Seesaw Nursery

A Victorian house, gardens and a small orchard give Seesaw Nursery its character. This is the Wingfield Road setting in Trowbridge, also known as Seesaw 1, where younger children use the ground floor and preschool children have their base upstairs. Outdoor learning has a substantial place in the day. The setting has capacity for 40 children, with a current age range of 12 to 60 months.

At its January 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated Seesaw Good overall and judged safeguarding effective. The practical appeal is broader than the building: morning, afternoon and two full-day patterns allow families to choose different lengths of attendance, while school-holiday attendance is optional.

There are useful reservations alongside that positive judgement. In January 2023, some toddler activities lost momentum when staff attention moved elsewhere, and older children sometimes needed greater challenge. Those are concrete points to explore alongside the nursery's outdoor provision and emphasis on independence.

Rooms and Ages

Tiny Tots caters for children from 1 to around 3 years old, combining practice in eating, toileting and communication with running, climbing and other movement in a garden used in different weather conditions. Settling takes priority for children experiencing care outside their family for the first time. The point is familiarity before ambition: children need to become comfortable with their surroundings while learning how to take part in nursery life.

Pre School emphasises learning outdoors and through children's own exploration, with opportunities to investigate materials, try ideas and decide how to approach an activity. Its upstairs base gives this older stage a different physical setting from the younger group below. The house layout is worth considering alongside your child's readiness to move between stages.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage provides the framework for learning through play, covering children's language, movement, relationships, early literacy and mathematics as well as creativity and understanding of the world. Development Matters supports planning around each child's development within that framework. It is guidance for shaping learning, rather than a separate branded curriculum that replaces the foundation stage.

A learning journal brings together observations, photographs and children's work, and parents can contribute to it. That makes learning a shared conversation: something a child does at home can sit alongside what practitioners notice at nursery. Regular work with smaller groups is supported by a senior manager who mentors staff and holds a BA Hons in early years.

The April 2026 preschool programme made planting tangible. Jack and the Beanstalk and Zog supported storytelling and imaginative play, while children had opportunities to grow beanstalks and observe plants changing. Comparing size, building patterns with natural materials and experimenting with soil, beans and water connected early mathematics to things children could handle.

In January 2023, language work included pictures, gestures and adults supplying words during play. Singing involved instruments for babies and objects linked to songs for toddlers. Older children practised letter formation and explored initial sounds, while familiar stories encouraged younger children to join in. These activities gave children opportunities to practise communication through music, stories and play.

Outdoor and Community Life

The orchard and gardens are part of the setting's physical appeal, and outdoor experiences also extend beyond the house. Short community trips include the local fire station, while visiting adults can include the police and a crossing patrol worker. These experiences connect children's play with people and services they encounter outside nursery.

In April 2026, the younger children's programme included spontaneous outings to the library, café and park. Preschool farm visits were also part of that term's plans. These were outings within a particular term's programme, rather than a fixed weekly timetable.

The January 2023 outdoor activities included a mud kitchen, a tepee tent used for construction play and a garden scooter circuit. They offered different kinds of participation: imaginative play, investigating materials and practising movement. The detail matters more than a general promise of time outside.

Settling in Tiny Tots centres on helping children become familiar with their surroundings and confident away from home. Independence develops through ordinary routines, including feeding themselves, trying foods and learning to communicate with adults and other children. These small steps prepare children to participate more fully in the older group.

At the January 2023 inspection, Ofsted found that children with SEND and those learning English as an additional language developed their communication skills, and that staff tracked development and worked with parents and other professionals to support good progress. That dated finding gives substance to the account of support: it describes how adults responded to children's learning needs.

In January 2023, toddlers practised pouring drinks and preparing their bread, while preschool children served their own lunch. Staff also worked with families on toilet training. These everyday responsibilities gave children opportunities to do things for themselves, with adult help where needed.

Moving towards school receives practical attention. In the April 2026 programme, preschool children practised managing clothing, opening lunch packaging, using cutlery and carrying belongings. Teacher visits, school visits and preparation of transition reports connected these routines with the next stage. This is preparation for the change, rather than a claim of an admissions advantage.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is 12 Wingfield Road, Trowbridge, BA14 9EB. Opening hours are 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, and the nursery operates for 50 weeks of the year. Closures include bank holidays and a week at both Christmas and Easter.

Funded entitlement can be used in morning sessions from 9 to 1 or afternoons from 1 to 5. Full-day options run from 9 to 3 or 9 to 5. Hours outside those funded session windows are charged at the hourly rate, so the opening window and the funded booking patterns need to be considered separately.

School-holiday attendance is optional. The Christmas and Easter closures do not attract an additional fee, but holidays taken during school term time are charged for. This distinction matters for families planning breaks outside the school calendar.

Enquiries can be made by telephone on 01225 767006 or by email to seesawnursery1@googlemail.com.

Funding and Paid Extras

Seesaw accepts government entitlement for 15 and 30 hours, alongside paid childcare. The choice of morning, afternoon and full-day funded patterns is useful for families whose required day does not simply match the full opening window. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

Lunch and tea are cooked at the nursery, and children can instead bring a packed lunch. A snack is also provided, giving families a choice over lunch arrangements rather than requiring every child to eat the cooked meal.

• Toddlers' engagement. In January 2023, planned activities sometimes lost children's interest when staff were helping other toddlers with their emotions. On a visit, ask how adults now keep an activity going while responding to individual children.
• Challenge for older children. In January 2023, some older children needed tasks that stretched their learning further. Ask how Pre School adapts an activity for children who already understand its starting point.
• The funded day and the working day. Funded morning, afternoon and full-day sessions have their own attendance windows; hours outside those windows are charged separately. Compare the morning, afternoon and full-day options with the hours your family actually needs.
• Food and everyday supplies. Cooked lunches and teas sit alongside the packed-lunch option. Request a written breakdown covering meals, snacks and non-food consumables for your intended funded or paid pattern, so the total arrangement is clear before booking.

Seesaw suits families who value outdoor play, a house-based setting and practical steps towards independence. Its range serves parents seeking a morning or afternoon session as well as those wanting either of the longer full-day patterns. Optional school-holiday attendance adds another useful choice.

The gardens and orchard give the setting a recognisable character; learning journals and everyday self-care add substance to the account of the nursery day. The January 2023 concerns about toddler engagement and older children's challenge deserve direct questions. For a family comfortable with the house layout and the funded session windows, there is a clear, practical offer to weigh.