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Thrift Farm Day Nursery

Ofsted: Good
(May 2024)
·
3.8(10 parent reviews)
·Thrift Farm, Buckingham Road, Milton Keynes, MK17 0EQ · Buckinghamshire
Number of places
74 places
Age range
0–4 yrs
Last inspected
May 2024
Local authority
Buckinghamshire

About this day nursery

Thrift Farm Day Nursery & Pre-School, located in Milton Keynes, offers a nurturing environment within a farm setting, benefiting from a newly constructed building. The nursery provides care for children as young as 6 weeks old, emphasising outdoor learning and daily supervised interactions with farm animals.

Its facilities include private gardens and easy drop-off points, ensuring a convenient experience for parents. The nursery is open Monday to Friday, from 7:30 am to 6:30 pm, and prioritises healthy meals prepared on-site.

A team of qualified and experienced childcare professionals supports the children's development. The unique farm-based location allows for immersive animal experiences and offers a free-flow system between indoor classrooms and outdoor play areas.

The nursery is committed to accessibility, offering various government funding options for eligible families.

What it's like

The nursery's unique setting provides children with numerous opportunities for learning through first-hand experiences, including daily trips to the farm to feed animals and play on equipment that enhances physical skills. Staff effectively support children's learning and monitor their progress, which allows them to plan for future learning and quickly identify if children are not making expected progress. There is a strong focus on communication and language development, with staff introducing new words to expand children's vocabulary.

Farm-based settingNew build facilitiesOutdoor learning focusAnimal interactions

Pricing & funding

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)
Pricing on request

This nursery doesn't publish its fees online. Contact them directly for an up-to-date price list and availability.

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Key facts

Opening hours

Monday – Friday, 7:30am-6:30pm

Age range

6 weeks old and above

Term time / All Year

All Year

Food

Healthy meals onsite

Ofsted Inspection

Ofsted rating for Thrift Farm Day Nursery

Last inspected 15 May 2024

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

The nursery's unique setting provides children with numerous opportunities for learning through first-hand experiences, including daily trips to the farm to feed animals and play on equipment that enhances physical skills. Staff effectively support children's learning and monitor their progress, which allows them to plan for future learning and quickly identify if children are not making expected progress. There is a strong focus on communication and language development, with staff introducing new words to expand children's vocabulary.

Inspector highlights

  • The nursery's unique setting offers children an abundance of opportunities to learn through first-hand experiences.
  • Staff support children's learning well and monitor the good progress they make effectively.
  • Children explore the natural world and take an interest in herbs, plants, insects and minibeasts.
  • Children's day revolves around being physically active outdoors, with ample opportunities to test out physical skills.
  • Safeguarding is highly effective and staff at all levels know their responsibilities in keeping children safe.

Areas to develop

  • 1expand staff's confidence in implementing the curriculum for children, so they make clearer connections between the intent of what children need to learn, to enhance their teaching.
Inspection #10344960 · Source: OfstedView full Ofsted report

Inclusion & environment

How they support every child

SEND provision

Staff make plans to focus on areas where children need extra support. This ensures that children continue to receive targeted support from staff while they are waiting for professional assessments.

Outdoor space

The nursery's unique setting offers children daily trips out to the farm where they feed animals and play on equipment that helps to boost their physical skills. Children's day revolves around being physically active outdoors, with ample opportunities for all children to test out their physical skills and strengthen their muscles through climbing, balancing, sliding and swinging.

Parent Reviews of Thrift Farm Day Nursery

3.8
(10)
Jordan Allison
4 months ago

If I could give this nursery less than 1 star I would! Avoid!!! Team completely incompetent. Whilst opening the new nursery we were informed to send in an application and your son would have a place for April. We were told this multiple times by different staff members. The manager was also copied into this email. 4 Months later after receiving no email back from the nursery we are told our son cannot now start until June as there is now a waiting list. The staff members that told us this was apparently fired - a lady called Leah who they seem to be putting the blame on. The comms are shocking. Potentially the nursery team may be good but I would avoid purely on the basis as they don't know what they are doing!

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Charlotte Thornton
4 months ago

My son has been at the nursery for over 2 years now and we love it. I have recommended them to others who have also joined the nursery and are as impressed. The staff are very welcoming and make leaving your child that little bit easier.

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Yanal Al Hasan
9 months ago

My son has been going to this nursery and will sadly be leaving for school in September. The staff are lovely and caring. Children under their care look very happy and settled which for me is the true measure of a quality nursery. The kids are always engaged with activities. They learn to be independent and confident. My sons drawer for crafts to go home is almost full every day. They probably have some of the best facilities one could ever want! They have an on-site forest school, a farm, indoor soft play and outdoor playground with slides and bouncy pillows. These facilities are all on-site! The garden outside their room is also impressive. Due to the nature of our jobs, my son has been to 5 nurseries around the country, and I have probably viewed at least 20. This one easily takes the top spot. The staff and facilities are second to none.

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Jennifer Andrews
10 months ago

My daughter has attended this nursery all the way from babies through to preschool and will be leaving to go to school in September. To say she loves it is an understatement, the care and attention that staff show the children in their care is second to none and my daughter is always coming home telling me about her day, what she's done and what she's learnt. To top it off they get to frequently see the animals, play on the bouncy pillows and playground at the farm. They also attend a weekly forest school where they use nature in their learning/play. I would and do highly recommend this nursery to all my friends and family, we'll be sad to leave!

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Florin Zubas
8 months ago

Our child has enjoyed their time at Thrift Farm Day Nursery, but as parents, we have had significant problems with the office management. The main issues are consistent errors on our invoices and a complete lack of response to our emails trying to correct them. It is very difficult to pay an invoice you know is wrong when you cannot get confirmation of the correct amount. We have sent multiple emails and calls but no answers. We are now in a position where we are being threatened with solicitors over these unresolved invoices, which feels very unfair. We simply want to pay what we owe, but we need the invoices to be accurate first. We hope the management can address these communication gaps to prevent other families from going through this stressful experience.

Read on Google

Reviews from Google for Thrift Farm Day Nursery. See all on Google Maps

Inspection history

Date: May 2024

  • June 2024Good
  • May 2024Good

Frequently asked about Thrift Farm Day Nursery

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