Meet the Senior Nursery and Kindergarten Leadership Team
Nursery
Welcome to Manor House Nursery School (Pre-School), our Nursery in Surrey. Based in Bookham, near Leatherhead in Surrey and set amidst the grounds and facilities of Manor House School, Bookham.
Manor House School Nursery has just been awarded the ‘Top 20 Recommended Nursery School’ Award by www.daynurseries.co.uk. This means we were one of the most recommended Nursery Schools in the South East in 2023 based on over 50,000 published reviews.
Our parent testimonials are testament to our current 10/10 star rating. Here are a few quotes from our recent reviews:
We couldn’t recommend Manor House nursery and kindergarten highly enough! Both our children have attended for the last two years, and we couldn’t be happier with the care and support they’ve received. They provide such a loving, caring and nurturing environment where the children feel safe, happy and encouraged to be themselves. The children are so well looked after, with a wonderful range of activities that help them they have grown in confidence and developed during their time there. We’re so grateful to all of the wonderful staff there - thank you!
We genuinely couldn’t have asked for a better nursery experience for our son. From the very beginning, the whole experience at Manor House Nursery has been exceptional.
Melanie, Donna and their team have gone above and beyond to create a first class environment where the children feel happy, secure and genuinely cared for. The warmth and attention our child receives is incredible. They really take the time to get to know him as an individual, understand his personality and help him grow in confidence. He is always so happy to go in each morning, which as a parent says everything.
We have seen such a difference in him, socially, emotionally and in his confidence and independence. The environment is incredibly nurturing while giving the children so many opportunities to learn, explore, play and develop on a wonderful site, with so much space to play grow and explore.
The communication with us as parents has also been excellent. We always feel that Oliver is genuinely known, cared for and valued.
Beyond that, the vibrant parent community has allowed us to make a great network of friends and engage in some lovely social activities away from nursery.
We feel incredibly lucky that he is having such a wonderful introduction to education and learning through play at Manor House. He absolutely loves being there, and we couldn’t recommend the Nursery highly enough. A huge thank you to Melanie, Donna and the entire team for everything they do.
“I’ve been to some nurseries where it’s really just a nice playgroup whereas here it feels like our son is getting a headstart and will be well-prepared when he’s ready for school.”
parent testimonial 1
“Choosing a nursery for your child is a huge decision and I have no doubt that we have made the best decision to start our daughter on her learning journey.”
“My son’s language and numeracy have come on leaps and bounds in the past few months.”
“Our experience with Manor House Nursery has been nothing short of fantastic. We actually moved our son from another nursery where we really struggling with him settling in. It certainly wasn’t a decision we took lightly as we were concerned that moving his nursery might unsettle him further. Fortunately, our worries were unfounded as we found our son settled in quickly and has been extremely impressed ever since.”
“We have recently joined Manor House and couldn’t recommend it enough. The onboarding processes were streamlined and thorough.”
'Please do give the staff a big thank you for yesterday, the girls had the best time. They both chatted non stop in the car to me and had a lovely, positive experience, which was a big relief.’ And compliments to the chef because they said lunch was the best meal they’ve ever had at school!'
Taster Day Family
“We aim to create an environment in which girls can believe in their abilities and achieve more than they ever thought was possible.”
Tracey Fantham, Headteacher
What Makes Manor House Nursery & Kindergarten a Top-Ranked Early Years School?
Our Nursery and Kindergarten Classes are perfect for children between the ages of two and four who are taking their first steps away from home. We are a co-educational Pre-School and Lower Prep, welcoming boys and girls up to Year 2, located in a beautiful setting with lots of outdoor space and school facilities. We benefit from access to the main school teaching staff who specialise in specific subjects and who come and teach our nursery school children French, PE, Music and Performing Arts/Dance as well as having access to our very own Forest School Leader and Forest School location in our own grounds in The Dell. We have two classes:
Nursery for children aged 2-3 and
Kindergarten for children aged 3-4
We like to consider the Nursery School as the beginning of a Manor House School education for children and we hope that you will want your child to progress through to our Reception Class and Lower Prep School.
How Does the Curriculum Help 2–4-Year-Olds Become Confident, Curious Learners?
We pride ourselves on providing a nurturing and welcoming start to school life, and we strive to create an environment specifically designed to meet the needs of each individual child. We offer an excellent curriculum providing first class Early Years teaching, along with specialist lessons in Performing Arts, French, Music and PE and Forest school sessions in our outdoor classroom, The Dell.
Parents often remark on the warm and friendly atmosphere in our Nursery and Pre-School, where each child’s developmental, social and emotional needs are met, and their progress is continually assessed. Our high staff ratio ensures the children are encouraged to learn at their own pace and reach their full potential.
All our learning activities are individually planned to keep children active and engaged, ensuring they develop the skills to move on to school as confident, motivated learners. These sessions have been created to take a structured and responsive approach to each child’s needs. We follow the Early Years Foundation Stage Framework, alongside elements of Montessori practice, an approach that draws its principles from the natural development of the child. Our thriving Nursery School is a special place where children will be inspired to discover and learn as they play and make friends.
Ms Melanie Luke Director of Nursery Education and Mrs Redward Head of Key Stage 1 and 2, leads a team of fully qualified Early Years practitioners, all of whom are highly trained and enjoy building positive relationships with every child, delivering the best possible care and promoting excellent academic standards. Children are divided into small working groups, each with their own key member of staff.
Where Is the Nursery? Serving Families Across Bookham, Leatherhead and Cobham
Manor House Nursery School is based at Manor House Lane, Little Bookham, Leatherhead, Surrey, KT23 4EN, set within the grounds and facilities of Manor House School.
Our Nursery and Kindergarten sit in purpose-built accommodation alongside the Reception Class, with their own dedicated outdoor space and access to the wider seventeen acre site, including our Forest School in The Dell. Being part of the main school means your child is taught French, Music, PE and Performing Arts by the same subject specialists who teach further up the school, which is not something every nursery can offer.
We are a few minutes from Leatherhead, Fetcham, Effingham and Great and Little Bookham, and an easy drive from Cobham, Oxshott and the Horsleys. Please note that our school bus service, which covers Cobham, Leatherhead, Ashtead, Esher and many other areas, is available to pupils from age eight, so nursery children are brought in by parents. It is useful to know it is there for later years.
Is the Nursery Co-educational?
Yes. Our Nursery and Kindergarten are co-educational, welcoming both boys and girls from the age of two through to four.
We run two classes: Nursery for children aged two to three, and Kindergarten for children aged three to four. Boys and girls learn together throughout. Children are organised into small working groups, each with their own key member of staff, and our high staff ratios mean every child is known well and encouraged to learn at their own pace.
Our curriculum follows the Early Years Foundation Stage Framework alongside elements of Montessori practice, with activities planned individually so that each child stays active, engaged and builds the confidence to move on to school as a motivated learner. You can see how a typical week is structured on our Our Setting page.
If you would like to discuss a place for your son or daughter, our admissions team will be glad to help on 01372 457077 or at admissions@manorhouseschool.org, or you can visit our Nursery Admissions page.
How Can Parents Book a Visit to See the Nursery in Action?
We’d love for you to explore Manor House School for your family. To arrange a visit of this Nursery in Surrey and to see it in action, please book our next Open Day or contact the team at admissions@manorhouseschool.org.
TODDLER GROUP AND EVENTS
Every Wednesday during term time, at 9.30 am to 11.00 am, we host our Toddler Group at our Nursery in Surrey. Come and enjoy fun activities in the Nursery and meet other parents.
Refreshments will be provided for adults and children.
Free to attend.
No registration is required.
We host several seasonal Toddler Events during the academic year. Click here to attend.
