Berry Lane Nursery
GoodBirth to 5Open for decades
A day nursery in Rickmansworth for children from birth to 5, open 09:00 to 15:00, 5 days a week. They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in April 2025. Open since 2004, with 42 places.
What you might pay
This setting does not publish its fees, and no national dataset holds them. This is what childcare costs across the council, as a starting point for the call.
What childcare usually costs in Hertfordshire
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Hertfordshire from the Department for Education's 2025 provider survey. No national data holds what an individual nursery charges, so ring and ask.
Places, hours and the day
Who they take, when they are open, and what a day there includes.
Where it is
WD3 7HQWhat the inspector found
One grade is one visit. A run of them tells you whether it has been good for years or has only just got there.
Ofsted inspector, 24 April 2025 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children happily arrive at this welcoming nursery. They are keen to find their name card and place it on the board. Children show that they feel safe and secure as they eagerly explore the diverse range of activities. Flexible settling-in arrangements meet the individual needs of each child and their family. Staff provide reassurance and comfort when needed. Leaders obtain detailed information about what children know and can do prior to them attending. Staff use this well to implement an ambitious sequenced curriculum from the outset to extend each child's learning. For instance, they encourage children to work out what number comes after five and help them to understand quantities as they support them to use their fingers to demonstrate the correct amount. Children enthusiastically recall knowledge in response to staff's questions. This supports children's speaking skills.
Staff introduce new vocabulary, such as 'blurb' and explain the meaning, before reading to children with great intonation.
Staff are positive role models. The use good manners when speaking to each other and children. This motivates children to do the same. Staff are consistently alert of children's achievements. Their purposeful praise helps to develop children's characters and boost their self-esteem. Children develop good critical thinking skills. They work out that they need to stack more cylinder blocks to create a taller structure, allowing them to thread more wooden rings onto it. Children benefit from visits from professionals in the community, such as police officers and crossing patrol officers. They learn about occupations, including those that challenge stereotypes.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- review the daily routine, with regard to group times to sustain children's engagement in their play n develop partnerships with other settings that children attend to promote continuity in children's learning and development.
- 24 April 2025Good Safeguarding: Yes
- 4 July 2019Good
- 12 May 2016Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Berry Lane Nursery
- What it costs
- Funded hours
- Youngest age taken
- Meals
- Nappies
- Waiting list
No dataset holds any of this. Two parents telling us the same thing puts it on the page for whoever looks next.
What to ask them
None of this is in any national dataset and this setting has not published it, which is exactly why it is worth asking.
- What does it cost, all in? What is on top: meals, nappies, late pick-up, and what happens if you are late.
- Can I use my funded hours here? Whether they stretch them over the year, and the minimum days you have to book.
- Is there a place for my child's age? Baby rooms fill first and waiting lists are common.
- Who would my child's key person be? And how long have the staff been there. No dataset holds this and it matters more than anything above.
- Can I visit at a busy time? Mid-morning on a weekday tells you far more than an empty room after hours.
Day nurseries within a couple of miles
This one is first. Tick it and one or two others to see them side by side.