Tigers Day Nursery

Sunflowers measured in the garden, leaves used for rubbings and logs turned over in search of bugs: Tigers Day Nursery's October 2024 nursery day connected learning with things children could handle, grow and investigate. That practical character gives families something more useful to assess than a list of activities. Children were taking part, making choices and exploring ideas through play.

At Henwick Court in Thatcham, Tigers accepts children from 3 months to 5 years. The nursery is registered for 88 places. That is whole-nursery capacity, rather than the number sharing any one room. For parents comparing settings, the distinction matters: the overall scale tells you little about the group your child will actually join.

Ofsted rated Tigers Good on 2 October 2024, identifying two improvements: allowing children longer to formulate answers and helping parents understand their child's next learning goals. Those points deserve attention alongside the practical learning and care described below. They concern the everyday conversations through which children learn, both at nursery and at home.

Learning and Activities

The nursery follows the early years foundation stage, the framework for children's learning, development and care: here, its October 2024 examples included learning through garden exploration, creative play and everyday routines. Measuring sunflowers gave children a reason to discuss size, while leaf rubbings and play dough offered different ways to explore materials. The activities connected ideas with direct experience.

In October 2024, staff organised learning around children's interests and the next steps in their development. A garden bug hunt involved looking beneath logs and using telescopes. Children also worked out how to include their friends by finding enough equipment for them to join in. The activity brought investigation and cooperation together, rather than treating social learning as a separate lesson.

Independence took a practical form. Older children served their own drinks and helped tidy the table after eating; younger children practised feeding themselves. These are useful examples for families who want nursery to support the small daily tasks their child is beginning to manage at home. Progress towards independence was built into ordinary routines.

Outdoor and Community Life

Indoor and outdoor play both featured in October 2024. The garden supplied growing plants, insects and logs to investigate, while creative activities continued inside. Outdoor time therefore contributed material for learning as well as space for play. The sunflower example linked plants the children had grown with measurement and discussion of size.

There was also an emphasis on explaining expectations. Staff talked children through the reasons for rules in both indoor and outdoor spaces. For parents, that offers a concrete picture of how boundaries were taught: children were helped to understand the purpose of an instruction, rather than simply follow it.

At the October 2024 inspection, Ofsted found effective safeguarding arrangements and attentive emotional care, alongside SEND support involving parents, other professionals and regularly updated plans. The examples of comfort were specific: staff spoke gently, offered cuddles and sang while rocking the youngest babies to sleep. This is useful inspection-time evidence for families weighing how a setting responds when a child needs reassurance.

In October 2024, children approached staff when they wanted comfort. Adults also demonstrated how feelings could be expressed through their own interactions with children. The care account therefore went beyond personal routines: it included the relationships children used when they needed help managing their emotions.

For children with SEND, plans were revisited and adjusted with input from families and other professionals. That mechanism matters more than a broad promise of inclusion. It provides a way to reconsider support as a child's needs and learning change, rather than leave an initial plan untouched.

Communication had a clear limitation. In October 2024, staff did not consistently make each child's forthcoming learning goals clear to parents. A family might know that their child had enjoyed an activity yet still need a clearer explanation of what it was intended to develop. The requested improvement addressed that link between nursery learning and what parents can support at home.

Sessions and Attendance

Tigers is at Henwick Court, Turnpike Road, Thatcham, RG18 3QY. Opening hours are 7.45am to 6.15pm, Monday to Friday, with year-round opening apart from bank holidays and Christmas. The opening window is useful for comparing work schedules and collection arrangements; holiday closures also need to fit the family's childcare planning.

The nursery can be contacted on 01635 528857 or at tigers@tigersdaynurseries.co.uk. These are the Thatcham contact details, keeping enquiries directed to this setting.

Funding and Paid Extras

In October 2024, Tigers received early-education funding for children aged two, three and four. This establishes participation at that date, rather than a promise that a particular child qualifies or that a requested attendance arrangement can be funded. Families should obtain a current written quotation for their proposed care.

The same dated account recorded 55 staff across the nursery. That is a whole-setting staffing count, not a room ratio or a measure of how many adults will be with an individual child. It should not be used to infer group size.

• Time to answer. The October 2024 improvement point concerned adults sometimes moving on before children had processed a question. During a visit, look at how staff pause and respond when a child needs longer to speak.
• Learning shared with home. In October 2024, parents were not consistently told their child's next learning goals. Ask how those goals are now explained and how families can contribute to them.
• Your child's group. The nursery is registered for 88 places. Ask which group your child would join and how its daily routines and staffing work. The total capacity is not a room size.
• The complete childcare quotation. Year-round opening includes bank-holiday and Christmas closures. Ask for a written quotation covering your intended attendance, funded hours, food and consumables, so the care arrangement and its charges can be assessed together.

Tigers suits families seeking care from babyhood through to age five, with a weekday opening window that extends into the early evening. Its October 2024 examples give the nursery day a practical identity: growing plants, investigating the garden and practising independence through eating and tidying.

The decision should also take account of the two communication improvements. Children need time to form answers, and parents need clear information about the learning that comes next. Assessing those everyday interactions, alongside the child's actual group and attendance arrangement, will be more revealing than judging Tigers by its overall size alone.