Kings Meadow Nursery

A wooded Forest School area, an AstroTurf pitch and a netball court give Kings Meadow Nursery a clear outdoor identity. Its Warwick Racing FC setting brings space for movement alongside specialist sessions in dance, Spanish and football. For parents who want outdoor experiences to be part of nursery life, the physical setting is a substantial reason to consider it.

Kings Meadow accepts children aged 3 to 60 months and has 40 places in total. Baby Room, Tots and Pre-School Room provision span different stages of early childhood, with Tots serving children aged two to three. The whole-setting capacity is separate from the number of children sharing any particular room.

At its 21 June 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated Kings Meadow Good overall, while identifying improvements needed in conversations with babies and in how staff adapted learning activities. Those priorities matter alongside the outdoor offer, especially for families choosing care for a younger child. Morning, afternoon, short-day and full-day bookings provide several attendance patterns.

Rooms and Ages

Two playrooms for each age group give the indoor provision more than a single shared activity space. The rooms are bright and airy, while the outdoor spaces include a private play area as well as the wooded area and sports facilities. That combination gives families both the indoor arrangement and the outdoor setting to weigh when choosing care.

Tots, for two- to three-year-olds, includes a weekly Playdo-making activity in which children take part. Making the material becomes an activity in its own right, rather than children simply receiving something ready to use. The Baby Room and Pre-School Room complete the named stages of provision.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage guides learning through play, exploration and activity, covering communication, physical development, relationships and the later foundations of literacy and mathematics. This is the shared early-years framework. Kings Meadow adds named specialist activities alongside it, giving parents concrete things to consider beyond the framework itself.

Twirling Toddlers uses dance, singing, movement, props and sensory equipment. Bilinguasing introduces Spanish, while specialist teachers also deliver football. These additions bring different kinds of participation into the day: movement and music in one session, another language in another. They are specific activities rather than a general promise of enrichment.

In June 2023, children constructed boats using different materials, cut and joined the pieces, then tested their creations in water. Comparing what floated turned making into investigation. It is a useful example of how a practical activity can connect hand skills, conversation and prediction, rather than treating those as separate lessons.

The same June 2023 account highlighted occasions when activities needed better adjustment. A story was read amid noise and bustle despite quieter spaces being available, and babies sometimes had too little conversation with adults. The practical issue was how staff used the environment and responded to children, not simply which activities they planned.

Outdoor and Community Life

Forest School involves supported risk-taking through tree climbing, den building and learning about campfire safety, with marshmallow roasting among the activities. The wooded area gives this work a physical home. For children who enjoy exploring, it adds experiences that differ from play on a sports surface.

Alongside the woodland are the AstroTurf pitch, netball court and Racing Club’s football pitch. Woodland walks, topic-dependent visits and trips also feature in the funded-session activity package. The offer therefore combines movement on site with experiences beyond the playrooms; the frequency of individual activities should not be confused with a fixed weekly timetable.

Relationships and Communication

In June 2023, babies sought comfort from their key person, and staff used information from families when children started to plan their next learning steps. Parents also received progress updates through an online application. These arrangements connected the child’s home life with nursery planning and gave families a route into discussions about development.

Online learning journals remain part of the funded-session resource package. They give parents a way to follow learning alongside direct conversations with staff. The team structure also includes a business manager supporting administration and a manager who works in the Baby Room, so organisational duties and hands-on care both have named roles.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the June 2023 inspection, Ofsted judged safeguarding effective, with staff training, environmental checks and supervision arrangements supporting that judgement. The current team includes a designated safeguarding lead role. These are separate facts: the role describes an arrangement, while the effectiveness judgement belongs to the dated inspection.

In June 2023, children washed their hands before eating and had drinking water within reach. Adults explained the effect of behaviour on other children, including why splashing bubbly water could hurt someone’s eyes. This made routines and boundaries understandable through everyday examples, rather than relying only on instructions.

A nursery cook prepares meals daily using fresh ingredients, with breakfast, a mid-morning snack, typically fruit, a two-course lunch and afternoon tea forming the food offer. Baking with the onsite cook is also included among the funded-session activities, connecting food with something children can help make.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Townsend Meadow, Hampton Road, Warwick, CV34 6JP, at Warwick Racing FC. Opening hours are 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday. The nursery operates across the year, closing for bank holidays and one week at Christmas; a possible Christmas Eve closure is notified to families.

Morning sessions run from 8am to 1pm, afternoons from 1pm to 6pm, full days from 8am to 6pm and short days from 9am to 4pm. A discounted full-time pattern covers Monday to Friday. The minimum booking is three sessions, with either a short day or a full day counting as two sessions.

Bookings use set sessions rather than individual hours. This matters when matching nursery care to a working day: the short day provides a different span from the full day, while mornings and afternoons divide the day into separate bookings. The minimum should be considered alongside the chosen pattern.

General enquiries can be made through the contact form, by telephone on 01926 495 343 or by email to info@kingsmeadownursery.co.uk. An information pack can also be requested through the nursery’s form.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare and privately paid sessions are both offered. The annual funding schedules cover 570 and 1,140 hours stretched across 51 weeks, with separate schedules for children whose eligible period begins later. Eligibility timing affects the weekly allocation, so the attendance pattern and funded allocation need to be considered together.

Private session fees include nappies and the meals and snacks attached to that session: breakfast and lunch accompany a morning booking, while afternoon tea accompanies an afternoon booking. Standard funded bookings separate childcare from charges for food, enhanced resources and consumables; funded-only bookings have restricted hours and no charge for that bundle, with limits applying to the resources and consumables received.

Billing is monthly, spread over 51 weeks, and invoices fall due on the first of the month. Bank holidays are charged, and holiday or sickness absences are non-refundable. Current prices come in the nursery’s written quotation; the fees and funding page provides the route for pricing enquiries.

• Baby communication and quieter learning. The June 2023 priorities concerned conversations with babies and adapting activities, including using quieter spaces. During a visit, ask staff to demonstrate how those points shape care today.
• Set sessions and the minimum booking. Three sessions are required, with short and full days each counting as two. Compare the pattern you need with the nursery’s session boundaries before committing.
• Funded-only attendance. Funded-only bookings use restricted hours and differ from standard funded bookings in their charge structure. Ask for a written breakdown that matches your eligibility period and chosen sessions.
• Closures and absence costs. Bank holidays remain chargeable, and holiday or sickness absence is non-refundable. Include those terms when assessing the ongoing commitment.

Kings Meadow suits families choosing between morning or afternoon sessions, short days and full days who value woodland activities, sports space and specialist sessions. Forest School, Twirling Toddlers and Spanish give the offer recognisable substance. The June 2023 communication and teaching priorities remain useful questions for a visit, while the booking minimum and funded-charge structure deserve careful attention alongside the outdoor appeal.