Malthouse Nursery

Roly Poly Hill, Gruffalo Woods and a working farm shape childhood at Malthouse Nursery. Fields, woodland and tractor visits on the Charlton Park estate near Malmesbury give children plenty of reasons to move, explore and get muddy.

Malthouse accepts children aged one to five and has 43 places in total. At its February 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated it Good overall and across education, behaviour, personal development and leadership. Outdoor play and optional enrichment shape the current offer.

Attendance is term-time, with morning and all-day bookings plus early and later extensions. The important distinction for families is between the funded EYFS day and the paid Malthouse Enrichment Package: the choice affects activities, consumables, communication tools and booking arrangements.

Rooms and Ages

The Under 2’s Room sits within an age range starting at one year. In February 2023, songs, familiar stories, a slide and animal play gave babies and toddlers ways to join in through sound and movement.

Indoor resources include programmable toys and an office area for early writing. Construction, pretend play, dressing up, sand and water let children investigate ideas through building, acting and experimenting.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) brings together learning about language, relationships, movement, early reading and number, creativity and the world. In practical terms, play, conversation and everyday experiences contribute to learning; the framework is the baseline, while Malthouse’s additional activities sit alongside it.

The Malthouse Enrichment Package (MEP) adds optional paid experiences, resources and parent services alongside the EYFS. Gardening, cooking, French, Spanish and yoga broaden the activities; Jo Jingles music sessions and Sporty Little Stars sports activities add rhythm and movement.

In February 2023, an interactive table, individual workbooks, written labels and questions supported literacy. Writing materials throughout the preschool space brought early reading and writing into play areas.

Creative freedom needed attention in February 2023: planned art activities restricted exploration of paint and glue. The improvement requested was more time for children’s own ideas, a useful consideration alongside the extensive activity package.

Outdoor and Community Life

Roly Poly Hill provides grass for rolling; Gruffalo Woods, meadows and estate walks extend exploration. Den-building, balance bikes and ball play encourage movement, while tractor visits connect children with the working farm.

Malthouse aims for at least 50% of each day outdoors, except during high winds or thunderstorms. That ambition makes weather-ready clothing a practical consideration.

Woodland Forest School adds outdoor exploration to the learning offer. Within the MEP, Forest School takes place daily during the summer months, and wet-weather gear is included in the package. In February 2023, a woodland outdoor classroom supported climbing, building with large materials and pretend cooking in a mud kitchen. Those experiences gave children space to use their bodies and handle objects on a larger scale than indoors.

Relationships and Communication

Parents can discuss development, share home information and consult staff about additional needs. These conversations bring family routines, interests and concerns into planning care.

Communication is closely tied to the MEP. Families opting in receive contact books, a photo learning journal, an online app and termly progress summaries, alongside settling sessions. The Malthouse book club provides a daily book loan within that package, allowing reading to continue at home. These are concrete services, but they should be understood as part of the paid choice rather than assumed to accompany every funded place.

In February 2023, stories, signs and help with naming feelings supported emotional learning. Staff guided conversations through disagreements, giving children language and adult help to manage conflict.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the February 2023 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and described staff working with parents and specialists to support children with SEND, including speech and language strategies for group communication. The safeguarding assessment included recruitment checks, reporting knowledge and supervision during estate outings. These are dated findings, rather than a guarantee about current practice.

In February 2023, woodland routines included checking the area, counting children and helping them understand play boundaries. Outdoor freedom therefore came with explicit supervision practices. Staff development was also an improvement point: training needed a more deliberate connection to the teaching skills the team wanted to strengthen.

Staff have early-years qualifications and experience. The MEP includes a private speech therapist, a specific support route rather than individual therapy for every child.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Malthouse Nursery, Charlton Park, Malmesbury, Wiltshire, SN16 9DG. Core opening hours are 9am to 3pm, Monday to Friday during term time, with closure on bank holidays. Telephone, email and an enquiry form provide routes for registration and correspondence.

Morning sessions run from 9am to noon; the Lions-only morning-with-lunch option ends at 1pm. All-day sessions run from 9am to 3pm. Early Drop Off covers 8.30am to 9am, while Breakfast Club runs from 8am to 9am on Thursdays only and requires an appointment. Afternoon Tea Club extends the day from 3pm to either 4pm or 5pm. Afternoon sessions are also offered.

The minimum booking is two sessions across two days weekly. Families needing school-holiday care must plan around the term-time calendar.

Funding and Paid Extras

Malthouse offers the 15-hour universal entitlement for three- and four-year-olds and the 30-hour working-parent entitlement for eligible families, delivered during term time over 38 weeks. The nursery’s accepted age range still starts at one year. Eligibility and the funded entitlement should be kept separate from any additional private hours or paid services.

The MEP is optional and carries an additional charge for families using funded hours. Opting in includes snacks, afternoon tea, wipes, creams and sun cream; additional lunches are charged separately. Opting out means parents supply snacks, drinks and consumables, including nappies, wipes and sun cream, and take food and nappy waste home.

The choice extends beyond food and sundries. Opt-out arrangements exclude enhanced experiences, daily estate outings, the app, contact books, photo journals, book loans and termly summaries. Days and sessions for opt-out funded attendance may change between terms, whereas the opt-in package includes preference in booking days and sessions. This is a substantial difference in the experience being purchased.

Changes to the MEP require a full half-term’s notice. Withdrawal from the nursery requires written notice for a full term; insufficient notice triggers a half-term payment. Non-returnable registration and booking charges also apply, with further liability after the booking charge is paid if a family later decides against attending. Current prices come in the nursery’s written quotation, and the fees and funding terms explain the choices.

Moving on to School

Children have gone on to Malmesbury C of E Primary School and Beaudesert Park School, among other destinations. Prospective teachers are invited to meet children at Malthouse and share their photo albums, giving the next adult a way to learn about the child’s nursery experience. Attendance does not guarantee a school place: families use the local authority admissions process for state schools or the individual school’s process for independent schools.

• The package changes the day. Opting out of the MEP removes enhanced activities and several communication services, and funded sessions can change between terms. Before joining, discuss how the alternative day would work for your child and your weekly routine.
• Term-time coverage. Morning and all-day sessions offer different lengths of attendance, but the nursery operates during term time. Match the holiday breaks and the two-day minimum booking to your childcare needs.
• Creative freedom and staff development. February 2023 improvement points concerned independent exploration of art materials and more targeted training. On a visit, ask how children now direct creative activities and how staff development supports that work.
• Commitment before starting. Registration and booking charges are non-returnable, and payment of the booking charge creates liability if you later cancel. Read these terms alongside the full-term withdrawal notice before committing.

Fields, woodland and a working farm make Malthouse a strong practical match for families who want outdoor experiences to occupy a substantial part of nursery life. It serves both morning attendance and all-day sessions, with extensions for families whose timetable reaches beyond the core day.

The deciding issue is the MEP. Its activities and parent services make the opt-in experience materially different from funded attendance with extras declined. Choose on that full picture, including term-time coverage and cancellation commitments, rather than treating funded hours and the complete package as interchangeable.