Humpty Dumpty Day Nursery

A covered construction area, a musical stage and a garden children help cultivate give Humpty Dumpty Day Nursery a clear outdoor character. This small nursery occupies a purpose-built portacabin within the grounds of Bilton Infant School in Rugby, with an enclosed garden extending the space for play. It caters for children from two years old to school age and has capacity for 22 children in total.

At its 6 December 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good and found safeguarding effective. The practical appeal today lies in child-led activities, outdoor resources that support different kinds of play, and communication that gives parents both daily updates and a longer view of their child's development. Morning, afternoon, School Day and Full Day bookings offer different attendance patterns.

The school setting is useful context, rather than an admissions advantage. Attending this nursery does not guarantee a Reception place; families still apply through the local authority admissions process.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage provides the framework for children's learning, development and care: here, its areas of learning are addressed through play, conversation, physical activity, stories and creative experiences. Alongside that framework, planning in the moment means adults respond to what interests children and introduce learning opportunities as their play develops. An activity can therefore grow from a child's idea, rather than requiring everyone to follow the same task.

Stories and singing sit alongside activities children initiate themselves. That balance gives children room to choose while retaining shared experiences in which they listen, join in and spend time together. The bright main room has air conditioning and level access, practical features that matter alongside the resources and activities within it.

In December 2022, language learning included simple signs, songs, shared reading and memory games. Books could also be enjoyed in quieter spaces. These examples show how communication was woven through different activities: listening during a game, remembering a story and finding a way to participate did not depend on a single formal language session.

Mathematical experiences in December 2022 were similarly practical. Children matched counted objects to numbers and compared quantities while filling sand buckets. Vegetable peeling brought another kind of challenge: adults showed children how to handle the tools and supported them as they tried. These were opportunities to practise coordination and judgement through a real task.

Outdoor and Community Life

The outdoor provision has two complementary spaces. Beneath the canopy, children can use water trays, a chalk board, a mud kitchen and a sit-in sandpit, alongside construction play. The cover makes these resources usable across changing weather, rather than leaving outdoor activity dependent on a dry day.

Beyond it, the enclosed garden contains climbing frames, a slide, bikes, scooters, a playhouse and a musical stage. Cascading water trays and a digging area add opportunities to investigate how materials move and change. The resources serve different interests: a child can build, make music, explore water or practise balance.

The outdoor construction site gives building play a concrete purpose. Children use foam house bricks to make structures, explore tools and learn about protective equipment. Cooperative games include What’s the Time, Mr Wolf?, with parachute play and hide and seek offering other ways to practise playing together.

Children also tend the flower and herb patch. Growing plants gives them something to return to and observe, while bug-hunting equipment supports closer investigation of the garden. Outdoor clothing is part of the daily routine, and spare wellies and waterproofs help children take part when the weather changes.

Relationships and Communication

Parents receive information at several different intervals. A daily activity board explains what children have been doing, staff provide a brief account of the day, and learning journals go home each term. An emailed newsletter arrives fortnightly. The combination matters: a quick conversation covers today's experience, while the journal gives families material to review over a longer period.

In December 2022, children built close relationships with their key person, and parents received regular feedback about progress. Children were supported to take turns and use considerate behaviour with one another. The current team works consistent days each week, an arrangement that helps families encounter familiar adults across their usual attendance pattern.

Potty training follows the child's pace and aims to stay close to the routine used at home. Parents are kept involved as it progresses. This is a practical form of partnership: a change in a child's routine can be handled together rather than treated as a separate nursery task.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the December 2022 inspection, Ofsted praised SEND support, including early identification of needs and collaboration with speech and language therapists. Current staff roles include a SENDCo and Time to Talk speech and language champions, giving families identifiable responsibilities for discussing additional needs and communication support.

Safeguarding arrangements include designated lead roles, paediatric first aid training across the staff team, an intercom-controlled entrance and CCTV. A password procedure applies when an unfamiliar adult collects a child. These are concrete arrangements for access and collection, separate from the dated safeguarding judgement.

In December 2022, children had drinking water throughout the day and were helped to understand handwashing and other hygiene routines. Adults also discussed healthy eating and dental health with them. For illness today, children must stay home; following sickness or diarrhoea, the exclusion period runs for 48 hours after the final symptom.

Staff development was the improvement priority in December 2022. Supervision did not consistently identify future training needs or help practitioners develop their work further. That point belongs alongside the positive findings, because the usefulness of staff support depends on how well it translates into everyday practice.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Bilton Infant School, Magnet Lane, Rugby, CV22 7NH. Opening hours are 8.30am to 5.30pm, Monday to Friday, across 51 weeks of the year, with closures on bank holidays and between Christmas and New Year.

Morning sessions run from 8.30am to 12.45pm; Afternoon sessions run from 1.15pm to 5.30pm. The School Day is 8.30am to 3.30pm, while the Full Day runs from 8.30am to 5.30pm. A minimum of two sessions each week applies. That makes the shorter patterns useful for families seeking part-day attendance, while the longer bookings cover a larger portion of the working day.

Enquiries can be made through the nursery's contact form, by email or by telephone on 01788 521038. The form asks about the child's intended start, required sessions, funding and any involvement with outside agencies, allowing those practical circumstances to be considered together.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare includes 2Help, universal funding for three- and four-year-olds, and the Working Parents Entitlement, subject to the relevant eligibility conditions. Term-time funding arrangements sit alongside a funded-only Stretch Option running from 8.30am to 5.30pm. On the term-time session tariff, funded periods and additional charged portions are separated, so a session using funding can still carry an additional service charge.

For food, families can choose a separately charged bundle covering fruit snacks, cow's milk, light tea and a school-kitchen lunch when that kitchen operates during term time, or supply food themselves; a packed lunch is also an alternative to a separately charged, pre-booked hot lunch. The nursery accommodates dietary and cultural requirements, including vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free and nut-free diets.

Non-food supplies also have an opt-in, separately charged bundle covering wipes, creams, nappy sacks, tissues, plasters and seasonal suncream; families who opt out supply what their child needs, and nappies come from home as required. These choices matter when comparing attendance costs: funded time, additional session charges, food and consumables are separate parts of the arrangement.

A non-refundable registration charge and a place acceptance payment are due when a place is confirmed. The acceptance payment is credited against the final invoice before the child leaves. Tax-Free Childcare and employer childcare vouchers are accepted. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation; the fees page sets out the session and charging structure.

• Attendance and funding fit. The two-session weekly minimum applies alongside morning, afternoon and longer-day bookings. At a visit, discuss how the required pattern fits the term-time funding tariff or funded-only Stretch Option, including any additional charged portion.
• Food and supplies. The opt-in bundles sit beside a parent-supplied alternative, and school-kitchen lunches operate during term time. Families managing allergies should confirm current preparation and handling arrangements, as well as the items they will provide themselves.
• Teaching development. In December 2022, staff supervision needed to become more effective at identifying training needs and developing practice. A useful visit question is how supervision now leads to changes in children's daily learning experiences.
• A school-site nursery. Humpty Dumpty occupies Bilton Infant School's grounds, but nursery attendance does not guarantee Reception admission. School applications remain a separate family decision and process.

Humpty Dumpty suits families with children from two years old who want child-led play, substantial outdoor resources and regular communication about nursery life. Its Morning and Afternoon sessions serve part-day attendance, while School Day and Full Day patterns offer longer coverage. The canopy, construction site and planted garden give that play a concrete setting.

The December 2022 judgement was Good, with staff-development monitoring the improvement priority. For families weighing costs, the important distinction is between funded time, additional session charges and the food or consumables arrangements they choose. Those practical choices deserve as much attention as the garden.