South Lee School Nursery Review

Treasure baskets for babies, picture recipes for budding cooks and Forest School within the school grounds give South Lee’s nursery its own character. Part of South Lee Prep School & Nursery on Nowton Road in Bury St Edmunds, it caters for children aged 3 months to 3 years. The Fledglings baby room accommodates up to 15 babies; that is a room capacity, rather than a total for the nursery.

The inspection position needs equal attention. On 28 to 30 January 2025, the registered early years provision required improvement overall and in education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership and management. Teaching differed between rooms. Families should weigh the activities alongside those concerns.

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) combines activities chosen by children with adult guidance. Its foundations are movement and self-care, speaking and listening, relationships and feelings. Early maths, literacy, creative work and exploration of the world build on those foundations, giving play a learning purpose.

For babies, activities include shape sorters, water play and treasure baskets, alongside painting and marks made with crayons or chalk. Fledglings has its own kitchen, sleeping and changing areas, plus a designated baby space in the nursery garden. Indoor exploration can extend into the grounds through Forest School.

Older children have named activities to look forward to. Make and Bake uses picture recipes, with children measuring ingredients and mixing or kneading them. Stave House introduces music through stories and rhymes. French uses a monkey puppet, games and songs; STEM activities include bridges, tunnels and erupting volcanoes. These provide practical ways to explore language, quantities and cause and effect.

In January 2025, pre-school teaching supported early reading through songs, actions and letter sounds. Babies’ play was accompanied by spoken commentary, while some rooms used Makaton signs. However, other rooms made less effective use of resources and space, and staff did not consistently adjust activities to children’s interests. During less structured periods, some children drifted around or remained at the edges of activities. Better oversight, staff coaching and changes to the learning environment were required.

Fledglings operates with one adult for every three babies and follows each child’s routine, helping connect home care with nursery care. In January 2025, children had secure relationships with their key person. Daily handovers gave parents time to exchange information, supplemented by online updates and reports before room changes.

Food includes morning fruit and an afternoon snack of fruit, cheese or crackers. Meals and snacks are adjusted for allergies and dietary needs. In January 2025, children received nutritious food and close supervision while eating, with paediatric first aid cover. Food procedures. On very rare occasions, staff missed planned preparation checks. Consistent completion of those checks was a required improvement, making this a practical point to discuss during a visit. Some staff also missed handwashing routines around meals; corrective action was taken during the inspection.

Support for additional needs involved advice from professionals and matching strategies between home and nursery. Staff could also seek help from the school nurse. Safeguarding was effective in January 2025, with regular staff training and checks on staff knowledge. A regulatory notification concerning the nominated individual was corrected during that inspection; suitability checks had already been completed, with no impact on children.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Ask the admissions team how to apply for Reception and what deadlines apply. Keep the place application distinct from settling into the next classroom.

A summer Moving Up Day gives children starting the following September time with their new teacher and peer group in their next classroom. That provides familiarity with the next stage; it does not secure admission.

Three booking options divide the day: Morning Session runs from 8.00am to 1.00pm, Afternoon Session from 1.00pm to 6.00pm, and All Day Session from 8.00am to 6.00pm. South Lee accepts 15-hour government childcare funding for eligible parents. Additional hours are charged; contact the Bursar for current charges.

Nursery bills are sent through Tapestry in the month before attendance. Families can submit an admissions enquiry form or arrange a nursery tour. Contact the office at office@southlee.co.uk or 01284 754654 to organise a visit.