St Margaret's Prep School & Nursery

Gosfield Hall Park, Gosfield, Halstead CO9 1SE
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Top 20 award
10 30 Reviews
  • St Margaret's Prep School & Nursery, Halstead
Rated 'excellent' by the Independent School Inspectorate (Oct 2021), St Margaret’s Prep School & Nursery welcomes children from the age of two to attend the nursery, which is at the heart of the school set in acres of listed parkland. Children are helped to develop their own personality and grow their confidence through the support given to them by excellent staff.

Children learn through a variety of play activities, with both indoor and outside areas to explore and have fun in.

All meals are freshly prepared and cooked onsite they are healthy, tasty and nutritional to ensure each child has the energy they need throughout their busy days. Lunch is provided to all children attending full days or morning sessions.

Each child is given love and warmth by nursery staff and every individual has a key worker who observes and assesses the child developments at key stages.

Children are taught by specialist staff and have French, music, Forest School and PE with the same specialist teachers as the rest of the school with full access to seven acres of grounds. The bright and airy, purpose-built nursery was completed in the summer of 2017.

Children are eligible for the Early Years Grant from the term after their third birthday. Contact St. Margaret's for further information.
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Type of Service

  • Nursery School
  • Open term time
  • Full Day Care
  • Sessional Day Care

Group/Owner

Person in Charge

  • Carolyn Moss (Headteacher)

Admission Information

  • Children may join us once they have had their second birthday

Number of Childcare Staff

  • 6

Total Places for Children

  • 32

Age Range

  • from 2 years 0 months
  • to 5 years 0 months

Funding & Fees

  • From £33 half day session

  • Please contact us for details

Opening Times

  • Monday 07:30-18:00
    Tuesday 07:30-18:00
    Wednesday 07:30-18:00
    Thursday 07:30-18:00
    Friday 07:30-18:00

When Closed

  • School Holidays

St Margaret's Prep School & Nursery Reviews (30)

10

St Margaret's Prep School & Nursery has a Review Score of 10 (9.983) out of 10, based on 15 reviews in the last 2 years.
Over all time St Margaret's Prep School & Nursery has 30 reviews.

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Reviewer Connection to St Margaret's Prep School & Nursery
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Total of 30, showing 21-30
Review from Clare L (Mother of Child) published on 28 April 2021 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
My son started in September 2020 in transition. He settled immediately and ran out saying his “big boy” school was “awesome” we have never looked back. He has learnt phonics, how to write his name and counts to 20, and he is only just four. The staff are super friendly, and they know the children. I
can’t recommend enough and only wish we had moved him there sooner!
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Review from Mary M (Mother of Child) published on 28 April 2021 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
Both my sons have or are attending the nursery and have absolutely loved the experience. The care, attention and fun they have at the nursery is incredible. My eldest son also has food intolerance's and these were taken very seriously. I really appreciate the balance of play versus curriculum that is
introduced to the students from the start.The nursery has made my children confident, polite and articulate. My eldest was so well prepared for reception when the time came.
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Review from Dan R (Father of Child) published on 28 April 2021 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
We have one child currently in the nursery and another who is now in reception, and we cannot rate the nursery highly enough. The development we have seen in both our children has been amazing. The setting and the staff are excellent, and the variety of activities the children take part in is well above
and beyond anything we had found in other nurseries we looked at before going to St Margaret’s.
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Review from Sarah D (Mother of Child) published on 28 April 2021 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
I have had two children progress through the nursery and couldn’t be more pleased with their development and self confidence. The staff are wonderful, patient and nurturing. My boys have both loved their St Margaret’s Prep School & Nursery journeys so far and the nursery has been a fantastic starting
point.
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Review from Michelle L (Mother of Child) published on 5 February 2021 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
We adore the nursery and the school. We couldn’t recommend it enough. My son attends the school, and we felt that my daughter would benefit from going to the same place on the days she attends nursery. She loves it and felt immediately safe and welcomed there. The staff are all lovely, and my daughter
happily goes in without tears and loves her days there. The nursery has a very calm atmosphere and a set routine for the children on each day, which I think helps both helps keep them busy because they do lots of fun activities and learning. But, also, calm and organised, which I think helps to keep the kids feeling secure. My daughter especially enjoys her music lessons and is already learning French at the age of two. If you like the idea of a nursery that sets your children up for school life, I cannot think of one that does it better. Making learning fun plus getting them into a school routine in a fun way.
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Review from Aimee T (Mother of Child) published on 3 February 2021 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
After visiting St Margaret's with the view to send our son there for prep, we fell so in love with the staff and environment that we took our son from his daycare and enrolled him into the nursery at St Margaret's. The educational space is light, clean, full of exciting things for our son and the staff
are so warm and caring. The syllabus is varied, and the school have an excellent system in place to keep parents/carers continually up to date with what their child has done each day. There's a beautiful community feel to the whole school, and I would highly recommend S Margaret's to anybody looking for a fantastic, supportive school environment for their child.
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Review from Amy B (Mother of Child) published on 2 July 2020 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
I have had two children transition through the nursery and my third is about to start. I could not recommend St Margaret's Nursery highly enough. The staff are fantastic, so warm, engaging and supportive. My girls have grown in confidence and are so happy going into the nursery and I have real peace
of mind that they are cared for and nurtured. They do such a wide range of activities such as cooking, music, PE, French as well as LOTS of play. They are also included and feel such a part of the school that the transition into reception is seamless. 5 stars!
Reply from Lynda Barrow, Marketing Manager at St Margaret's Prep School & Nursery
Thank you for your kind words - it has been a pleasure to have you all as part of our St Margaret's family.
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Review from Paige B (Mother of Child) published on 23 June 2020 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
My daughter has been at the nursery for over a year now and is about to transition into the reception at St Margaret’s. The teachers are amazing as are the support staff. My daughter has some additional needs and the support we’ve received from the school has been so reassuring. She has become more
confident Since starting and runs into the room full of smiles.
I can not recommend St Margaret’s enough.
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Review from H S (Mother of Child) published on 2 July 2018 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
Having looked around several nurseries, I was pleased with the overall standard St Margaret's offered for nursery aged children. Not only do they play, but the children learn and explore and their progress is well documented for parents to follow.
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Review from Jane O (Mother of Child) published on 27 June 2018 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
We are extremely happy with the nursery, our daughter has enjoyed using the space both inside and out. The teachers are wonderful and a real attribute to the school.
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Current Review Score: 10.0 (9.983)

Overview of Review Score

The Review Score of 10 (9.983) out of 10 for St Margaret's Prep School & Nursery is based on a) the Average Rating and b) the number of positive Reviews.

  1. The Average Rating is 5.0 out of 5 from 15 Reviews in the last 24 months.
  2. The score for the number of positive Reviews is 5.0 out of 5 from 15 positive Reviews in the last 24 months.

Detailed Breakdown of Review Score

The maximum Review Score for a Day Nursery is 10, which is made up from the Average Rating of Reviews (maximum of 5 points) and the Number of Reviews (maximum of 5 points) in the last 24 months:

  1. 5 Points are available for the Average Rating from all Reviews in the last 24 months. The Average Rating of 4.983 for St Margaret's Prep School & Nursery is calculated as follows: ( (175 Excellents x 5) + (3 Goods x 4) ) ÷ 178 Ratings = 4.983
  2. 5 Points are available for the number of Positive Reviews in the last 24 months. A Positive Review is defined as any Review with an 'Overall Experience' of '4' or '5' (out of a max rating '5'). The 5 Points relating to the number of positive Reviews for St Margaret's Prep School & Nursery is based on 15 positive Reviews in the last 24 months and is calculated as per below:

    The 5 points available are broken down as follows:

    1. 4 points are available for the first 10 Positive Reviews in the last 24 months; 3 points for the first Positive Review, and then 0.125 Points for each of the next four Positive Reviews and then 0.1 Points for the next five Positive Reviews. (1st = 3.000, 2nd = 0.125, 3rd = 0.125, 4th = 0.125, 5th = 0.125, 6th = 0.100, 7th = 0.100, 8th = 0.100, 9th = 0.100, 10th = 0.100) 3 + 0.125 + 0.125 + 0.125 + 0.125 + 0.1 + 0.1 + 0.1 + 0.1 + 0.1 = 4
    2. 1 point is available for the number of Positive Reviews reaching 20% of the number of registered child places in the last 24 months. If this number is partially reached, then that proportion of 1 point is given. eg a Day Nursery registered for a maximum of 50 child places has to reach 10 Positive Reviews to receive 1 point, if it has 7 reviews it will receive 0.7 points. 20% of the 32 number of registered child places is 6.4, which has been reached with 15 Positive reviews. Points = 1
  3. When a Review is submitted by someone who has previously submitted a Review, only the latest Review will count towards the Review Score.
  4. If a Day Nursery does not have a review in the last 24 months, then it will not have a Review Score.

Child Vacancies

Please contact us for latest vacancies.

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Awards / Recognitions (4)

Meet the Team (2)

Debbie

Debbie Raby

Job Title: Nursery Co-ordinator

Debbie has worked at St. Margaret's nursery for many years. She loves working with the children and families, helping them on their first steps to an excellent education. Debbie has a BA in Early Childhood Education and Diploma in Pre-School Education Teaching.

Harriett

Harriett Carter

Job Title: Nursery Co-ordinator Joined: 2006

Harriett always knew she wanted to work with young children. While studying for her diploma in childcare, she did work placements at St. Margaret's and joined us permanently in 2006. She says the aspect she loves most about her job is "When the children learn something, when it really clicks, like writing their name. I also love the bond I have with the children, especially when they see me and smile at me first thing in the morning!"


Harriet is our Deputy Safeguarding Lead for Early Years and she also runs our breakfast and after school clubs.

Information on this page is displayed without responsibility for its accuracy on the part of daynurseries.co.uk. Please contact St Margaret's Prep School & Nursery to verify any information. View our terms and conditions. St Margaret's Prep School & Nursery has an Enhanced Service - more info.