Kiddywinks Neighbourhood Nursery and Pre-school

Two gardens, a single-storey building and the freedom to move between supervised play areas give Kiddywinks in South Molton a clear character. Children can follow an interest across different spaces rather than spend their whole day in one room. The building was originally designed for day care for disabled adults, with easy access throughout: a practical feature for families weighing how their child will use the setting.

At its 25 February 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good overall. That is a dated judgement, with two specific improvement priorities: helping children look after toys and play spaces, and making adult conversations more effective at extending their thinking.

Kiddywinks has capacity for 49 children aged 0 to 59 months. Its address is 40 Cooks Cross, South Molton, EX36 4AW. The strongest reason to consider it is the combination of accessible indoor spaces and outdoor play, rather than a formal classroom model.

Rooms and Ages

South Molton's layout supports movement between accessible activity areas, with staff supervising the spaces children use. Both gardens are accessible from the single-storey building. For a child who likes to change activities, that arrangement makes the choice of space part of the day, rather than simply a change of toys.

Adventurers (Block Room) is a named South Molton room and the designated space used during lockdown procedures.

Learning and Activities

The nursery follows the early years foundation stage, the framework for children's learning, development and care. In February 2022, children developed communication through stories, new words and signs, while babies practised physical skills through hands-on ice play. Home activity packs also supported emotional development, giving families ways to continue learning beyond nursery. At Kiddywinks, the South Molton approach allows children of different ages to explore activities across rooms. The practical question is how adults help a child's chosen activity develop into something more demanding.

In February 2022, older children noticed the moon in daylight, researched planets with staff and represented their discoveries through models and displays. A spontaneous observation became a project. Younger children experimented with natural objects, combined paint with foam and turned cardboard boxes into pretend trains, giving them different ways to explore texture and imagination.

During that same month, babies investigated toy animals trapped in ice. Adults helped them explore melting and use a hammer with support. This brought physical exploration and simple explanations about change into one activity. Stories provided another route into language: children remembered characters and events, while younger children practised new words and used signs to communicate requests.

The limits of that teaching matter too. In February 2022, some conversations stopped before encouraging children to examine their ideas more deeply. Children had choices and engaging materials; the next step was more consistent adult help in developing the thinking behind their play.

Outdoor and Community Life

The two gardens are a substantial part of the South Molton setting's physical offer. Indoor movement and outdoor access sit within the same accessible layout, giving families a concrete feature to weigh alongside the learning approach.

In February 2022, children helped collect newly delivered sand for outdoor play, using buckets and spades. It was a small example of ordinary events becoming something children could investigate and take part in, rather than watch from the sidelines.

Relationships and Communication

In February 2022, staff shared children's next learning steps with parents through laminated cards and activity packs for home. Those packs covered emotional development, communication and mathematics. This gave families practical activities connected to what their child was learning, rather than just an account of what had happened that day.

An evening meeting during that period introduced parents to the curriculum and changes to the play areas. These examples show the forms communication took at that time; they are useful points of comparison when discussing the current relationship between home and nursery.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the February 2022 inspection, Ofsted found effective safeguarding, positive support for children with SEND and good progress in communication, with interventions and signs helping children participate. The safeguarding assessment included staff knowledge of referrals, recruitment checks and risk assessment of play and sleeping areas.

The South Molton team includes a manager with SEND coordination and safeguarding lead responsibilities, a deputy with SEN support responsibilities, and practitioners with Level 2, Level 3 and Level 6 childcare qualifications. Those roles give families identifiable responsibilities within the team; qualifications alone do not establish how support works for an individual child.

In February 2022, adults helped younger children persist with putting on outdoor clothing, recognising their efforts as they tried. Older children cooperated over large wooden blocks and shared scissors and glue. Alongside those positive examples, children sometimes carried on playing at tidying time because adults did not give sufficiently clear guidance about putting equipment away. Independence needed clearer expectations about caring for shared spaces.

Sessions and Attendance

Opening hours are 7.30am to 6pm, Monday to Friday. Kiddywinks operates across the year and closes at Christmas. These practical details matter for families fitting childcare around work, especially where the working day extends beyond a conventional preschool morning.

Enquiries can be made through the contact form, selecting South Molton, or by telephone on 01769 574969. The nursery is at 40 Cooks Cross, South Molton, EX36 4AW.

Funding and Paid Extras

In February 2022, the setting received funding for free early education for children aged two, three and four. Families planning to use funded childcare should distinguish that dated participation from the terms of their own booking. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

• Extending children's ideas. The February 2022 improvement priority concerned the depth of adult interactions. During a visit, ask how practitioners develop a child's chosen activity through questions, explanations and further challenges.
• Shared responsibility. In February 2022, guidance about tidying and looking after resources needed to be clearer. Ask how children now learn to care for toys and shared spaces within the child-led day.
• Funded attendance and extras. The setting received early education funding in February 2022. For a funded booking, what attendance pattern and food or consumables charges would the written quotation cover?

Kiddywinks suits families who value a child-led day, accessible spaces and the option to move between indoor activities and two gardens. Its South Molton layout gives that approach a concrete setting. The February 2022 Good judgement provides a useful assessment, while the priorities around deeper conversations and responsibility for resources deserve attention. For parents, the deciding issue is how today's adults turn children's freedom to choose into sustained learning and clear everyday expectations.