There are more options for a private nursery near Cobham than most parents expect, and on paper a great many of them look similar. Session times, fees and opening hours will tell you whether a setting is practical. They will not tell you whether your child will be happy there.
These are the five questions we would ask on a visit.
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What does a typical day look like?
Ask to be walked through an ordinary Tuesday rather than shown a curriculum plan. You are listening for a predictable rhythm, and for a sensible balance between time led by an adult and time the children direct themselves.
Ask too how that balance shifts as children get older. The final year before school should look noticeably different from a two year old’s week, with more structure, early phonics and number work, and a growing expectation that children can manage small tasks on their own.
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Who will know my child best?
Ratios are worth asking about, but the more revealing question is whether your child will be attached to one named member of staff who knows them properly.
Ask how children are grouped, how often those groupings change, and how that person will tell you what they have noticed. A setting that can answer this easily has thought about it.
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How much of the day is spent outdoors?
At this age outdoor time does a lot of work. It builds coordination and confidence, and gives children room to solve problems on their own terms.
Ask how often children go out, whether they still go out when the weather is poor, and what the outdoor space actually offers. Woodland or Forest School provision gives children something a paved playground cannot, so if a setting has it, ask who leads the sessions and how regularly they run.
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What happens when my child turns four?
Parents often leave this one until late and then wish they had not. If the nursery is attached to a school, find out what the arrangements are for moving up, how likely a place is, and how the transition is managed.
If it is a standalone setting, ask which local schools children typically move on to, and what help the nursery gives with applications and settling in. Either answer can be the right one for your family. Not knowing is the problem.
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How will we manage the journey?
This is the practical question that decides many nursery choices in the end, and it is worth being realistic about it early.
Very few nurseries offer transport for children this young, and school bus services usually begin much further up the school, often around age eight. For the nursery years you should assume you will be driving. Ask about drop off and collection windows, whether there is any flexibility on the days you need, and how parking works at the busiest point of the morning. Ten minutes’ difference in the run matters a great deal when you are doing it twice a day for two years.
Visiting us from Cobham
Our Nursery and Kindergarten are in Little Bookham, an easy drive from Cobham, Oxshott and the Horsleys, and set within the grounds of Manor House School. Children from two to four are taught by specialist teachers in French, Music, PE and Performing Arts, with their own Forest School sessions in The Dell.
The simplest way to see whether it suits your family is our free Toddler Group, every Wednesday in term time from 9.30am to 11.00am, with no need to book. You can also read more about our Nursery and Kindergarten, or contact our admissions team on 01372 457077 to arrange a visit.