Kiddi Caru Day Nursery, Caldecotte, Milton Keynes

Children’s wellbeing is considered throughout the nursery day at Caldecotte. Cosy areas, natural resources and our dedicated sensory room provide opportunities for quieter experiences and a change of pace, alongside activities including daily yoga.

Nutritious meals and snacks form part of children’s daily routines, with a varied range of food to support their needs throughout the nursery day.

Families can stay connected with nursery life through the GrandirUK App, with updates about their child’s routines, activities and learning experiences.

Our lending library and home learning bags also give families opportunities to continue activities and experiences at home. Throughout the year, we welcome families into nursery life through events including parent breakfasts and school-leaver celebrations, creating further opportunities to spend time together and connect with the nursery community.

Children at Kiddi Caru Caldecotte enjoy a varied mix of activities and experiences, including yoga and our Make & Bake, Move & Groove and Sow & Grow education programmes.

Inspired by the Curiosity Approach, children also have opportunities for open-ended creative play and exploration, following their interests, investigating different materials and discovering their own ways to use them.

Regular outings extend these experiences beyond the nursery, with visits to Caldecotte Lake, nearby parks and local nature trails. These adventures give children opportunities to explore their local environment, experience nature first-hand and take their learning beyond the nursery.

Our Caldecotte nursery is thoughtfully arranged around children’s different ages and stages of development, with natural resources, cosy areas and open-ended materials providing plenty of opportunities for exploration, creativity and child-led discovery.

Children move between rooms when they are developmentally and emotionally ready, rather than simply because they have reached a particular age. Each transition is carefully planned with families, helping to provide continuity as children move into their new environment.

Our dedicated sensory room provides a quieter space for sensory exploration and a change of pace within the nursery day. Flexible session options are also available to help families find childcare that works around different routines and working patterns, while our on-site car park helps make drop-offs and collections easier.

Outdoor space

Our outdoor spaces are designed around the different ages and stages of the children using them. For older children, mud kitchens, tunnels, climbing areas, covered sand play and outdoor classrooms provide varied opportunities for active play, exploration and nature-based experiences.

Our dedicated baby garden has AstroTurf, a covered canopy and age-appropriate resources, creating an outdoor environment designed specifically for our youngest children.

Across the gardens, children have opportunities to move, climb, investigate, create and enjoy imaginative play while experiencing the outdoors throughout the year.

Quality of care at Kiddi Caru Caldecotte starts with getting to know each child as an individual. Our practitioners take time to understand their routines, interests, preferences and the things they may need additional support with.

Open communication with families is an important part of this approach, helping us build a fuller understanding of each child and respond as their routines, interests and individual needs change.

By sharing information between home and nursery, families and practitioners can work together to provide consistent, individualised care throughout each child’s nursery experience.

Our curriculum at Kiddi Caru Caldecotte follows the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) and combines In the Moment Planning with the Curiosity Approach, placing children’s interests, ideas and curiosity at the heart of their learning.

Practitioners respond to what captures each child’s attention, creating opportunities for them to explore, investigate, make choices and become actively involved in their learning.

Our GrandirUK education programmes complement the curriculum with a varied range of experiences, including yoga, music and movement, nature-based exploration and creative activities. Together, these give children opportunities to develop their knowledge and skills across the different areas of Early Years learning and development.

At Kiddi Caru Caldecotte, children’s interests, questions and ideas play an important part in shaping their learning.

Through In the Moment Planning and the Curiosity Approach, practitioners respond to what captures children’s attention and use these moments to create opportunities for further exploration and discovery. A question in the morning, for example, can become the starting point for an investigation later in the day.

With Caldecotte Lake and the surrounding green spaces of Milton Keynes nearby, children also have opportunities to take their curiosity beyond the nursery, exploring nature and discovering more about the world around them.

For families with more than one child, having siblings at Kiddi Caru Caldecotte means one drop-off and pick-up, with the convenience of our on-site car park.

A baby and an older sibling can each enjoy the room, garden, experiences and friendships suited to their own age and stage, while remaining part of the same nursery community, with opportunities to see each other and share parts of nursery life.

Sibling places are subject to availability, but where we have space in the appropriate room, we will always look at the options for welcoming brothers and sisters together.

Led by Nursery Manager Hannah, our Caldecotte team brings a wealth of Early Years knowledge and experience to the nursery, with many colleagues having been part of the team for a number of years.

This continuity provides children and families with familiar faces throughout their nursery experience, while giving practitioners time to build a detailed understanding of each child’s routines, interests and individual needs.

Our SENCo practitioners work closely with families and the wider nursery team to support children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), helping to ensure individual needs are understood and appropriate support is considered.