Nursery Advice
Claim Your Nursery

Pillar Box Gardens Nursery

Ofsted: Good
(Oct 2021)
·
5.0(5 parent reviews) ·49 Fairfield Road, Bow, London, E3 2QA · Tower Hamlets
Number of places
30 places
Age range
Up to 5 yrs
Last inspected
Oct 2021
Local authority
Tower Hamlets

About this day nursery

Pillar Box Gardens Nursery, established in 1995, operates as a private setting located near Bow Road underground station and Bow Church DLR, with convenient access to local bus routes. The nursery prides itself on offering a "home from home" environment, fostering a strong sense of security and confidence in children.

It caters to different age groups across two sites. The Fairfield Road location specializes in the care of infants and toddlers from birth to 18 months, emphasizing tender care, individual attention to feeding and sleeping patterns, and encouraging physical and mental development through high staff interaction, cuddles, songs, and engaging activities like treasure baskets, books, and messy play.

Upon reaching 18 months, children transition to the Pillar Box Montessori Nursery on Bow Road, which is a short walk away. The curriculum is based on the Montessori philosophy for teaching and learning.

The nursery is open for 49 weeks of the year, providing a consistent and structured environment for children to thrive.

Our ethos

The nursery's approach is Montessori-based, aiming to foster a strong sense of security and confidence in children. They offer tender care, individual attention, and encourage development through high staff interaction, songs, and engaging activities. The nursery strives to provide a "home from home" environment.

What it's like

Children happily arrive at the nursery, warmly greeted by familiar staff and settling quickly to explore exciting activities. Staff have high expectations for children's achievements and skillfully reintroduce familiar activities to keep children motivated and extend learning. Children's emotional needs are well supported, and they learn to manage their own feelings and impulses while developing friendships and respecting others.

Montessori ApproachEstablished 1995Two nursery sitesHome from home environment

Pricing & funding

Fees are charged on a monthly basis and depend on the child's age group and the number of days attended each week. Packages are structured around unfunded, 15-hour funded, and 30-hour funded sessions. All fees include meals, snacks, nappies, wipes, and formula milk.

Funding accepted

15 hours — working parents (9 months–2 yrs)15 hours — eligible 2-year-olds15 hours — universal (3–4 yrs)30 hours — working parents (3–4 yrs)

Good to know

  • Fees are fully inclusive of all meals, snacks, nappies, wipes, and formula milk.
  • A refundable deposit and a non-refundable administration fee apply upon booking.
  • Fee rates are categorized into age bands: 9 months to 3 years, and 3 to 5 years.
  • The fee schedule runs annually from 1st January to 31st December.

Key facts

Food

All meals, snacks, and formula milk included

Opening hours

Open 49 weeks of the year

Age range

Birth to 5 years

Term time / All Year

All Year

Established

2001

Ofsted Inspection

Ofsted rating for Pillar Box Gardens Nursery

Last inspected 5 October 2021 · Paul Church

Safeguarding effective
Overall effectiveness
Good
Quality of education
Good
Behaviour and attitudes
Good
Personal development
Good
Leadership and management
Good

What it's like to attend

Children happily arrive at the nursery, warmly greeted by familiar staff and settling quickly to explore exciting activities. Staff have high expectations for children's achievements and skillfully reintroduce familiar activities to keep children motivated and extend learning. Children's emotional needs are well supported, and they learn to manage their own feelings and impulses while developing friendships and respecting others.

Inspector highlights

  • Settling-in procedures are effective, using parent information and observations to plan activities that build on children
  • Staff understand what they want children to learn, following interests and supporting appropriate development levels.
  • Personal, social and emotional development is a key focus across the nursery, with a well-embedded key-person system.
  • The manager has a strong vision and is ambitious for the nursery, with effective staff supervision and performance monitoring.
  • Partnerships with parents are good, with parents reporting happiness with the provision, children's confidence, and regular communication.

Areas to develop

  • 1ensure that staff's use of spoken English is consistent and accurate to support children's English language acquisition, specifically when supporting children who speak English as an additional language.
Inspection #10207623 · Source: OfstedView full Ofsted report

What parents say

Verbatim quotes recorded in the Ofsted inspection

Parents report they are very happy with the provision and their children's experiences at the nursery.

They observe how confident and independent their children have become.

Inclusion & environment

How they support every child

Outdoor space

Children remember to practise controlling their movements while creating patterns on the outside chalk board.

Parent Reviews of Pillar Box Gardens Nursery

5.0
(5)
K
7 months ago

We started taking our daughter here from about 10 months for a few days and then fully from 12, the settling in period is always a bit rough at the start but the nursery did V well to support. She absolutely loves it here now and can't wait to go in, the staff are caring and diligent and the various activities alongside inside/outside play as well as wholesome menu makes us feel at ease as parents. Thanks Pillarbox!

Read on Google
Aleksei Desiukevich
9 months ago

Our son has been attending Pillar Box Gardens Nursery for the past 8 months, and we couldn’t be happier with the experience. The staff truly care about the children and put so much effort into supporting their growth and development. They are always responsive to any requests and provide thoughtful feedback, which gave us so much confidence as parents. Most importantly, our son absolutely loved going there every day – he would run in with a smile and come home happy, which says everything about the environment they’ve created. We’ve seen him grow and flourish so much during his time here thanks to the dedication and warmth of the team. A special thank you to the manager, Shuma – her kindness and professionalism truly set the tone for the whole nursery. Highly recommended to any parents looking for a safe, caring, and inspiring place for their children.

Read on Google
Gemma Stuart
8 years ago

This is a lovely nursery. The staff are kind and friendly and have genuine affection for the children. Nice outdoor space. Personable and responsive manager. Highly recommend.

Read on Google

Reviews from Google for Pillar Box Gardens Nursery. See all on Google Maps

Inspection history

Date: June 2012

  • October 2021Good
  • November 2016Good
  • November 2013Good
  • June 2012Good

Frequently asked about Pillar Box Gardens Nursery

Nearby day nurseries in London

Other Ofsted-registered day nurseries close to Pillar Box Gardens Nursery.

Are you the owner of this nursery? Claim this listing to manage photos, hours and contact details.

Claim listing

Share this nursery

Send to a partner, friend or family member.

This listing has been compiled from official Ofsted records, the nursery's own website, details provided directly by the nursery where available, and other trusted public sources. We regularly review and update listings to keep the information as accurate as possible. Learn more