Churchdown Day Nursery

A balcony for the youngest children and a glass-fronted room opening onto an all-weather garden give Churchdown Day Nursery a clear physical character. This purpose-built setting on Parton Road separates children into age-based rooms, with different opportunities for independent play as they grow. Outdoor access is part of the room design, rather than simply a separate activity on the timetable.

The nursery has capacity for 85 children aged 3 to 60 months. At its September 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated it Good overall and judged safeguarding effective. That is a dated assessment: the strongest current details for families are the room layouts, the key-person system and the provision of a sensory room alongside outdoor play spaces.

Rooms and Ages

Roos, for children aged 3 to 18 months, has balcony access and regular outings to the library, post office and local park, giving babies experiences beyond their playroom. Kangas, for ages 18 to 24 months, uses a spacious, bright room for independent exploration and small-world play, including miniature hospital, farm and railway settings.

Tiggers, for ages 24 to 36 months, encourages independence and shared activities such as drawing and puzzles in a colourful room. Biggies, for children aged 36 months and over, combines independent exploration with a glass frontage opening onto the all-weather garden; each child also has a labelled drawer for work to take home.

These are different stages of nursery life, with room descriptions that attach activities to the children using them. The miniature settings in Kangas give toddlers material for imaginative play, while the Biggies layout makes indoor and outdoor exploration closely connected. Families can see how the environment changes as children move beyond the youngest room.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS sets the framework for children's learning, development and care. In everyday terms, that brings play, growing independence and learning together, rather than separating education from the practical business of being a young child.

In September 2023, toddlers joined action songs, while preschool children explored a computer painting activity, choosing colours and learning the meaning of words on the screen. Everyday tasks also became opportunities to practise independence: babies selected fruit at snack time, toddlers helped prepare tables, and older children used small scoops and funnels with coloured sand. These examples give a more useful picture of the nursery day than a list of learning areas alone.

There was a clear planning issue in September 2023, too. Activities did not consistently extend children's existing knowledge and skills, and the improvement action called for closer attention to each child's next learning steps. That distinction matters: offering an engaging activity and choosing the right challenge for an individual child are separate jobs.

Outdoor and Community Life

All age groups use the garden during the day. The building also has two outdoor play areas and a sensory room, giving children different spaces beyond their usual room. The contrast between balcony access for Roos and direct garden access for Biggies is especially useful when comparing the youngest and oldest children's environments.

In September 2023, younger children used a covered balcony for wheeled play and rolling balls along guttering. Older children had a larger outdoor space with climbing, sliding and swings, and staff discussed helmet use when children rode bicycles. Community experiences at that time included exploring aeroplanes at a nearby airport, delivering collected food to a food bank and taking part in activities at a care home. Those visits connected play with people and places outside the nursery.

Relationships and Communication

A key person provides continuity for settling and development, with responsibility for observations, developmental records and individual activity planning. For parents, that gives the relationship a practical purpose: the adult helping a child settle also follows their learning, rather than treating comfort and development as separate responsibilities.

At the September 2023 inspection, Ofsted found that staff worked effectively with parents and other professionals, recognised additional support needs promptly and arranged interventions that helped children, including those with SEND, make good progress. Parents were kept informed about learning so that they could support it at home.

School preparation in September 2023 included sharing summaries of children's development with parents and teachers, inviting teachers to meet children and arranging school visits. This was preparation for a change of setting, with information passing between adults as well as opportunities for children to become familiar with school.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

The building extends across two floors, with stairs and a lift serving the upper floor. Wheelchair access is accommodated through the corridors, doorways and toilets, while air conditioning supports the building during warmer weather. These are concrete access arrangements, useful for families assessing how a child will use the space.

A full-time cook makes fresh meals daily, with fruit and vegetables included and a menu repeating over four weeks. Dietary requirements linked to health or religion are catered for, making food arrangements relevant to both the daily routine and individual care.

Sessions and Attendance

Opening hours are 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday. The nursery operates throughout the year and closes on bank holidays. That opening window gives families a clear boundary for the day, particularly when matching childcare with work commitments.

Getting There

The address is 115 Parton Road, Churchdown, Gloucester, GL3 2JE, between Cheltenham and Gloucester. Enquiries can be made by telephone on 01452 531105, by email at info@churchdownnursery.co.uk or through the online contact form; the enquiry service gives a response time of 48 hours.

Funding and Paid Extras

Nursery grant funding is accepted, as are nursery vouchers. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

• Individual learning steps. The September 2023 improvement action concerned how consistently activities built on children's existing skills. During a visit, ask how a recent observation becomes a specific next activity for a child.
• The youngest children's environment. Roos has balcony access within a building arranged over two floors. A visit can explore how settling and outdoor play work together for a baby starting nursery.
• Attendance and the funded quotation. Opening hours run from 8am to 6pm and grant funding is accepted. Ask for a written attendance proposal that sets out the funded entitlement, booking pattern and treatment of meals and non-food consumables together.

Churchdown suits families looking for year-round weekday childcare with clearly differentiated age-based rooms and outdoor access built into the environment. Roos' balcony and Biggies' garden-facing glass frontage are the clearest examples, while a key person links settling with individual development. The September 2023 Good judgement gives a useful quality reference, balanced by a specific improvement action about learning progression. For parents, the deciding question is how those individual next steps work alongside the appealing physical spaces.