Evergreen Childrens Day Nursery

A converted Edwardian house, separate outdoor spaces for younger and older children, and a settling period built around familiar photographs give Evergreen Childrens Day Nursery its character. This Swinton setting has capacity for 40 children from birth to five. The emphasis is on getting to know the child before expecting them to adapt to nursery life.

Ofsted rated the nursery Good on 21 November 2023. Alongside that judgement, two educational priorities deserve parents’ attention: making learning build more deliberately on existing skills and strengthening preparation for school.

Morning, afternoon and full-day sessions provide different ways to use the nursery. Daily conversation diaries and a named key person give parents a practical connection between home routines and the nursery day.

Rooms and Ages

Four family rooms separate the stages of early childhood. Family Room 1 accommodates babies in a spacious room, with sensory exploration through play baskets, fabrics and instruments, alongside individual time for songs and books. Family Room 2 is the toddler room, where a cosy setting supports language, independence and learning to play alongside others.

For children aged two and over, Family Room 3 combines friendship and language development with construction, messy play and quieter spaces for reading or resting. Family Room 4, for children aged three and over, emphasises imaginative play, problem-solving and early literacy, with sharing and turn-taking supporting preparation for school.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage provides the framework for children’s learning, development and care. In everyday terms, that means opportunities to communicate, move, explore materials and develop relationships through play, with activities adjusted to children’s stage of development. It is the shared early-years framework, rather than an additional branded curriculum.

Older children’s routines combine time indoors and outdoors with stories, movement, music and adult-guided learning. Activities for finger control prepare children for writing, while opportunities to choose their own play remain part of the day.

In November 2023, children gathered fallen leaves and worked together to lift them using a net attached to a tree. The activity connected physical movement with the changing seasons and a shared task. Singing also accompanied ordinary care routines, while babies and older children encountered books both with adults and independently.

That same November 2023 assessment identified a weakness in some adult-guided activities: enjoyment was not consistently matched to a clear next learning step. The improvement priority was a better sequence of learning, so new skills would extend what children could already do.

Outdoor and Community Life

The side garden serves babies and toddlers under two, using natural materials for sensory exploration. Children aged two and older use the rear play area, where a mud kitchen, sandpit, waterwheel and riverbed support hands-on play. Crates become vehicles in imaginative games; rocks and a climbable tree add physical challenges.

Outings extend beyond the garden. Short nature walks, library visits and trips to see animals are part of the offer, including feeding carrots to donkeys. Families receive advance notice of planned trips, giving them time to prepare their child. Seasonal discoveries also become materials for creative work, connecting what children encounter outdoors with what they make afterwards.

Relationships and Communication

Settling starts with the child’s familiar world. Home visits allow staff to meet children individually, and parents supply photographs of important people or things for a personal book. A four-week settling period begins with an hour-long visit and gradually lengthens. That creates time for a relationship with the key person to develop before a full nursery day.

Each child’s key person monitors care and development, keeps records and serves as the main contact for parents. Conversation diaries travel home daily, carrying details such as nappy changes, weaning, emerging skills and potty training, with space for parents to respond. Magical Moment Books bring together photographs and written observations, so families can follow more than the practical details of feeding and changing.

Communication also has a longer rhythm. Parents’ evenings take place three times a year, alongside newsletters and monthly email snapshots of nursery life. Home activity ideas invite families to try things together and share photographs of the results. The value is continuity: parents have several ways to connect nursery experiences with what happens at home.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the November 2023 inspection, Ofsted found effective safeguarding arrangements and strong SEND support, including communication strategies shared with parents and work guided by professionals such as physiotherapists.

Current arrangements include SEND coordination and a safeguarding lead role. Before a child starts, practitioners discuss individual needs with parents; an initial assessment helps establish what the child can already do. Weaning and toilet training begin with parental instruction, keeping these personal changes connected to family decisions.

Babies can follow their home routine. Sleep is offered when they are ready, using a sleep mat and their chosen comforter, while the toddler day includes rest and relaxation. Parents supply nappies and nappy cream, plus sun cream during summer; disposable and cotton nappies are accepted, with used cotton nappies returned home for washing.

A nursery chef prepares food on site, and meals and snacks follow a four-week menu cycle. The weekly menu travels home in the conversation diary, helping families coordinate nursery food with meals at home.

Sessions and Attendance

Morning sessions run from 7.45am to 12.45pm, afternoons from 12.45pm to 6pm, and full days from 7.45am to 6pm. Families can use a few mornings or a number of full days each week, rather than having to attend every day. Opening hours are 7.45am to 6pm, Monday to Friday.

Evergreen operates for 51 weeks of the year, closing for bank holidays and a week at Christmas. Parents can collect or bring children during a session, although the nursery requests arrival before 9am and collection after 3.30pm to protect planned activities. For a detailed end-of-day conversation, it asks families to arrive by 5.45pm because closing time is 6pm.

Getting There

The address is 171 Manchester Road, Swinton, Manchester M27 4FB, on the corner with West Drive. A car park beside the building serves parents and visitors.

Enquiries and registration are handled through the contact form or by telephone on 0161 728 6061. For collection by someone unfamiliar to staff, parents must give advance notice and use the agreed password arrangement.

Funding and Paid Extras

Evergreen offers Early Years Free Entitlement (EYFE), with a signed parental declaration needed for the nursery to claim funding. Paid childcare is also offered, with payment by bank transfer, cash or childcare vouchers; current prices come in the nursery’s written quotation.

A deposit applies to nursery bookings and is credited against the final payment once the nursery receives four weeks’ notice. An additional collection charge applies when parents are more than 15 minutes late. Those terms make notice and punctual collection part of the practical cost of using the nursery.

• Learning that builds. In November 2023, adult-guided activities did not consistently extend children’s existing skills. During a visit, ask for an example of how a child’s next learning step changes the activity staff plan.
• Preparation for school. November 2023 findings included insufficient links with teachers and weaker support for the move to school. Families choosing Family Room 4 should discuss how transition work now connects with children’s future teachers.
• A gradual start. The four-week settling arrangement includes home visits and progressively longer sessions. Discuss how those appointments fit your return-to-work timetable before choosing a start date.
• Funding and daily supplies. Parents provide nappies, nappy cream and summer sun cream. For your chosen morning, afternoon or full-day pattern, ask for a written quotation separating funded hours, paid hours, food and other supplies.

Evergreen suits families seeking morning or afternoon sessions as well as full days, with a gradual start and regular written communication. The converted house, separate gardens and practical outdoor resources give its day a clear physical identity. Personal photograph books and conversation diaries make the relationship with home equally tangible.

For babies and toddlers, the home-routine option and staged settling process are useful reasons to consider it. For older children, the decision should also take account of the November 2023 priorities around learning progression and school transition. Learning progression and school transition remain important considerations alongside the timetable and surroundings.