Sunflowers Day Nursery, Braeside

A two-level garden, a baby sleep room and occasional beach outings give Sunflowers Day Nursery, Braeside a recognisable coastal character. Based in Paignton, it has capacity for 69 children and accepts children from 3 months to 5 years. Its four rooms organise care around stages of development, with room moves guided by readiness as well as age.

At its 3 June 2026 inspection, Ofsted judged children's welfare and wellbeing to be Strong standard, the remaining education and care areas to be Expected standard, and safeguarding standards to be met. The practical detail behind that position matters: personalised settling, familiar key people and resources for children needing additional support sit alongside an improvement priority around transitions between activities.

Attendance can be term-time or year-round, with full-day, morning and afternoon bookings plus an early breakfast session.

Rooms and Ages

Starfish caters broadly for babies aged 0–19 months, Jellyfish for 19–30 months and Dolphins 1 for 30–42 months; Dolphins 2 is the preschool room. The accepted starting age is 3 months. Development as well as age guides room moves.

Starfish has a sleep room with cots and mats for older children. Jellyfish and Dolphins 1 have sleeping areas with mats, lights and gentle music. Parents can direct shorter naps where daytime sleep affects the evening routine.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage is the common framework for learning, development and care. Staff use its areas of learning to plan activities around children's interests and needs, drawing on weekly observations to shape the following month's planning.

In June 2026, communication and language activities were organised for different ages, working on attention, listening, understanding and speech. Babies explored soft-play equipment as they practised standing and moving between resources; toddlers worked dough with their hands; older children built increasingly complicated constructions. These examples show how learning could be adapted to different stages rather than giving every room the same task.

Books connected with hands-on exploration too. In June 2026, older children linked live caterpillars and their cocoons to The Very Hungry Caterpillar, while staff introduced counting during play, using fingers to make numbers visible. That combination gives an abstract idea something children can see and handle. The improvement priority was consistency: strategies helping children understand expectations needed to become more firmly established across the team.

Outdoor and Community Life

Every child can use the enclosed two-level garden, with ramp access to the lower level. Outdoor play continues in wet weather, so families supply wellington boots and waterproof coats.

Nearby Goodrington beach and Paignton harbour offer places for local exploration. Occasional beach and park outings extend experiences beyond the garden.

Relationships and Communication

Free settling sessions are tailored to the child. A parent or carer stays for the first baby session to discuss home routines. The child's bond with a member of the room team guides the choice of key person.

Tapestry is the online learning journal used to record observations and share development with families; parents can contribute photographs, comments and observations from home. For Starfish and Jellyfish, its Care Plan also records nappies, meals and naps. Those everyday details help parents connect the nursery day with the evening at home, rather than receiving only occasional learning updates.

Room changes involve time in the new space before the move, supported by a document passed between key people. The learning account continues through the rooms, with information later shared with the child's chosen school. Termly newsletters and opportunities to discuss progress with the key person add further contact beyond the online journal.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

The SEND process brings the key person, SENCO and parents together to observe needs, plan support and review its effect. Individual Learning and Development Plans specify interventions, resources and who will deliver them, with reviews agreed at least termly. External advice can inform the plan, and medical support can be incorporated through a health care plan. This gives families a defined process for discussing adjustments.

At the June 2026 inspection, Ofsted found that sensory resources, ongoing assessment and work with speech and language therapists and educational psychologists supported inclusion, while staff used familiar interests and reassurance to help children manage emotions. In June 2026, practical wellbeing work also included tooth brushing and sharing recipes with parents, including baking ideas that used vegetables in place of sugar.

An EAL coordinator supports children learning English alongside another language. Communication tools include picture cards and word fans, and staff seek to provide home-language and English signs where parents wish. Behaviour support can use a STAR chart, recording the setting, trigger, action and response, to help staff and parents identify patterns. Both arrangements offer concrete ways to understand a child's experience rather than relying on a general promise of support.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is 1 Braeside Road, Paignton, TQ4 6BX. Opening hours are 7.30am–5.30pm, Monday to Friday, across 51 weeks of the year. The nursery closes for bank and public holidays, scheduled inset days and a week at Christmas, which families need to factor into their annual care arrangements.

The full-day session runs from 8.30am to 5.30pm, the morning from 8.30am to 1pm and the afternoon from 1.15pm to 5.30pm. Breakfast care runs from 7.30am to 8.30am and requires advance booking. Term-time-only and year-round attendance are both offered, allowing families to choose between shorter sessions and a longer nursery day.

Funded attendance examples include term-time mornings from 9am to noon and days from 9am to 4.30pm. Stretched examples include an 8.30am–5.30pm day and an 8.30am–1pm morning; these choices are subject to availability. Enquiries and visit arrangements are handled by telephone or email.

Fees are paid monthly in advance, with sickness absence charged in full. A non-refundable retainer covers administration and holding the child's place. Leaving, holidays and changes to hours require a month's notice.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare includes universal funding from the term after a child's third birthday, eligible 2-year-old funding and working-parent funding from the term after a child turns 9 months, subject to eligibility. The nursery offers 15 or 30 funded hours over 38 weeks, or stretched arrangements of 11 or 22 hours over 51 weeks. Eligibility depends on family circumstances, and additional hours beyond the funded allocation are charged privately.

Meals and snacks are included in private session prices, while funded children's bills carry separate food and non-food consumable charges; families also bring a piece of fruit for each session. Food is cooked on site by a chef using a three-week menu, and the dietary policy provides for allergy action plans and alternatives for vegetarian or religious requirements.

Parents supply nappies, formula and sun cream, while the funded consumable charge covers additional wipes, nappy cream, sun cream and specified medicines. This distinction matters when comparing a funded pattern with paid sessions: entitlement covers childcare hours, while these items affect the bill and what comes from home. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

• Transitions during the day. The June 2026 next step concerned consistent support for understanding expectations and moving between activities. At a visit, ask how room teams now manage changes such as tidying up before story time, especially for a child who finds change difficult.
• Funded bills and supplies. Funded attendance carries separate food and consumable charges, alongside parent-supplied items. Review the written quotation against the exact sessions you intend to book, including any breakfast care or private hours.
• Settling and sleep. Introductory sessions are personalised, and Starfish has its own sleep room. Discuss how your baby's home routine would shape the settling plan and daytime rest.
• Dietary needs. Allergy action plans and alternative dishes form part of the food arrangements. Families affected by allergies should confirm current practice and agree the individual plan before their child starts.

Braeside suits families seeking either morning or afternoon sessions, a full nursery day, or term-time attendance rather than care throughout the year. Its strongest practical attractions are the baby sleep room, shared two-level garden and detailed communication through Tapestry, with occasional coastal outings adding local character.

The June 2026 findings give welfare and wellbeing particular weight. More consistent support for transitions between activities remains the improvement priority to weigh alongside those strengths.