Early years childcare provider Mama Bear’s Nursery and Pre-school, which has three settings in the Downend area, has announced it is to change to term-time bookings only in response to needs expressed by parents at its Stanbridge nursery in Downend.

The nursery has just been named by parents as one of the ‘Top 20 nurseries in South West England’ by leading nurseries review site, daynurseries.co.uk, gaining the maximum score of 10 based on reviews from children’s families and carers.

Mama Bear’s Stanbridge is located on the site of Stanbridge Primary School on Stanbridge Road in Downend. It has been open on the school site since 2014 and has been run by Mama Bear’s since September 2020, having previously operated under the Bright Sparks banner.

Anna White, area manager for Mama Bear’s, said: “Parents in this area have a good selection of nurseries and pre-schools to choose from, including two other Mama Bear’s settings on Downend Road and on Coronation Road, however this will be the only one that offers attendance just for term-time and is also the only one included in this year’s daynurseries awards as one of the top 20 in the South West.

“We find that many families, especially those who have older children already attending full-time school or those whose parents only work term-time, really don’t need nursery or pre-school provision for younger brothers or sisters during school holidays, so it makes sense to provide one of our Downend nurseries on a term-time only model.

“And it’s really nice for the little ones, because it means their regular attendance patterns are likely to be consistent across the year – without extra breaks in term-time for family holidays – which means their attendance will coincide with that of the little friends they get used to playing with at Mama Bear’s.

“Obviously our Stanbridge nursery and pre-school is particularly convenient for any families with older brothers or sisters who already attend Stanbridge Primary School or are going to start there in September.

“All children have supervised access to our large garden, whilst indoors children aged 2-3 years are based in the Caterpillar Room and 3-5 year-olds are based in the Butterfly Room: both offering a stimulating environment with a wide range of activities tailored to the different needs of each age-group.”

All Mama Bear’s staff are appropriately qualified as Early Years educators and receive continuous professional training in areas such as paediatric first aid and food hygiene, as well as specific areas such as caring for children with special educational needs and Makaton sign language.

As well as having Stanbridge starring in its own right in this year’s awards from daynurseries.co.uk, the Mama Bear’s group was named for the second year running as one of the top 20 recommended large nursery groups in the UK in 2021.

The award scheme is based exclusively on positive reviews received from service users, with criteria including overall standard, facilities and outside space, learning, resources and equipment and ICT, care, activities, staff, food and nutrition, management, cleanliness, safeguarding as well as value for money.

Details of how to apply for the limited number of places at Mama Bear’s Stanbridge nursery and pre-school can be found at www.mamabear.co.uk