Little Angels of Leamington Spa Nursery

Guinea pigs, Stagecoach drama and a separate sleep room give Little Angels of Leamington Spa Nursery a recognisable mix of outdoor responsibility, creative play and practical baby care. Communication runs through its offer: Makaton supports children’s expression, Bilinguasing introduces another language, and key persons keep families connected through the Famly app. These are concrete ingredients of the nursery day, rather than a philosophy left on paper.

At its November 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good overall, with the development of staff interactions identified as the main improvement priority. That distinction matters: the positive judgement came with a specific challenge to make conversations consistently extend children’s vocabulary and understanding.

The nursery has capacity for 38 children and accepts children from 3 months to 5 years. Its address is 41a Rugby Road, Milverton, Leamington Spa, CV32 6DE. Four named rooms provide stages between baby care and preparation for school, while weekday opening spans 7.30am to 6pm across 50 weeks of the year.

Rooms and Ages

The Baby Room combines an individual care routine with a separate sleep room, giving rest its own space rather than making it compete with active play. Babies move onwards at approximately 1 year and 4 months, or when they can walk steadily; development therefore has a part in the transition alongside age.

In the Tweenie Room, activities chosen by children sit alongside those organised by adults, with an emphasis on social skills, everyday independence and communication. The next move is approximately 2 years and 3 months. For parents, this stage is about learning to take part with other children as well as becoming more capable individually.

The InbeTweenies Room serves children approximately 2 years and 3 months to 3 years and 3 months, using a space created by dividing a larger room to support smaller, age-related groups and preparation for preschool. The alteration was introduced for September 2024. It gives this middle stage a room of its own, rather than treating the move from toddler care to preschool as a single jump.

The Pre-School Room emphasises confidence, independence and children’s opinions, including discussion through Little Angels council meetings. Children normally move into it at approximately 3 years and 3 months. The room also accommodates an age range from 2 years and 9 months to 5 years, so the transition arrangements deserve attention when choosing a starting date.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage provides the framework for learning through play across its seven areas of learning. Here, activities include early reading and maths, practical problem-solving, storytelling and role play. Children have opportunities to choose activities, while adults also organise experiences around their interests and development. The useful question is what those experiences contain, rather than whether a nursery follows the framework that applies to its provision.

Communication supplies much of that detail. Makaton is used to support communication from babyhood through preschool, and time to talk strategies are incorporated into the curriculum. Children’s home languages and cultural backgrounds also have a place in learning. This gives families more than a general promise of inclusion: there are specific ways of helping children express themselves and making their existing language part of the day.

Stagecoach adds dance and drama, while Bilinguasing provides language sessions. Both are included in nursery fees. These give children different ways to participate: movement and imaginative performance alongside encounters with another language.

Premier Active runs weekly sessions for Tweenies and preschool children, adapting physical activities to their stage of development. Football and rugby sit alongside gymnastics and dance. The variety matters for a child who enjoys movement but is still finding which activities appeal to them.

ZooLab has also visited several times, bringing small animals and minibeasts for children to learn about and handle. Those visits offer a different encounter with living creatures from caring for the nursery’s own animals; they should be understood as visits that have taken place, rather than a weekly booking.

Outdoor and Community Life

The secure garden is used during both the morning and afternoon, whatever the weather. Growing vegetables and plants, caring for guinea pigs and taking part in forest school sessions bring nature into learning through outdoor exploration. These experiences give children something to look after as well as space for physical play.

In November 2022, outdoor and indoor experiences included climbing a slide, drawing, puzzles and shaping dough with tools. Sensory play involved coloured cornflour and shaving foam, while information books accompanied a space-themed activity. The detail shows how movement, hand control, sensory exploration and conversation could meet within ordinary play at that time.

Relationships and Communication

Each child has a key person, providing a regular relationship through which staff and families can share what the child needs. Conversations at the beginning and end of the day are complemented by updates on learning and wellbeing through Famly. The app adds continuity between those short conversations: parents can follow what their child has been doing rather than relying entirely on a hurried exchange.

For babies, parents complete a profile covering health, feeding and routines, which informs their care. This is a practical starting point for a child whose familiar pattern matters as much as the activities on offer. Staff also observe babies’ development and share updates with families, connecting their observations with what parents know from home.

Independence is built into school preparation through dressing, self-care and tidying, alongside listening and following instructions. Little Angels council meetings add another element: children have a forum for discussing matters that concern them. Preparation for the next stage therefore includes having a voice, as well as managing everyday tasks.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the November 2022 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and children with special educational needs and/or disabilities making good progress, with home-language words, picture cards and Makaton supporting communication. Those findings belong to that visit. Current arrangements include individual learning and care plans, giving families a concrete mechanism to discuss when a child needs additional support.

Little Angels holds Millie’s Mark, an endorsement linked to paediatric first aid training throughout the staff team working with children. Its practical significance is the breadth of first aid preparation recognised by the award; it does not replace the dated safeguarding judgement.

Nursery Kitchen supplies meals daily, with menus devised by development chefs, approved by nutritionists and designed to accommodate differing dietary requirements. The nursery also holds Nutritionist Approved Menu Accreditation.

In November 2022, everyday independence included babies learning to feed themselves, toddlers pouring drinks and older children serving breakfast and snacks. These small tasks made mealtimes an opportunity to practise doing things for themselves, as well as a break for food.

Sessions and Attendance

Opening hours are 7.30am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, for 50 weeks each year. Closures include bank holidays, a week at the end of August and Christmas week. The nursery does not charge for bank holidays, a useful distinction when planning childcare costs alongside time away from work.

Enquiries can be made through the contact form or by telephone on 01926 882 556. The nursery is based at 41a Rugby Road in Milverton, Leamington Spa, CV32 6DE. Its age range extends from young babies to children approaching school age, allowing families to consider the progression between rooms as part of their choice.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered to eligible children from 9 months. Eligible working families may receive the 30-hour entitlement, subject to the relevant eligibility conditions; the 15-hour entitlement starts from the term after a child’s third birthday. Approval by HMRC is required for extended hours.

Funding is stretched across 50 weeks, with a maximum of 22 funded hours each week. This is an important practical difference from receiving the entitlement over 38 weeks: families considering year-round attendance need to compare their weekly childcare requirement with the stretched allocation.

Private hours outside the funded allocation are charged separately. Current prices come in the nursery’s written quotation, and the fees and funding page explains the funding arrangement. Stagecoach and Bilinguasing are included in nursery fees; parents provide babies’ bottle feeds, nappies and other necessities. The nursery also accepts most childcare vouchers and participates in the government tax-free childcare scheme.

• Language and staff interaction. The November 2022 improvement priority concerned making staff conversations consistently extend children’s understanding and language. On a visit, ask how staff development now addresses that specific point.
• Room transitions. The InbeTweenies stage sits between toddler care and preschool, with moves described approximately by age and, for babies, steady walking. Ask how a move is agreed for your child and how familiarity with the next room is built.
• Stretched funding. The allocation is spread across 50 weeks, with up to 22 funded hours weekly. Compare that pattern with the childcare you need and request a written quotation separating additional hours, food and other charges.
• Language sessions. Bilinguasing and Stagecoach are included in fees. Ask which language Bilinguasing currently teaches and how the sessions are adapted for your child’s room.

Little Angels suits families looking for regular weekday childcare with a progression from individual baby routines to a preschool stage that values independence and children’s opinions. The separate sleep room is a useful physical feature for babies; older children have weekly Premier Active sessions, drama and language activities, and daily garden experiences.

The Good judgement from November 2022 supplies a positive inspection position, while the interaction improvement priority gives parents a precise point to explore. For families using funding, the stretched weekly allocation is central to the decision. The strongest reasons to choose this nursery are its concrete communication practices, outdoor responsibilities and named activities, considered alongside the room transitions and cost structure.