Once Upon A Time Daycare

Reviews

1. Rishi ram Parajuli ★☆☆☆☆

   ⭐ 0 Stars – Deeply Disappointed and Shocked by Their Practices I am extremely disappointed with the way this nursery has handled our situation, and I feel it is important for other parents to be aware of our experience. When we first visited, we were clearly told that the notice period was 1 month. Several months later, when we enquired about availability, we were told that only limited spaces were available and that we needed to pay the deposit before they would even send the contract. Trusting their earlier explanation and wanting to secure our daughter’s place, we paid the £150 (£75 admin fee + £75 deposit). Only after paying the deposit did we receive the contract and forms. We relied on the earlier verbal information, completed the forms, and sent them back. Unfortunately, our circumstances changed, so we contacted the nursery — both by phone and email — one month before the start date to cancel. They acknowledged our cancellation, and even wished us well. However, when I asked for the deposit back, everything changed. They suddenly claimed that the notice period was 3 months, and that because their contract states the “contract starts once the deposit is paid,” we now owed them two additional months of fees, even though our child never attended, they never provided a single hour of care, and they did not spend a penny on our behalf. As they maintain the waiting list, they certainly did not have to leave the place vacant. This felt incredibly unfair and misleading. They bound us to a contract based on a telephone conversation, without sharing the contract terms until after the deposit was taken. No parent should be locked into a lengthy contract before even seeing it. As a community member and a supporter of local businesses, this behaviour was a real blow. It felt like a deliberate attempt to trap parents and take advantage of them financially. I challenged their claim several times, shared legal points, and even spoke with staff who privately agreed the matter should be closed. But the management ignored everything and instead escalated it to solicitors. The first solicitor contacted me on June. I responded in full detail, and they stopped pursuing the matter — presumably because they realised there was no legal basis for the claim. Now, from September, a different firm (name sounds like a formal court letter) has started sending threatening letters, adding extra charges on top of the original fabricated amount. It is extremely stressful, and completely unnecessary. I have responded to them too and am currently waiting for the court claim they keep threatening, which I am fully prepared to defend. It is deeply disappointing to see a childcare provider — an organisation that should be built on trust, transparency, and care — operate in this manner. Please read every document carefully and insist on receiving contracts before paying any deposit. My experience has shown that parents can be left vulnerable to unfair financial practices.

   almost 3 months ago
2. Caroline Slade ★★★★★

   We have been using this nursery for 6 weeks, and I think it is exceptional. I was astonished at how quickly our little one settled in, and the strong bond she has already developed with her key worker - and in fact all the other staff! I have never seen any staff or child looking stressed or upset, it is a consistently calm and positive environment and everyone seems to enjoy being there. The facilities are modern and amazingly clean, and we have been impressed by the quality and range of food offered. And the on-site soft play is just phenomenal - it's amazing that the children have access to this every day! Thank you to all the team.

   1 year ago
3. Rebecca Stevenson ★★★★★

   Our daughter started in the Outer Space Room - Chloe and Sally did an amazing job of settling her in and took really good care of her. She has now moved up to the next room where Shannon does a wonderful job of helping her gain confidence and learn new skills. I couldn’t recommend this nursery enough! Very lovely and very attentive staff.

   1 year ago

1. Zoe Sampson ★★★★★

   Both my children have had a wonderful time at Once Upon a Time nursery. Sally was wonderful when they first started in the little ones room and Aimee and Gina really stood out as key workers to both my children, and my daughter, who is in reception now, always talks about Alice and wants to go and see her! We love so many aspects of the setting- its soft play, the quality of food, the provision and especially in my daughter’s final year, we found the setting to be really good at getting the children to be school-ready. My son in particular loves the Kix football coaching that they bring in and I appreciate the app, which is filled with photos from my children’s time there. My daughter has so many happy memories from Once Upon A Time, from hatching chicks, lots of Art and crafts and her “Graduation.” The transition support to school was very good and the setting helped to ensure she made a great start at her new school.

   1 year ago
2. Steven Batty ★★★★★

   Both our children have attended OUAT; one which has now ‘graduated’, the other, still there. We love the nursery, and the staff! Our son particularly liked Amy, Georgina, and Alice, who made his journey particularly memorable and enjoyable! Sally and Chloe in the Baby room (Outer Space) have been lovely to our second child, and I’m sure the staff in the following rooms will make his journey special too as he moves throughout the rooms. The facilities are great, and the rooms are very spacious with lots of areas with a variety of activities. We visited many nursery’s before deciding on OUAT, and found it to have everything we were looking for, and more!

   1 year ago
3. Lucy Heath ★★★★★

   We think once upon a time is great. Our son really enjoys himself every time he goes and looks forward to going. He settled in quickly as the staff got to know him and his interests. The friendly staff always keep the children well stimulated with a variety of activities. Our son loves the soft play area they have. They also have a good sized garden to play in. They keep you updated through an app so you can see what snacks,lunch how long they have slept for and how many nappy changes they have. The food is all freshly prepared on site and sounds delicious. The staff are really helpful and friendly, we would definitely recommend this nursery.

   almost 3 years ago

1. Tom Bartlett ★★★★★

   Our son has been going to Once Upon a Time Daycare for around one and a half years. We've been very impressed. They have very good staff who keep us well-informed about our son's progress. He really likes going there. The food menu is varied and all made in-house. They have great garden areas and loads of imaginative activities for our son to engage in both indoors and outside.

   almost 3 years ago
2. Dan Henniker ★★★★★

   A 5* Nursery! I would highly recommend the services of Once Upon a Time. We have used their care for about 4 years (2 children) now. The variety of activities for the children on offer is fantastic - their indoor play centre is a icing on top! Always looking to advance the children's skills and knowledge through play. Always celebrating different cultures and encouraging us all including the parents to get involved. As busy parents a huge plus is not having to provide breakfast, lunch and dinner. For that to be provided by the on site chef with the variety of food is one less thing to worry about. What makes Once Upon a Time special is the people. An excellent management team, clear communications to parents and lots of promotion from within the ranks makes for a happy team = happy children = happy parents.

   almost 3 years ago
3. Esther Ankcorn ★★★★★

   My son attends once upon a time. He is now 2 and has been through the baby and toddler rooms. We are very happy with the care he receives. He is happy at nursery and they are always have a range of educational and fun activities planned for him to do in the day. The app they use allows regular updates and it's a really great way of keeping in touch with the staff and up to date with how he has been that day (what he's eaten, how he's slept etc as well as what he has been doing). The staff are very caring and supportive and he obviously has a good bond with them. There is a soft play and this has been great for him to access in the winter months when it's not always nice enough weather for the garden. The nursery have dealt very professionally with covid. Their policies have been clear and adhered to and their communication with parents is excellent. Overall we are very happy with once upon a time daycare and would recommend them. They provide a fun, educational and caring environment for my son and are professional and organised to deal with.

   almost 3 years ago

1. Donna Hattersley ★☆☆☆☆

   We used this nursery for a short while last year, I wasn’t impressed. We choose this nursery based on the impressive indoor facilities, in particular the soft play style area. I don’t think my daughter was able to use this once in 6 months, we was informed it is saved for special occasions. Perhaps the truth is, it is saved for paid parties! Our daughter was allocated a key worker whom we saw very rarely, it always seemed to be different young females at every handover which made it hard for my daughter to settle in. There was often incorrect information passed on, that our daughter had been able to identify colours which she is still unable to do now 6 months later. The electronic communication was useful but unfortunately the activities set up for the day looked like they had be thrown together by a toddler, honestly I don’t think they provide much stimulation. The dolls look scabby some of the toys in general look like they need a good clean and the very small outdoor Astro turf play pen looks frankly quite sad. The general ethos to this place is money and business, god help you if you make a late payment, you are charged for that and then daily. I appreciate this is a business but this is also a child care setting looking after babies to toddlers I think a gentle reminder may be less of a clinical approach. We found a much better nursery, my personal opinion - don’t be fooled by this nursery it’s nothing but a money making business lacking in genuine care. I would not recommend this nursery.

   almost 4 years ago

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