session length; it should not be read as a promise of school-term-only attendance.

The nursery operates across the year, with Christmas week and two annual staff training days as closures. Its large car park supports collection and drop-off at the town-centre site. Enquiries can be made through the nursery’s online form or by telephone on 01636 706949.

Funding and Paid Extras

Eligible children aged 9 months and above can access the 15 Hours or 30 Hours funding offer, beginning the term after they reach the relevant qualifying age. Funding is stretched over 51 weeks, providing up to 11.18 or 22.35 funded hours weekly respectively, with up to 10 funded hours usable in a day. This spreads entitlement across the year rather than concentrating it into school terms.

Private fees include meals and snacks, milk and infant formula, along with wipes, nappies, nappy cream and sun cream. Funded sessions carry separate food and consumables charges, with activity charges for over-2s and no activity charge for under-2s; additional hours are paid for separately, and charges are proportionate for half-day or partly funded sessions.

A non-refundable registration charge reserves a place, and the deposit is credited against the first invoice. Monthly bills use the same amount each month, helping families plan recurring expenditure. Current prices come in the nursery’s written quotation; the Newark Centre fees information explains the session and funding structure.

• Teaching beyond encouragement. In March 2023, adult interactions did not consistently extend children’s learning. At a visit, ask how staff now develop a baby’s discovery or an older child’s idea into the next activity.
• Oral health routines. March 2023 brought a specific improvement request about helping children understand dental health. Ask how that learning now fits into everyday care.
• The funded bill. Food and consumables attract charges on funded sessions, with activity charges for over-2s and no activity charge for under-2s; private fees include these items. Request a written breakdown for your chosen pattern, including any additional hours and alternatives to the integrated offering.
• Starting with a baby. The nursery accepts children from 2 months. Use a visit to discuss settling sessions, key-person arrangements and how your baby’s sleep and feeding routines would be managed.

Children 1st Newark Centre suits families seeking town-centre childcare with outdoor space and local community connections, whether they need morning or afternoon sessions, a shorter School day or a Business Day. Cookery, library outings and charity fundraising give the offer substance. The Good judgement from March 2023 is useful context, with adult interaction and oral-health teaching the specific points to explore before joining.