Does anyone know anything about Rosemary Nursery N1?

[mommy06]

Can anyone tell me anything good or bad about Rosemary nursery as I am thinking about sending my six month baby and feeling a little nervous?

have you a list of other nurseries/childminders in your area? it's best to go and visit a few to get the feel of the place really. I live in N4 and my daughters have both been at nursery since they were 7 mths old so understand how it feels, but I wouldn't change a thing. You have to be happy with the place you're sending her to. Hope you get some more helpful replies

Sorry the correct name is Rosemary Works Nursery.

I live in the N1 area and have checked out alot of different nurseries in Islington. These are my thoughts on the Rosemary Works. There were a few things which I witnessed and didn't like. Firstly, I noticed one day that the toddlers were sitting outside the local butchers shop in their big pram whilst the staff were doing their shopping. Secondly, I caught a couple of the staff being quite stroppy with the toddlers at the local Rosemary Gardens whilst the staff were complaining about their working hours etc. From what I saw I felt the staff were generally a bit moody and not very warm. My friend also had her little boy there and there were a couple of other things which she told me about which also put doubts into both of our minds. Maybe I'm just too fussy, but personally I would go and have a good look around as many nurseries as possible. I have been lucky to stay at home and look after my little boy and at 6 months you need to feel they are in the best place possible. There is also The Grove - I know of friends who sent their babies there and I didn't hear of any complaints.

Thanks for the advice jzee and bundle. Do you have any nurseries apart from The Grove you can recommend? I have seen a few but I think I need to start my search again. I can't seem to find a place which makes me feel secure.

I had friends whose children were at Rosemary Works and seemed happy enough, but that was a few years ago, and the children were older (pre-school). I have had similar observations to jzee, have sat in Rosemary Gardens and watched the staff chatting amongst themselves and generally ignoring the children. The staff all seemed really young, too, which never fills me with confidence.

Having said that, I'm obviously fussy since I didn't like the Grove that much either -- I thought the staff were more interested in telling me about the hygiene procedures than taking an interest in the baby (but again that was when ds was a baby and he's 6 now!). Ds was at Independent Place (E8) which was fantastic at the time, but I've heard less good things recently.

Nurseries that I know people are pleased with are: Mapledene (further over towards Hackney, and quite a tight catchment area) and the Bath House on Shacklewell Lane (E8). They only take children over 18 months, but are truly fantastic. On the whole the ones run by Islington Council are good (New River Green is the one I know of) but it can be hard to wangle a place.

Just to add to previous comments about Rosemary Works, my daughter went there from 6 months onwards and I have to say that I wouldn't particularly recommend it for a baby of that age. I never got the sense that she was neglected (she was fed, changed etc) or that she was in danger, I just got the feeling that the staff didn't exactly give the babies much love and attention. They didn't seem particularly maternal towards the babies - e.g. when my DS was poorly and I was called to pick her up, I found her sitting on the floor looking very sorry for herself and whimpering slightly, yet no-one had picked her up and given her a cuddle. Anyway, that's only one example of several but, if you have a choice, I would suggest looking elsewhere for a baby of that age. Good luck.

thanks for the comments workingmama. Is there anywhere you can suggest?

had to ask whether you decided to go with Rosemary Works?

I have witnessed a few incidents with this nursery in the local park. The staff seem young and do not seem to be interested in the children at all. Also witnessed a staff member shouting at a very young child.

Not what I would pay money for! Rather shocked that this nursery has an 'ok' reputation.

I'm coming to this discussion late having recently come to mumsnet, and am quite shocked by the negative tone of this discussion. My 9 month old is at the Rosemary Works and our experience to date has been very positive. We have found the carers not only very competent but extremely warm, affectionate and playful - they clearly know the characters of the babies very well and the babies are very affectionate in return. I've often wandered through the toddler areas and they have always seemed gainfully occupied and entertained, so have no qualms about my baby moving into the toddlers. Have to say, of the nurseries we looked round, RW stood out as warm and positive in feel - we didn't see a single baby/child upset or disengaged - and we must have seen about 50 or 60 on our visit of an hour and a half. Due to my own separation anxiety (which the staff are very understanding of!) I do probably tend to see more of the nursery in action than most other parents. If you're looking for a nursery, like everyone says, look round a good few, but do check out RW too.

As the manager of the Rosemary Works Early Years Centre, I was shocked to read the comments posted on this thread, after being alerted to the discussion by one of our parents.

I have managed the nursery for 8 years now and found the comments disappointing and bewildering. I find it hard to recognise our nursery from the comments posted, and feel confident that our parents would feel the same.

One person commented on the relative youth of our staff team, when in fact the majority of our staff are aged between 25-60 years old. We only have 6 staff aged 18-25 within a staff team of 20, many of whom have qualifications and experience

Although obviously our staff cannot be under constant management scrutiny, many of our current families have joined the nursery on the basis of the observations they have made of our staff on outings to the park or to local shops such as butchers and fishmongers, which they undertake as part of their curriculum, and not for the purposes of staff shopping, as was implied in one of the posts!

We have always found our staff to be discreet when outside representing the Nursery, and sensitive as to when to join in or direct children?s play, and when to let the children direct their own activities. I would like to point out that there are 4 or 5 nurseries in the area, all using the same public facilities, so perhaps a mistake in identity has been made.

I can very confidently pass comment on the care of children within the nursery building including the Babies Room, and can state as fact that our staff take a genuine interest in all individual children here and are knowledgeable, experienced and extremely loving and caring. Staff have always been recruited to fit in with our ethos and the happiness of the children here is paramount! Many of the staff, including myself, have had our own children cared for here! Our families are very happy and we consistently have excellent OFSTED reports.

We have been open for 10 years and the majority of the families who currently attend the nursery come as a result of word of mouth recommendation; we have never needed to advertise since our open day.

I would welcome any parent who wishes to find out more to come and visit us and see how we live up to our great OFSTED reports, and our excellent reputation!

I was very shocked to read this discussion as this is not the Rosemary Works I recognise. We visited the nursery on a personal recommendation and also viewed most other nurseries in the area. RW stood out for it's loving, calm, warm atmosphere, staff who seemed genuinely interested in my daughter, children who were engaged and happy and it's light, bright space. We couldn't be happier with our choice, my daughter thoroughly enjoys her time there and is always so excited when it's a nursery day. All her carers are loving, encouraging and enthusiastic and she adores her key carer who is clearly extremely fond of her. I've found the staff to be very empathetic and echo the previous comments about recognising each child's character and responding accordingly. Lots of my friends have children there, and I've found it to have a lovely family vibe. If you are looking for a nursery in this area I'd encourage you to go and have a look around RW for yourself.