Teddies Nursery

Growing vegetables, tasting the harvest and playing in a landscaped garden give Teddies Nursery a practical, outdoor character. Its hospital-grounds address is another defining feature: this is childcare close to the workplace for families employed on the site, with onsite parking and a sheltered buggy park to help with the daily logistics.

At its November 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated Teddies Good, found safeguarding effective and judged that children made good progress, while asking for more consistent, precise teaching of the curriculum. That gives families a positive dated assessment with a clear improvement point, rather than an unqualified endorsement.

Teddies takes children aged 3 to 60 months and has capacity for 56 children in total. Its current opening hours are 7.30am to 6pm, Monday to Friday.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS provides the framework for children's learning, development and care. In everyday terms, that means play and interaction support children's language, movement, relationships and growing independence, rather than treating learning as a separate lesson.

In November 2022, communication ran through the day's activities. Staff talked alongside children's play, used questions that invited more than a short answer and gave children time to respond. Songs and stories supplied further opportunities to practise language. The practical value is the connection between conversation and activity: children have something to describe, investigate and remember.

The Gingerbread Man supplied a starting point for preschool storytelling in November 2022, with activities extending the story beyond circle time. Preschool children also experimented with shaving foam and sand to create a building mixture for towers. These were concrete ways to connect an idea with materials and action, giving children more to work with than a verbal explanation alone.

For younger children, the November 2022 examples were equally hands-on: babies combined flour and water to explore dough, while toddlers constructed an outdoor obstacle course with staff support. The activities differed by developmental stage. Sensory exploration gave babies materials to investigate; the obstacle course gave toddlers a physical challenge they could help shape themselves.

Outdoor and Community Life

The vegetable garden lets children grow produce, harvest it and taste the results. That makes the connection between food and growing tangible. The landscaped garden and dedicated outdoor space also support active play, free-flow play and physical development.

A Green Flag Award recognises the nursery's sustainability work and outdoor environment. Here, the vegetable garden provides the clearest everyday example of that environmental emphasis: children participate in growing rather than simply hearing about it.

Relationships and Communication

In November 2022, the key-person arrangement gave staff opportunities to understand when individual children needed a challenge and when they needed a quieter moment. Daily group gatherings with their key person also helped children practise taking turns and sharing. For parents, the useful distinction is between a familiar adult knowing a child and a timetable applied identically to everyone.

Communication with families in November 2022 included daily conversations about learning, alongside photographs and comments celebrating children's achievements. Staff shared next steps as well as what children had already done. That gave parents something practical to continue at home, rather than only a general account of a busy day.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the November 2022 inspection, Ofsted found effective support for children with SEND, including regular discussions involving parents and professionals such as speech therapists. The mechanism matters: support involved the people around the child, with information exchanged between home, nursery and specialist services.

In November 2022, internal and external doors used keypad access, and visitors could not move through the building alone. Children also practised everyday safety themselves, including clearing spilled sand so others would not slip. These are dated examples of how adult arrangements and children's developing responsibility operated alongside each other.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Hospital Grounds, Rochdale Road, Oldham, OL1 2BA. Teddies opens from 7.30am to 6pm on weekdays and operates across the year, closing for bank holidays and one week at Christmas. That Christmas closure needs to sit alongside any family's annual work arrangements.

Enquiries can be made through the Teddies contact form. The hospital-grounds location will have particular practical value for parents working on the site; it also gives other families a specific destination to assess against their usual routine.

Getting There

Onsite parking supports collection and drop-off, while the sheltered buggy park provides somewhere to leave a pram during the nursery day. These are useful facilities for families choosing between driving and bringing a buggy.

Funding and Paid Extras

In November 2022, Teddies provided funded early education for children aged two, three and four. Families should use the nursery's current written quotation when planning paid childcare costs.

• Teaching consistency. The November 2022 improvement point concerned staff understanding the curriculum well enough to teach it more precisely. During a visit, ask how activities are now chosen and adapted for an individual child's next steps.
• Starting with a baby. Children can start from 3 months, and the November 2022 account included sensory exploration with dough. Ask how settling, sleep and communication with a baby's key person would work for your child.
• Attendance and the total cost. The weekday opening window runs from 7.30am to 6pm, with a Christmas closure. Which booking pattern would suit your family, and how would your written quotation itemise funded hours, meals and consumables?

Teddies suits families who value practical outdoor experiences and a hospital-grounds location, especially those working on the site. Growing and tasting vegetables gives its outdoor provision a clear purpose, while parking and buggy storage address everyday family logistics.

The November 2022 assessment provides a positive starting point, balanced by the need for greater teaching consistency. The strongest decision is one that connects those dated observations with your child's present needs and the nursery's everyday arrangements.