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First Steps To Learning Pre-School & Day Nursery

Ofsted: Good
(Jan 2023)
·
4.8(20 parent reviews) ·Cadet Centre, Tyrells Close, Upmimster, RM14 2QA · Havering
Number of places
36 places
Age range
0–4 yrs
Last inspected
Jan 2023
Local authority
Havering

About this day nursery

First Steps to Learning Pre-School & Day Nursery, located in Upminster, Essex, offers a nurturing and stimulating environment where children can embark on their educational journey. The nursery is committed to providing excellent childcare and early years education, focusing on creating a professional, safe, and confidence-building space that allows children to reach their full potential.

They emphasize healthy eating habits from a young age and follow the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) framework to guide learning and development for children from birth to five years old. The nursery employs qualified staff who undergo a rigorous recruitment process to ensure high-quality care.

They provide various programs tailored to different age groups, including 'Explorers' for under 2s, focusing on sensory exploration and developing early key skills, and 'JetSetters' for 2-5 year olds, incorporating the EYFS 7 areas of learning and 'Characteristics of Effective Learning' to prepare children for school and foster independence. The nursery also offers specialized activities like Forest School and Super Star Sports, enriching the children's experiences beyond the traditional classroom setting.

Our ethos

First Steps to Learning Pre-School & Day Nursery is committed to providing excellent childcare and early years education, following the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) framework. They offer specialized activities like Forest School and Super Star Sports, enriching children's experiences beyond the traditional classroom setting. Their 'JetSetters' program for 2-5 year olds incorporates the EYFS 7 areas of learning and 'Characteristics of Effective Learning' to prepare children for school and foster independence.

What it's like

Children are warmly greeted by kind and friendly staff. They settle quickly and engage in a broad range of fun, exciting, and educational activities. Staff know children well and have high expectations, leading to a positive approach to new experiences and good behaviour.

EYFS CurriculumForest SchoolHealthy Eating Focus

Pricing & funding

Funding accepted

15 hours — universal (3–4 yrs)30 hours — working parents (3–4 yrs)15 hours — eligible 2-year-oldsTax-Free Childcare
  • Reduced registration fee£35.00 / session

Key facts

Session types

Term Time, Full day sessions, 2 half day sessions

Opening hours

Monday to Friday, 7.15am until 6pm

Age range

Under 2s to 5 years old

Term time / All Year

All Year

Food

Healthy eating supported

Established

2019

Ofsted Inspection

Ofsted rating for First Steps To Learning Pre-School & Day Nursery

Last inspected 16 January 2023 · Amy Mckenzie

Safeguarding effective
Overall effectiveness
Good
Quality of education
Good

What it's like to attend

Children are warmly greeted by kind and friendly staff. They settle quickly and engage in a broad range of fun, exciting, and educational activities. Staff know children well and have high expectations, leading to a positive approach to new experiences and good behaviour.

Inspector highlights

  • The pre-school is run by an ambitious and dedicated leadership team with a clear development plan.
  • Staff effectively plan activities based on children's knowledge and interests, meticulously monitoring progress and sharing findings with parents.
  • Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities receive excellent support through partnerships with professionals.
  • Children have frequent opportunities to explore the local community, learning about fruits and the value of money.
  • Children enjoy participating in forest school activities at a local park, including nature trails and art projects.

Areas to develop

  • 1continue to develop the outdoor learning space, to provide children with more opportunities to engage in a wider range of activities that support their development across all areas of learning
  • 2build on the consistency of some staff member's interactions with children to strengthen their questioning techniques, in order to extend children's thinking skills further.
Inspection #10236971 · Source: OfstedView full Ofsted report

What parents say

Verbatim quotes recorded in the Ofsted inspection

Parents express high levels of appreciation for the staff and experiences their children receive.

They state that staff are kind, supportive and that their children love attending.

Inclusion & environment

How they support every child

SEND provision

Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities receive excellent support. There is a strong culture of working in close partnership with a range of other professionals to review children's personal targets and tailor individual activities to foster their development. This is a real strength of the pre-school.

Outdoor space

Children enjoy participating in forest school activities at a local park. For instance, they participate in nature trails and collecting leaves for art projects. Despite this, staff do not always plan a fully broad outdoor curriculum in the nursery's outdoor space.

Parent Reviews of First Steps To Learning Pre-School & Day Nursery

4.8
(20)
Aiswaryamol Madhusoodhanan
4 months ago

We had a good experience with the nursery, and the staff were kind and caring towards my son, Rihan. We really appreciate the support and care they provided. Thank you to the whole team.

Read on Google
Tatjana Anpilova
a year ago

I love our local nursery. My child has attended it since he was 18 months old, and now he is graduating from nursery. I can't believe how time flies! From the beginning, I was reassured that he would be in good hands. The transition to nursery was smooth, as was his progression through the nursery classes. The nursery staff is very professional and lovely. He loves and is attached to all of them. I regularly receive updates, learning progress through an app and from staff members. The nursery offers a variety of activities—every week there is a theme, for example mindfulness, outdoor learning, colours. They also organize outside activities like visiting local parks, shops, and soft play areas, and they even have weekly football classes. He has learned many words and is very good with numbers, so I am very confident and calm about him starting school. The most important thing for me is that he is very happy to go to nursery in the morning because he loves all the staff members and his friends. I can’t recommend them enough!

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N G
a year ago

FSTL strives to improve and create a wonderful learning space for children. Both our children go to FSTL and are happy going in with supportive friendly staff. We were attending during the first Ofsted report which was released to us as parents. The management used the report as constructive learning and made several improvements to better the nursery. They are always striving to make it better for everyone. We receive daily updates of the learning intent and photographs of our children enjoying their days. The staff take the children out to the local park, buy ice-creams and go on other trips on buses. I would strongly recommend this nursery for location, environment and support for children and parents. Each challenge we have had has been met with a partnership between us and the management/key worker so we can all keep consistency for teaching our little ones.

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Monica Barrett
5 years ago

I am very happy with this nursery. The staff are very welcoming. They offer a friendly and caring approach; and are attentive to my child's needs, who is making fantastic progress, thanks to the daily activities which help to develop his learning. I also like the idea of my child having a hot meal for lunch, which he says are 'really nice'. Keep up the fantastic work!

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Csiki Szilard
3 years ago

What an amazing place. My baby princess is attending the nursery for past couple of years and she loves it. She is cared for and loved and I think thats the most important thing of all. She would go to nursery even in weekends if that would be possible and that says it all. Would highly recommend to every parent. One of the best decision we made for our baby she learns so much there. Thanks to all the team caring for her.

Read on Google

Reviews from Google for First Steps To Learning Pre-School & Day Nursery. See all on Google Maps

Inspection history
Improved from Requires improvement → Good in 2023

Date: February 2022

  • January 2023Good
  • February 2022Requires improvement

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