Sunflower Nurseries

From learning to hold a spoon to cutting fruit for snack, small steps towards independence give Sunflower Nurseries a clear thread through its provision. At its April 2025 inspection, Ofsted judged the nursery Good, found safeguarding effective and recognised good progress, including for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

Based at Chapelfield House in Rochdale, the nursery accepts children aged 0 to 60 months. Its practical fit is term-time care, with school holidays outside the opening calendar.

The early years foundation stage sets the framework for children's learning, development and care: physical skills, communication and growing independence belong together in the child's day.

In April 2025, independence developed through connected activities across the age groups. Babies practised holding spoons, toddlers fed themselves and preschool children cut fruit at snack time. The progression made everyday routines part of learning rather than simply tasks for adults to complete.

Physical activity had similarly concrete examples that month. Babies practised crawling and standing; toddlers squeezed bottles; older children worked with mud and paint rollers. Outdoor play happened daily. These activities gave children opportunities to practise movement and hand control using different materials.

Language work also matched children's developmental stages in April 2025. Staff described activities, used short sentences and talked through what was happening. That gave children words connected to their immediate experiences.

In April 2025, staff responded to distress and separation worries with attention and comfort. Emotion cards and golden rules, the nursery's shared behaviour expectations, supported positive behaviour and clear expectations for interacting with others.

Support for children with SEND included individual goals, conversations with families and advice from other professionals that staff put into practice that month. This gave parents specific points around which to discuss their child's care and learning.

Communication in April 2025 combined daily chats and an online platform with parents' evenings and stay-and-play sessions. Families therefore had opportunities both to exchange everyday information and to spend time alongside their children. Fruit featured at snack time.

The address is Chapelfield House, Platting Lane, Rochdale, OL11 2HD. Opening hours are 8am to 5.30pm, Monday to Friday, during term time; the nursery closes for school holidays.

In April 2025, the nursery provided government-funded childcare.

• Individual heritage. The April 2025 inspection identified inconsistent attention to children's own cultural backgrounds and differences in how group activities accommodated individual abilities. These are useful priorities for families weighing how their child will participate.
• Term-time calendar. School holidays fall outside the nursery's opening pattern. Families needing care across the year should factor those breaks into their arrangements.
• A child's experience. At a visit, how would settling and group activities be adapted for your child's needs, interests and family background?

Sunflower Nurseries suits families seeking term-time care who value practical independence and several ways to communicate with staff. Its April 2025 examples are tangible: spoon use, fruit preparation and activities that build hand control. The Good judgement provides a positive inspection position, balanced by clear priorities around individual heritage and participation in group learning.