Caterpillars Nursery

Individual sleep routines and daily garden play give Caterpillars Nursery a practical emphasis: younger children have a designated sleeping area, while an enclosed outdoor space includes a canopy for play in changeable weather. This Codsall setting takes children from 3 months to 5 years and has 40 places in total. Those are whole-nursery places, rather than a measure of the size of any room.

At its May 2025 inspection, Ofsted rated Caterpillars Good overall and found safeguarding effective. The useful detail sits beneath that judgement: children practised everyday independence, staff used outings to extend learning, and relationships supported children as they became more confident. There were also clear improvements to make in arranging activities and helping children understand emotions.

Morning and afternoon sessions feature in the nursery day. For parents, the stronger reasons to consider Caterpillars are its attention to home routines, its structured communication through Tapestry and the practical support mechanisms for children who need additional help.

Rooms and Ages

The Baby & Tots unit emphasises sensory exploration, movement, early communication and social relationships, with a designated sleeping area allowing children to follow their individual rest routines. Sleep has its own space. That matters for families whose baby's day still depends on several periods of rest rather than one shared timetable.

In the 2-5's Unit, open-ended materials support children in developing their own ideas, combining resources and persisting with challenges, alongside monthly wellbeing and mindfulness sessions. The emphasis moves towards making decisions and working with other children. Adults encourage children to explain what they want and think, giving language a purpose within play rather than treating it as a separate exercise.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the framework for learning through play, with activities supporting children's communication, physical development and other areas of learning. Caterpillars combines opportunities led by children with activities guided by adults. Observation then informs what comes next: staff use children's interests and development to choose further experiences, rather than relying solely on a fixed sequence of activities.

In May 2025, babies explored a castanet through an exchange with an adult, taking turns after seeing how it worked. Older children used pretend play to talk about experiences such as visiting the doctor. These examples show how an instrument or a familiar situation can become a starting point for conversation and participation.

Independent exploration needed more attention at that time. Some play choices were controlled too closely by adults, and materials sometimes appeared after an activity had already begun. For a parent, the important distinction is between adults helping a child get started and adults deciding too much of what happens next.

Outdoor and Community Life

Daily access to the garden gives children room for larger movements and play outside, except in the worst weather. The canopy adds a sheltered part of the enclosed play area, making outdoor time less dependent on completely dry conditions. Children can move between active experiences and quieter exploration.

In May 2025, outings included seeing lambs, visiting the library and going to local shops. These were opportunities to connect learning with real experiences: spring could be explored through animals, while visits beyond the nursery supported work with words and numbers. The outings were arranged when possible, rather than following a stated weekly timetable.

Relationships and Communication

Settling starts with information from home. Parents complete a sheet covering routines, interests and support needs, and can spend time in their child's room getting to know the key person and other staff. That gives practitioners useful detail about the individual child before expecting them to adapt to nursery life.

The key person observes development and plans further learning. Tapestry, the online learning journal, allows parents to see observations and contribute photographs, videos and accounts of experiences at home. Communication can therefore work in both directions: a new interest at home can inform nursery activities, and parents can build on something their child has enjoyed during the day.

Progress reviews take place at the end of each half term. There is also an annual parents evening, providing a face-to-face discussion about care and development. These arrangements give families both ongoing updates and a more deliberate opportunity to discuss the bigger picture.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

Support for additional needs has a defined process. The SENCO works with the key person on individual plans, and an Individual Education Plan (IEP) sets out targets, teaching strategies or changes to provision. Plans are reviewed with parents; where external advice is needed, liaison can include speech and language therapists, health visitors and inclusion officers, with parental permission. This gives families a route from an initial concern to agreed action and review.

At the May 2025 inspection, Ofsted found that staff recognised additional needs and sought targeted outside support where appropriate, while identifying inconsistent help with children's emotions as an area for improvement. Planned discussions about feelings did not always translate into help during the moment a child needed it. That is a useful point to explore alongside the monthly wellbeing sessions.

Back to Sleep is the nursery's sleep approach, specifying that babies are placed on their backs. The sleep policy is discussed before admission and during settling, and parents sign to acknowledge receiving and discussing it. The designated sleeping area and this conversation connect the physical arrangements with an agreed approach to rest.

Cooked meals are prepared by the nursery's food team, which includes a cook and kitchen manager; children attending longer afternoon sessions also receive a light tea. In May 2025, children practised using cutlery, pouring drinks and requesting another helping, making mealtimes an opportunity to develop everyday independence.

Sessions and Attendance

Caterpillars is at 3 Chapel Lane, Codsall, Wolverhampton, WV8 2EH. Opening hours are 7.30am to 6pm, Monday to Friday. It operates across the year, closing for bank holidays and Christmas, so its calendar extends beyond school terms.

Morning and afternoon sessions are part of the attendance offer, with light tea associated with longer afternoon attendance. Enquiries can be made through the contact form or by telephone on 01902 750008. The form gathers the child's date of birth, intended days and possible starting month, allowing an enquiry to relate to a particular attendance plan.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare includes the 30-hour entitlement for eligible children aged 9 months and over, and 15 hours for all 3- and 4-year-olds. THINK2 funding is also offered for eligible families. Eligibility conditions still apply to the relevant entitlement.

An additional meal charge may apply when funded childcare is used. Parents supply nappies, creams and other daily consumables for the youngest children. These are separate considerations from the childcare entitlement itself; current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

• Choice within activities. In May 2025, some resources arrived late and adults sometimes restricted children's play options. During a visit, ask to see how materials are arranged before an activity and how children choose what to use.
• Emotions in the moment. Monthly wellbeing and mindfulness sessions sit alongside a May 2025 improvement point about helping children recognise feelings and their effect on others. Ask how practitioners respond during an upset or disagreement, as well as during planned sessions.
• Moving between rooms. The youngest unit includes individual sleep arrangements, while the 2-5's Unit places more emphasis on children's ideas and shared play. Discuss which room would suit your child's development and how the transition would be handled.
• Funded attendance costs. Parents bring daily consumables for younger children. Request a written breakdown for the proposed attendance pattern, including the treatment of meals.

Caterpillars suits families considering morning or afternoon attendance who value individual routines, daily outdoor play and regular contact about their child's development. Tapestry makes home contributions part of that communication, while the SEND planning process gives additional support a clear structure. The May 2025 Good judgement is balanced by two practical improvement points: resources should be ready for children to explore, and emotional support should work during everyday difficulties. Those are the most useful matters to examine on a visit.