Acorns from three months, Saplings from two, Oaks from three to school; a key person and a ratio for each
The three rooms
Three rooms by age in a converted Edwardian house: Acorns for twelve babies on the ground floor by the garden, Saplings for twelve twos across the hall, Oaks for twenty-four pre-schoolers upstairs. Each has its own staff, its own toilets or changing, and places left updated on this page every Friday.
Children move up by age and by readiness, not on a birthday: a child moves to the next room over a fortnight of visits with their key person, when the room lead and the parent agree they are ready, and never in the same month as a house move or a new baby if we can help it. The ratios are the Welsh ones, kept to the letter.
Acorns is the baby room, on the ground floor at the back with its own door onto the garden. Twelve places from three months to two years, one adult for every three babies, a sleep room with cots and blackout blinds next door, and a changing area with a window. Babies follow their own routine, not ours: they sleep when they are tired, eat when they are hungry, and the daily diary tells you when and how much. Formula is provided (two brands, or bring your own), weaning follows your lead, and breast milk is stored and labelled in the fridge by the door.
Saplings is for the twos, across the hall from Acorns with the same garden. Twelve places, one adult to four, a room laid out in areas (home corner, mark-making, construction, a water tray that is always full) and a quieter room through the arch for sleeps and stories after lunch. This is the year of potty training, biting, and the word "no", and the staff in Saplings have seen all three a thousand times. Toilet training starts when you say, and we follow your method, not ours.
Oaks is the pre-school room, upstairs in the two big front rooms knocked through, with the bay window and the long table. Twenty-four places from three to school age, one adult to eight, a Foundation Phase curriculum planned around what the children are into that week, and the thirty funded hours for the three- and four-year-olds. The Oaks go to Forest Farm in the minibus on Tuesdays and Thursdays, do a weekly session at Whitchurch Library, and spend the summer term visiting the schools they are going to in September.
The places left for each room are on this page and the home page, updated by Bethan every Friday afternoon from the register. "Places" means full-time equivalents: a room with two places left might have a Monday and a Thursday in one place and a full week in the other, so ring and ask about your days. Babies' places are booked earliest, often before the baby is born; the waiting list is free to join and is kept in date order, with siblings first.
What is included
- Acorns: twelve places, three months to two years, 1:3, own sleep room and garden door
- Saplings: twelve places, two to three years, 1:4, a quiet room for sleeps
- Oaks: twenty-four places, three years to school, 1:8, forest school twice a week
- A named key person for every child, who does the diary, the settling and the reviews
- Moving up over a fortnight of visits, when the child is ready and you agree
- Places left by room, updated every Friday from the register
What it costs
A full day is £68 in Acorns, £64 in Saplings, £60 in Oaks; a half day £40, £38 and £36. Childcare is VAT-exempt. The fees page has every rate side by side and a calculator for your days with the 30-hours offer applied; the day page has the routine and this week's menu.
Questions about the rooms
How old does my baby need to be?
Three months. Most start between six and twelve months when maternity leave ends, and most Acorns places are booked while the parent is still pregnant, so join the waiting list early; it is free and in date order.
When does my child move rooms?
Around their second and third birthdays, but by readiness: when the room lead, the key person and you agree. The move takes a fortnight of visits to the new room with the key person. We avoid moving a child in the same month as a house move, a new baby or a change of days.
Can my child do different days in different weeks?
The place is for set days, the same every week, because the ratios are staffed to the register. Extra ad hoc days are £5 more than the day rate when there is space, booked by the Thursday before, and swaps are free when the room has room.
Come and see it running. Tuesday to Thursday, forty minutes, bring the child.
Tell us your child's age and the days you are thinking of, and we reply within the working day with a time to walk round every room while it is open, the garden, the kitchen and the fees. No pressure and nothing to sign; the waiting list is free to join afterwards. Or ring Bethan.