Banana Moon Day Nursery Baddesley Ensor

A natural adventure area for active play and a softly lit sleep room for babies give Banana Moon Day Nursery Baddesley Ensor two useful anchors: space to explore and somewhere separate to rest. This Little Brum setting in Atherstone has capacity for 32 children, accepting ages from three months to five years. Its scale is a whole-nursery figure, rather than a promise about the number of children sharing any particular space.

At its June 2023 inspection, Ofsted judged the nursery Good overall and found safeguarding effective, with learning experiences helping children progress across the areas of learning. That assessment belongs to that visit. The current offer combines daily outdoor play, food cooked in an in-house kitchen and a Parent App that shares routines and learning with families.

Full-day and half-day attendance are both supported. The more revealing distinction, though, is the attention given to the ordinary details of a young child's day: following a baby's home routine, making sleep comfortable and keeping parents connected to what their child has been doing.

Rooms and Ages

Banana Moon's group-wide Moons model divides children by developmental stage; the labels describe age groups and do not necessarily mean separate physical rooms. That distinction matters when picturing how a child will spend the day. Moving between groups is about development as well as age, especially for babies becoming confidently mobile.

Baby Moons begins at three months and emphasises sensory exploration through textures, shapes, colour and interaction; Teenie Moons supports confidently mobile children up to two through painting, songs and messy play. Mini Moons covers ages two to three, with choosing activities and managing toileting increasingly part of the day; Full Moons serves children from three to five, linking play and individual learning with greater independence and social interaction. These are the group's stage descriptions, rather than four guaranteed rooms at Baddesley Ensor.

A dedicated sleep room provides a more concrete picture of the building. Natural wood cots and subdued lighting create a separate place for babies to nap, with individual bed linen washed on site. For families balancing sleep and busy play, that separation is a practical asset.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS provides the framework for children's learning, development and care: in everyday terms, play, communication, physical activity and growing independence all contribute to learning. Alongside it sits the group-wide Banana Moon Early Learning & Development Programme, which uses children's interests to shape playful experiences and open-ended resources. It adds a planning approach to the statutory framework rather than replacing it.

The programme gives adults a clear starting point: what the child already knows and what captures their attention. Close observation and information from parents inform the next experiences offered. For a family, the useful question is how that interest becomes an activity and then a next step, rather than whether a child completes a fixed sequence of tasks. The curriculum overview explains this group-wide approach.

In June 2023, books and conversation had a prominent place in the nursery day. Staff changed their voices and expression during stories; younger children reached for books themselves, while older children remembered familiar passages. Babies explored instruments alongside rhymes, and older children worked with dough, clay and tools. Those examples show learning taking different forms as children develop, rather than one activity being used for every age.

Outdoor and Community Life

Outside, a secure playground sits alongside the natural adventure area. Children use the outdoors daily throughout the year, giving movement and seasonal exploration a regular place in the routine. This is useful for families who want outdoor activity to be part of an ordinary nursery day.

In June 2023, outdoor experiences included riding bikes, using swings and racing together. Children also explored the local community and encountered other cultures through outings. These are dated examples of how physical play and learning about the wider world were combined, rather than a fixed timetable of trips.

Relationships and Communication

Settling is organised around the individual child and family. Parents attend settling sessions, discuss their baby's requirements and share routines, with staff working to maintain continuity from home. The policy allows flexibility, so the starting point is the child's needs rather than an identical settling schedule for everyone.

The Parent App gives families a practical connection to the day. It records sleep, snacks and learning, shares photographs and maintains personalised learning journals used to plan next steps. Named family members can receive access, and parents can add comments from home. That two-way exchange helps staff connect nursery experiences with what a child is doing elsewhere.

A key person observes and records preschool children's development. A past account of school transition described contact with receiving schools, visits and meetings about individual children, plus a passport to school and a report for the Reception teacher. These arrangements were intended to pass on information about each child's development.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the June 2023 inspection, Ofsted found that the SENCO helped staff assess children's needs and plan suitable activities, making prompt referrals when developmental concerns required specialist involvement. That is a specific account of support at the time, rather than a general promise about every child's experience today.

In June 2023, staff comforted upset children and responded gently around sleep; calm reminders, distraction and encouragement supported behaviour. Oral health also featured in family resource packs and information about tooth care. These details give substance to the dated assessment: care involved both immediate comfort and habits families could continue at home.

Current sleep arrangements combine CCTV monitoring with regular staff checks, and staff aim to follow established sleep routines. Building access uses fingerprint recognition for registered adults, while other visitors need admission by staff. These are arrangements in place, rather than a substitute for an inspection judgement about safeguarding.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Banana Moon Nursery, Little Brum, Grendon, Atherstone, CV9 2ET. Opening hours are 7.30am to 6.30pm, Monday to Friday, across the year, with closures for bank holidays and Christmas. Full-day and half-day attendance provide different ways to fit nursery into family routines.

The recommended starting pattern is two half-days or one full day each week. It is a recommendation, rather than a stated compulsory minimum. For parents considering a shorter attendance pattern, that distinction matters: the recommendation relates to settling and participation in learning opportunities.

Fees are payable for 51 weeks, including bank holidays, and continue during a child's sickness or holiday absence. Paying weeks and days when the building is open are different matters. Families budgeting for care need to account for absences as well as the sessions their child attends.

Enquiries can be made by telephone on 01827 711742 or through the callback form. Those routes provide a straightforward starting point for joining discussions.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered alongside paid care. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation; the fees page provides the starting point for that discussion. The funded timetable and its relationship to additional paid hours deserve attention when choosing an attendance pattern.

Food is cooked daily in the nursery's own kitchen, with two hot meals and snacks, a separate weaning menu for younger babies and older children encouraged to serve themselves. The nursery's dietary policy accommodates allergies and other requirements, so food routines can be discussed around the individual child rather than treated as one menu for everyone.

• Age groups and shared spaces. The Moons labels represent stages and can share physical rooms. During a visit, ask how Baddesley Ensor arranges the groups, especially the babies' play space and access to the separate sleep room.
• Independence and teaching. In June 2023, activities and mealtimes did not consistently help children do as much for themselves as they could, and staff needed to apply their training more fully. Ask for examples of how children now choose resources, manage meals and benefit from staff development.
• The funded-care budget. Funded childcare and paid attendance both form part of the offer. Request a written breakdown for your intended pattern covering funded hours, additional hours, meals and non-food consumables, including what parents need to supply.
• Dietary requirements. There is a separate baby weaning menu and a policy of accommodating allergies. Families managing an allergy should confirm the current preparation and serving arrangements for their child.

Banana Moon Baddesley Ensor suits families considering either full-day attendance or shorter half-day sessions, especially those who value daily outdoor activity, a separate baby sleep space and regular digital updates. The group-wide learning programme has a clear practical idea behind it: use children's interests and observations to plan what comes next.

The June 2023 Good judgement gives a dated assessment of quality, with specific improvement points around independence and the use of staff training. For parents weighing this nursery, the strongest decision rests on the fit between their child's routines and the setting's arrangements: how age groups share space, how sleep is handled and how the chosen attendance pattern is costed.