Banana Moon Day Nursery Caversham

My child joined Banana Moon Caversham in February 2021. As a baby born in lockdown, joining nursery was the first contact that he had with other children. The staff at Banana Moon have been understanding and caring and have done everything they can to help my son settle and enjoy his time at nursery. He quickly got over tears at handover, which I credit to the friendly staff. The team is hardworking and amazing. I would recommend the nursery to others.

I sent my daughter to this nursery in 2017 when she was one and she stayed until she left for school. Whilst there have been some challenges, I have always been impressed by the passion and dedication of the staff towards the children. They work so hard and are always open to ways to improve the service. Ultimately my daughter was happy, healthy and well looked after and as a result she's thriving and my five month old is starting full time in May.

My daughter has started here, following in her brother's footsteps and so far seems very happy. After being a typical 'lockdown baby' she was nervous around strangers, but the settling sessions completely did their job and she started her first day with no tears, open arms and a 'bye bye'! We were so pleased! She's obviously feeling happy and secure and that's all we ask.

We've been really impressed with the level of communication we've received from the nursery team. Despite the current challenges, they take the time every day to let us know how our daughter has been throughout the day, what she's played with, eaten and particularly enjoyed. Our daughter has only been at the nursery for a few months but she's settled really quickly and it's lovely to see her skills developing. Thank you Banana Moon nursery team.

I have two children at the nursery, both of whom attend full time and love their time there. The staff are professional but friendly and really care for the children. Activities are well organised, fun and educational. The children are encouraged to be independent, giving them the necessary skills to move onto a school environment. There is also a very friendly feel, with parents and children treated very much as a community. My children are happy and confident and I feel that they are getting the best start in life which allows me the peace of mind to work without worry.

Our son joined Banana Moon nursery pre school during the first lockdown as a key worker child after another nursery we had been using closed. They welcomed and settled our son so quickly and he enjoyed Banana Moon so much that he stayed after the first lockdown ended and did not return to his old nursery. He learnt a lot at his time at preschool and was so happy and spoke enthusiastically about the team.

We have been extremely impressed by Banana Moon since our son started there in 2018. The hallmark of this nursery is genuine friendliness and a real love of the children. All the kids seem really happy - which is the key thing. The atmosphere is excellent and nothing is ever too much trouble. We went to a couple of different nurseries before this, including one with an outstanding rating - but that's often more of a tick box exercise. This is the real deal.

'Nana Moon', as my little one calls it, have really helped my son to no end. Being a very shy little man, all of the staff have shown patience and understanding, to point he is making friends and helping others to settle! I think it’s also right to mention they never stop or dampen down how he explores and be the little person he wants to be which is something so important throughout a child’s development. Thank you once again!

Excellent nursery with lovely staff. My daughter was a little unsettled at first, but soon became more relaxed and always seems to leave happy at the end of the day. I'd highly recommend this nursery.

We have two happy children at Banana Moon who started age 1 and the oldest is now 3 years 8 months. The staff are wonderful and feel like family. I trust them implicitly with our children and they have a wonderful time there doing all sorts of activities and come back with lovely stories of their days. The staff make sensible decisions informing us appropriately if the kids are unwell. Keep up the great work guys.

The staff are highly trained as well as being caring and warm. My son comes home with creative things they have done at nursery. The staff are approachable and very professional - they respond to requests or queries promptly.

Both my children attend Banana Moon Day Nursery, my eldest has been here since he was 2 and my youngest has just started. They really enjoy their days at "school" and are always so excited to tell me about what they got up to when I pick them up. The staff are all very nice and all take the time to get to know your child, even when they are not necessarily in their room. The manager of this nursery is superb. She has really brought a sense of organisation and calm to the nursery when it was perhaps a little unsettled in recent times with a high staff and management turn over. Since she has taken over the nursery, the turn around over the last year has been fantastic and my children thoroughly enjoy coming here. We would definitely recommend.

My boy has been going here since he was 10-months-old - he's almost 3 now and such a happy, well-adjusted boy in no small part because of Banana Moon. The staff are absolutely wonderful - you can tell it's not just a job for them. They are so much fun and so caring with the kids, and always thinking up new fun activities. They've always been very flexible and responsive to parent wishes around routines, food, etc. Highly recommend this nursery.

I have had two children at Banana Moon for the past year and have experienced the care across all of the age ranges. The staff are all so lovely and settled my children really well. They are all kind, caring and understanding of the different children's needs. I feel that they have managed the current challenging environment very well. My children have been so happy returning to their nursery after the break.

My daughter has recently started in the baby room and I cannot praise the staff and management enough. My daughter has settled extremely well and runs into her room every day and doesn’t want to come home. The food that she is given throughout the day is amazing. I can not thank all the staff enough for putting a worried mummy’s mind at ease!

Many activities are carried out and often my son brings home cookies, pizza or for example, a nice valentines day card. Children always play about 40 mins outdoors and it's important too.

My son loves Banana Moon and often asks if he will see the staff even at weekends. He happily tells me how he saw the "chicas" (girls) or that he will see them. He's made special bonds with his 1st key worker and both the room leaders in toddler and preschool who are outstanding. We're confident that our son is cared for, nurtured and gets as many cuddles as he needs. He's developing well and they do lots of activities. Administrative aspects could be improved given multiple issues with overcharging on invoices, chasing up on emails or some missing communication re. key worker. 30hr funding charges have doubled recently and it is unclear why given its three times more than others in the area. However, this doesn't take away from the wonderful staff, how happy my son has been there and the amount of work put into turning the Ofsted rating around. I would definitely recommend and would probably put my daughter there even though we will be placing my son in another nursery due to costs mentioned.

My daughter has been going to this nursery for the past 2 years and she really loves her time there. Staff are truly professional and friendly and they look after our little ones very well. It's been a great learning journey for my girl at the nursery.

My daughter has been attending Banana Moon for nearly for 2 years and has received great care from day 1. Her key people have all been fantastic. After a period of difficult staff changes, the new management team has worked hard at rebuilding relationships between parents and staff with great success. I always look forward to discussing my daughter’s day with staff when I collect her in the evenings. The nursery also offers extra activities - music and science sessions lessons - which my daughter loves. The food is great too and dietary requests are catered for. A very well rounded offering.

Our son has attended the nursery for 18 months. The new management team have worked hard to create a strong relationship between parents and staff which has resulted in an open, friendly and collaborative environment. The staff are a joy to interact with each day. I am particularly impressed by the variety of activities on offer for my toddler (including music and science sessions). The menu is varied, healthy and a hit with my son who devours it all. A happy toddler = happy parents!