Portico Lodge

Busy Feet, Tiny Tweeties and Little Superstars give Portico Lodge a day built around movement, music and language. This is the founding nursery of Portico Nursery Group, in Eccleston Park, with a fenced rear garden and childcare spread between the ground and first floors. Its character is practical: activities to get children moving, communication with parents and preparation for the next stage.

At its 17 October 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated Portico Lodge Good, judged safeguarding effective and found that children made good progress across the areas of learning. That is a dated judgement. The nursery has capacity for 30 children, with an accepted age range of 3 to 60 months; its three childcare rooms cover babies, younger children and preschool ages.

Rooms and Ages

The baby room and 2-3's room are reached from the entrance hall, while stairs lead to the pre-school room upstairs. Small toilets, low sinks and hand dryers on both floors put everyday routines within children's reach. The layout makes the first-floor arrangements a meaningful consideration for families with mobility needs.

Three age bands organise the rooms: 0-2 years, 2-3 years and 3-5 years. These are room bands, rather than a statement that the nursery accepts children from birth. The whole-setting intake begins at 3 months.

Learning and Activities

EYFS provides the framework for learning and care, with children developing skills through play, relationships and everyday activities. Busy Feet adds sessions for small movements and whole-body coordination; Tiny Tweeties uses music and movement to encourage listening and early language. Little Superstars brings sports awareness and larger physical movements, while Spanish lessons introduce another language. These additions give parents concrete examples of what sits alongside the framework.

In October 2022, children investigated shapes using magnifying glasses and handled china tea sets during play. Babies concentrated on transferring lentils into containers. Such examples connect learning to things children can touch, move and examine, rather than treating it as a separate lesson.

Language also threaded through the day in October 2022. Adults talked through their actions with babies, read stories and sang; older children used craft materials to explore The Three Little Pigs. Counting toy animals and discussing the shape of the moon brought mathematical ideas into conversation. The activities were linked to children's interests and what they had already learned.

Outdoor and Community Life

A fence encloses the large garden behind the building. Its surfaces include paving, artificial grass and natural grass, with resources for outdoor investigation. That gives outdoor play a defined place within the nursery grounds, rather than relying entirely on outings.

In October 2022, physical activity included yoga built around a bear hunt and running that helped children notice changes in their breathing and body temperature. Movement was connected to learning about their bodies. These are examples from that period, separate from the current named activity offer.

Relationships and Communication

Before starting, parents and the key worker complete a booklet together about the child's development. Questions about communication, movement and responses to routines help staff establish a starting point for activities. The key worker then uses that information in planning, giving parents a role beyond receiving updates.

ParentZone gives families access to observations and assessments. Progress meetings take place at the end of each term, with discussion of learning at home and agreement on next steps. A requested communication book can add daily detail; monthly planning and home-learning boards provide further ideas that parents can try and report back on.

In October 2022, family photographs and children's artwork helped connect nursery life with home. Key people worked with parents during settling and transitions, and children used signs to express emotions. Meditation and a quieter space also formed part of the response when feelings became difficult to manage.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

A SENDCO works alongside key workers, with monthly checks on children's information. Where development raises concern, parents are informed and involved in planning support; children who already have identified needs can have their nursery support coordinated with agencies already involved. Activities are adapted, then made more challenging as children become confident.

For a child with higher needs, a meeting before the start date brings together the manager, SENDCO and key worker to discuss arrangements and training. The SENDCO has Portage training, and support routes include speech and language therapy, occupational therapy and The Bridge Centre in St Helens. These are mechanisms for planning individual support, rather than a blanket assurance about every child's experience.

School preparation includes inviting a child's new teacher to meet them and discuss progress with the key worker. School uniforms in role play give children something concrete to explore, and a transition report passes developmental information to the next setting. The same reporting process applies when a child moves to another nursery.

Sessions and Attendance

Portico Lodge is on Portico Lane, Eccelston Park, St Helens, L35 7JS. Opening hours are 7.30am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, with closures for bank holidays and a week over Christmas. Those closures matter for families arranging care around work throughout the year.

Enquiries can be made by telephone on 0151 430 8005. The branch's childcare offer and charges page provides its application form, fixed-contract pack and funding-options pack. Current prices should come in a written quotation from the nursery.

Getting There

Eccleston Park train station is nearby, with services between St Helens and Liverpool. Willowbrook Hospice and Whiston Hospital are also close to the nursery, useful landmarks for families considering how the location fits their day.

Funding and Paid Extras

In October 2022, the nursery provided funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-olds. For families planning a funded booking, the written quotation and contract need to be read together so that the attendance arrangement and any additional spending are clear.

• Access between floors. The entrance is wheelchair accessible, but the first floor is not, and there are no disabled toilet or changing facilities. During a visit, discuss how your child would use the upstairs pre-school room and which adaptations would be needed.
• The complete booking cost. Lodge has separate fixed-contract and funding-options packs. Which attendance pattern would your quotation cover?
• Feedback to practitioners. In October 2022, feedback after staff observations needed to become more specific to help teaching develop further. A useful visit question is how observations now lead to practical changes in staff work.

Portico Lodge suits families who value movement and music alongside play, and want a structured way to share information about their child's development. Busy Feet and Tiny Tweeties give that offer substance; termly meetings and ParentZone make the parent relationship concrete. Families needing individual support have identifiable planning routes, although the upstairs preschool space deserves careful consideration where access is an issue. The dated Good judgement is a positive starting point, with the quality of staff feedback a sensible topic for a visit.