Boys & Girls Nursery Rickmansworth

Weekly sport with Sprog Sports, walks to the Aquadrome and a garden used throughout the day give Boys & Girls Nursery Rickmansworth a clear emphasis on movement and exploration. Indoors, the progression from babies’ home routines to preschool children serving their own food makes independence a practical part of nursery life. The setting has capacity for 100 children, accepting ages from 3 months to 5 years.

At its June 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good and found safeguarding effective, while identifying improvements needed in staff interaction during routines and the organisation of outdoor learning. Those findings matter alongside the physical space: a large garden needs thoughtful use, and everyday care tasks need to leave time for conversation.

The purpose-built setting occupies Greville House, Chorleywood Close, Rickmansworth, WD3 4EG. Morning, afternoon and full-day bookings offer different attendance patterns, with a minimum weekly commitment for the standard childcare packages.

Rooms and Ages

Four base rooms organise the progression through nursery, with room moves taking account of children’s development and the other children in their group rather than birthdays alone. This gives families an age guide while allowing the pace of a move to reflect the child.

The Baby Room, for 3-12 months, follows home routines as closely as possible and combines different activity areas with a quiet space, individual cots and bedding, and en-suite changing facilities. Staffing in the Baby Room is one adult to three babies. Familiar sleep and feeding rhythms are therefore part of the settling arrangement, rather than something families have to abandon immediately.

For 12-24 months, the Pre-Toddler Room provides an open-plan space for early walking and exploration, with imaginative, messy and small-world play alongside a resting area equipped with sleeping mats. The Toddler Room, for 2-3 years, balances practitioner-led activities with children’s choices, while child-sized toilets and nearby changing facilities support the move out of nappies.

The Pre-School Room, for 3-5 years, brings more structure, independently accessible resources and a separate phonics area, with a water fountain, mark-making table and maths and science spaces. Children practise choosing snacks, managing the toilet and helping prepare and clear activities. These are everyday responsibilities with a purpose beyond keeping the room tidy.

For two-year-olds, the usual staffing ratio is 1:4, compared with the statutory minimum of 1:5. That is an additional practitioner commitment for this age group. It does not establish the number of children sharing the room.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) is the statutory framework for learning and care: here, children’s days combine play they choose themselves with activities guided by staff and targets tailored to individual development. Messy play and construction sit alongside sport and early phonics. The framework supplies the common foundation; the named sessions add to that daily mix.

Sprog Sports provides weekly sporting activities, giving movement a recurring place in the timetable. Robot Reg delivers phonics lessons for preschool children, adding sessions devoted to early literacy. Neither requires families to arrange a separate journey during the nursery day.

The group-wide SchoolReady programme is used in the preschool rooms to build a positive attitude towards learning through children’s interests and staff guidance. At this branch, practical preparation includes self-serving at meals, choosing activities and managing personal care. The emphasis is on becoming more capable in ordinary situations, alongside early phonics.

In June 2022, children explored a water mill by pouring water through it and discussing what might happen. Toddlers also washed dolls in activities linked to new babies in their families. These examples show how an activity could begin with something children recognised, then create opportunities to talk and investigate; they describe practice at that time.

Outdoor and Community Life

Regular local walks include the Aquadrome, extending exploration beyond the nursery garden. Community visitors include the Fire Brigade, animal charities and dentists, bringing different working roles into children’s experience. The nursery’s own outdoor space remains an important part of the day, with activities taking place in the garden as well as indoors.

The June 2022 outdoor concern was about organisation: when children from different rooms shared the space in large numbers, concentration suffered. Staff also sometimes became absorbed in routine jobs after meals, leaving children waiting between activities. Both points make the organisation of the day as relevant as the equipment or amount of space.

Events provide another route into shared experiences. In May 2026, an Ark Farm visit was scheduled for preschool children to meet and handle animals. The Pirates & Mermaids Summer Festival was scheduled for July 2026, with music, games and party food planned and fancy dress optional. These were dated events, rather than a promise of a repeating timetable.

Relationships and Communication

A key person provides a familiar contact for discussing a child’s learning and daily experience, with room staff offering an end-of-day handover. A more detailed conversation about the learning portfolio can take place before the usual collection time. This gives parents a way to discuss development beyond the essentials of food and sleep.

Ovivio is the parent app used for photographs, meals, sleep and nappy updates, as well as observations and developmental milestones. It also handles invoices and messages, and parents can request additional sessions through it. Daily care information and account administration therefore share one channel, supplemented by conversations with staff.

At the June 2022 inspection, Ofsted found that staff worked closely with parents to understand babies’ needs and that attentive relationships helped babies settle and progress. Current baby-room arrangements continue to place home routines at the centre of settling, with individual bedding and quiet space supporting rest.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

Rest is built into the room arrangements: babies have their own cots, toddlers can nap, and preschool children have quieter activities. This allows the day to accommodate different sleep needs rather than treating every child’s afternoon alike.

Access to reception is controlled by an entry-phone system, and CCTV covers the rooms. These are security arrangements; the dated safeguarding judgement belongs to the inspection above. Parents may watch the CCTV from reception to see how their child has settled.

An on-site chef prepares meals and snacks, and the menu follows a five-week cycle. The nursery’s allergy policy prevents food being brought from home, an important practical consideration for families comparing the standard and funded-only arrangements.

Preparation for school is visible in the preschool day through independent eating, toileting and choosing resources. Small-group work also helped older children practise concentration in June 2022. This is preparation for the next stage of learning, rather than an admissions advantage.

Sessions and Attendance

Standard full days run from 8am to 6pm; morning sessions are 8am to 1pm, and afternoons run from 1pm to 6pm. Families can combine sessions and full days. The standard booking requirement is at least 20 hours each week, so a single short visit is not the attendance model for these packages.

Opening hours are 7am to 7pm, Monday to Friday, across 52 weeks excluding bank holidays. An early drop-off at 7am or collection at 7pm attracts a separate charge. Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve have an earlier closure, at 1pm, which needs to fit families’ holiday work arrangements.

Start dates can fall throughout the year. Enquiries use the nursery’s contact form or telephone, and a visit can be arranged through the appointment form. The address is Greville House, Chorleywood Close, Rickmansworth, WD3 4EG.

Getting There

A large car park serves collections and drop-offs, and there is storage for pushchairs and car seats. Rickmansworth London Underground is the nearest station, giving families a named transport option alongside the nursery’s position on the A404 / Chorleywood Road.

Funding and Paid Extras

Working Family Funding provides up to 30 hours for eligible working parents from the term after a child reaches 9 months; Universal Funding offers up to 15 hours from the term after the third birthday, and 2 Year Old Funding offers up to 15 hours for families meeting its criteria. Funding is stretched across the nursery’s 52-week year, with a consistent monthly allocation, rather than delivered through term-time places.

Private fees include cooked meals, snacks and the activity sessions. For funded attendance, the enhanced package carries a voluntary additional services and consumables charge covering food, activities and specified care consumables, including sun cream and nappy-waste disposal; hours beyond the funded allocation are charged privately. The package cannot be split to remove individual elements.

The alternative Basic Service offers funded-only afternoon sessions from 12.30pm to 3.30pm, without the listed consumables or additional hours and sessions. This operates away from mealtimes, and the allergy policy still prohibits bringing food from home. Funded-only bookings follow a priority rule covering siblings, looked-after children and time on the waiting list.

A refundable deposit is credited against the final invoice when the required notice is given; there is also a non-refundable registration charge. Moving from a private contract to funded-only attendance requires eight weeks’ written notice to end that contract. Current prices come in the nursery’s written quotation, with the fees and funding information setting out the main structure.

• Outdoor organisation and waiting time. In June 2022, shared outdoor sessions affected concentration, and routine tasks sometimes interrupted staff interaction. During a visit, ask how garden use and transitions between activities are organised now.
• The funding package changes the timetable. Standard afternoons run from 1pm to 6pm, while funded-only sessions run from 12.30pm to 3.30pm and exclude extra sessions. Compare the actual hours and services before choosing a package.
• Attendance commitment and calendar. Standard packages require 20 hours each week, and funding is stretched across the year. The bank-holiday closures and 1pm finishes on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve need to fit the family’s working arrangements.
• Allergy arrangements. Food from home is prohibited under the nursery’s allergy policy. Families affected by allergies should confirm current meal procedures and how their child’s needs will be managed.

Boys & Girls Nursery Rickmansworth suits families seeking a combination of full days and morning or afternoon sessions, with year-round attendance, on-site food and practical preschool preparation. Weekly Sprog Sports, Robot Reg phonics and walks to the Aquadrome give the offer recognisable content beyond the rooms themselves.

The choice needs to work on two levels: the child’s day and the family’s contract. The June 2022 concerns put particular weight on routines and outdoor organisation, while the difference between enhanced funding and funded-only afternoons can materially change an attendance plan. For babies, continuity with home routines and individual sleep arrangements are the strongest practical starting points.