Mere Nature Kindergarten
GoodBirth to 5Long established
A day nursery in Knutsford for children from birth to 5, open 07:30 to 18:00, 5 days a week. They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in September 2021, though that is 5 years ago now. Open since 2015, with 70 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 Cheshire East
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Cheshire East 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
WA16 0PUWhat 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, 16 September 2021 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children thoroughly enjoy their time at this nursery. They build warm and trusting relationships with staff. Older children quickly enter, eager to begin their day and babies and toddlers are relaxed and smile when they see familiar staff, who welcome them warmly. This helps children feel immediately safe and secure.
Partnerships with parents are well developed and parents speak very highly of the staff team. They value the feedback they receive from staff on their children's progress and ideas to continue learning at home. They praise how professional, caring and nurturing the staff are, commenting on the 'genuine delight' staff greet the children with on their arrival at the nursery.
An exceptionally high priority is given to promoting children's personal, social and emotional development. Staff are passionate about developing children's awareness and understanding of diversity and what makes them unique. There is an exceptional range of experiences to enrich and inspire children's knowledge about the world in which they live. Staff know children's characters and interests exceptionally well and use this knowledge skilfully to engage children in play. This creates a trusting, loving and calm atmosphere, where children show very high levels of curiosity and engagement. Following time off during the COVID-19
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- build on the good teaching already in place to help staff to recognise when to seize opportunities to extend children's vocabulary to offer them even greater challenge n review the range of learning opportunities offered to the babies, to provide them with richer, more varied experiences to explore and investigate.
- 16 September 2021Good
- 15 February 2017Outstanding
Rated Good or Outstanding at 2 of the last 2 graded inspections.
Still missing for Mere Nature Kindergarten
- 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.