St Lawrence's Private Day Nursery Pre-School

Converted buildings, generous outdoor space and resources within children's reach give St Lawrence's a clear character: play with room for children to make their own choices. Based off High Street in Gnosall, it combines baby care with toddler and preschool provision. The nursery has 40 places in total and accepts children from three months to five years.

At its 5 April 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good, found safeguarding effective and judged support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and looked-after children very strong. The detail behind that judgement matters: practical independence, communication with families and support tailored to individual children were prominent. Group activities also needed more attention to each child's involvement.

Attendance choices include full days, mornings, afternoons and a shorter School Day. Those different patterns sit alongside a play-led curriculum, a key person for each child and Famly, the app through which families follow development and contribute experiences from home.

Rooms and Ages

Babies & Little Movers combines soft spaces and low sensory resources with corners for quieter moments, crawling and tummy-time opportunities, emphasising movement, sensory exploration and close interaction with adults.

Toddlers brings together sand and water trays, open-ended resources and creative spaces, with climbing, balancing, songs and stories supporting physical skills, language and interaction with other children.

Pre-School adds opportunities for early number work, literacy, science and creative projects, with gardening, role play and collaborative activities encouraging problem-solving and independence.

Across the converted buildings, resources sit at child height. That gives children a practical way to choose what to use rather than waiting for an adult to fetch it. Outdoor provision includes sizeable play areas, with activities adapted to children's interests and stages of development.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) sets the standards for children's care, development and learning; here, children work towards those areas through play, conversation and practical exploration. It is the shared early-years framework. St Lawrence's approach starts with observing children's interests, then arranging resources and activities that extend what they already know.

Development Matters, the non-statutory guidance used to support curriculum planning and track learning, sits alongside that approach. Practitioners watch children's interactions and use them to shape subsequent activities. For parents, the important connection is between what a child enjoys now and the next skill an adult helps them practise. The curriculum approach explains that relationship.

In April 2024, play included a shopping scenario in which staff introduced ideas about quantities and measurement. Children also measured vegetables with a tape measure, and adults supplied new vocabulary during play. These were everyday objects put to educational use, making early mathematics and language concrete.

The daily routine combines children's own choices with brief adult-led activities, including singing, stories and group time. Quiet periods and rest are part of the pattern too. Timing changes with children's needs and ages, rather than every activity following an identical timetable.

Outdoor and Community Life

Daily outdoor play continues through the seasons. Gardening, physical activity and exploration connect the outdoor spaces to learning, while parents supply clothing suited to the weather. This is a practical consideration for children who enjoy messy activity: spare clothes and outdoor footwear belong in the nursery bag.

In April 2024, children balanced along wooden planks, made chalk marks on the ground and filled pots using soil and a trowel. A bicycle built for two also gave children a reason to cooperate. The activities combined movement with opportunities to practise sharing and doing things for themselves.

Families can take part in Christmas celebrations and a graduation ceremony. These events add occasions for parents to join nursery life beyond daily conversations and progress updates.

Relationships and Communication

Every child has a key person who gets to know their interests and development, plans suitable learning opportunities and shares updates with parents. The relationship begins with routines and preferences, including what comforts a child and which stories, songs or activities they enjoy. That gives settling a personal starting point.

The Getting to Know You booklet gathers those details before care becomes familiar. Settling sessions usually progress through one, two and four hours, and parents may remain for the first session. A transition guide is sent ahead of the start, while age-group welcome booklets explain routines and are supplied again when children move rooms. Additional settling sessions can be arranged if needed.

Famly holds each child's Learning Journey, bringing together observations, developmental milestones and memorable moments. Parents can comment and add stories from home. Daily feedback and parents' evenings provide other ways to discuss progress, so communication has both an immediate, everyday element and space for longer conversations.

In April 2024, staff shared information and resources that helped families continue learning at home. Children's experiences outside nursery were also displayed and used as starting points for conversation. This connected home life with nursery activity rather than treating the two as separate worlds.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

A SENCo coordinates additional-needs provision. Individual Support Plans can set targets and review progress, with input from speech and language therapists, educational psychologists and health visitors when needed. Observations and conversations with parents help identify where extra support may be useful. These are specific mechanisms for adapting care and learning to a child.

In April 2024, staff helped children manage rising emotions by redirecting them towards suitable responsibilities. They also supported self-help skills through demonstration followed by time to practise, including fastening shoes. Independence was approached through small, achievable tasks rather than expecting children to manage immediately.

A designated safeguarding lead role and secure entry arrangements form part of current procedures. Prescribed medication requires written parental consent, and accident information is shared with families. These arrangements describe how care is organised; the dated safeguarding judgement belongs to the inspection above.

The nursery chef cooks on site, using seasonal ingredients for a four-week menu cycle. The food policy allows a packed lunch as an alternative, and the nursery works with families on allergies, intolerances and religious dietary requirements.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is off High Street, Gnosall, ST20 0EX. Standard opening hours are 8am to 6pm from Monday to Friday, across 51 weeks of the year.

Full Day runs from 8am to 6pm; Morning from 8am to 1pm; Afternoon from 1pm to 6pm; and School Day from 9am to 3pm. Early Drop-off covers 7.30am to 8am, while a School Day can be topped up from 3pm to 6pm. These are separate attendance options, so the shorter day need not be mistaken for the full opening window.

The minimum for fee-paying places is one fixed full day each week unless the manager agrees otherwise. Before School Club runs from 8am to 9am, with After School Club choices of 3.15pm to 4.30pm or 3.15pm to 6pm.

Bank holidays and the Christmas closure interrupt the year-round pattern: Christmas closing begins at 12.30pm on Christmas Eve and lasts until January's first working day. There can also be up to two training closures annually, with parents given at least three months' notice. Fees continue during bank holidays, training days and ordinary absences; funded hours are delivered across the funding period despite those closures.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare includes Working Family Funded Childcare, Additional Support for 2-Year-Olds and Universal 15 Hours for All 3–4 Year Olds, subject to the relevant entitlement conditions. Funding can cover term-time attendance over 38 weeks or be spread across 51 weeks for year-round care. Additional private hours are charged separately, so funded entitlement and the child's complete attendance pattern need to be considered together.

Funding Loop collects the termly forms, while working-family eligibility codes need renewal every three months. Monthly childcare payments are made in advance through Famly. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

For fee-paying care, food, snacks, nappies and wipes are included in the fee; parents supply formula when needed and sun cream. For funded hours, meals, consumables and extras may attract separate optional charges, with alternatives offered. A registration charge applies to fee-paying places, and a deposit is refundable subject to payment and notice conditions.

• Participation in group activities. The April 2024 improvement point concerned how well activities engaged each individual child. On a visit, ask how group time is adapted for children with different interests and levels of attention.
• Nappies and wipes. The price list includes these in fees, while the daily packing guidance asks parents to bring them. Clarify the arrangement for your child's booking, including any optional funded-hours charges and alternatives.
• Short sessions and the weekly commitment. Morning, Afternoon and School Day options sit alongside a fee-paying minimum of one fixed full day weekly unless otherwise agreed. Discuss the complete weekly pattern before accepting a place.
• Dietary needs and changing plans. Families managing allergies should confirm current food arrangements, including the packed-lunch policy. Most cancellations, withdrawals and session reductions require eight weeks' written notice; the Reception-year exception reduces this to four weeks from 1 July.

St Lawrence's suits families seeking full-day care, morning or afternoon sessions, or a shorter School Day, with the weekly minimum needing careful attention. Child-height resources, substantial outdoor space and play shaped around children's interests give the offer substance. Key-person care, Famly and structured settling arrangements make parents part of that process.

The April 2024 Good judgement provides a positive inspection position, with individual engagement during group activities the clear point to explore. For families weighing the practical fit, the decisive details are the agreed weekly pattern, funded-hours extras and how care is adapted to their child.