Poppies

Welcome to Poppies.. Food for life and Millie’s Mark accredited, nursery practitioner award national finalists and winner of Cheshire East’s Early Help Community Diamond Award, we promote wellbeing and enjoy plenty of time outdoors.

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Our nursery

Set in a spacious Victorian house, our recently renovated nursery has beautifully calm, contemporary interiors, and a home from home feel. Babies enjoy a peaceful, separate space in the Coach House. Our large recently landscaped, leafy garden features play equipment from a Timperley craftsman, flourishing allotment beds, and plenty of space for the children to run.

We explore

Within walking distance of Knutsford, we love to explore. From visiting Tatton Park, The Heath and duck pond, to Knutsford’s library and shops, or a train ride to Delamere Forest for The Gruffalo trail, we enjoy a wealth of exciting learning opportunities. Extra-curricular activities include rhythm time, forest school, dance classes and mini sports.

Our Community

From litter picking with Friends of the Heath, opening a buggy safe path with the Mayor, to donating to Knutsford’s Bunny Hop, the food bank, CAFT Easter appeal and Christmas Hampers, we enjoy strong bonds with Knutsford’s community, enabling children to learn about their world, enhancing their sense of belonging.

Team

Our team have the breadth of qualifications and experience required to create the awe and wonder that is vital to children’s learning, ensuring school readiness. This includes a childcare degree holder, four Early Years Teachers, Level 6 and 5 practitioners and a qualified SENco. Our accredited ELSA promotes wellbeing.

Delivering Excellence

With over 175 years combined experience, our team have the skills to deliver our inspiring EYFS and enriched curriculum. Established for over 20 years, a smaller company with a progressive approach, we prioritise reinvestment over acquisition, quickly adopting the latest best practice. Based in Hale, Elmscot’s outdoor and early years leads and senior leadership visit regularly, providing support.

Our awards

We are delighted to have won multiple awards including:

Jigsaw gold

Achieving Jigsaw’s gold award recognises our exemplary quality standards.
Ofsted Good

Ofsted ratings are based on a one-day ‘snapshot’ assessment.
Millie's Mark

This gold standard in paediatric first aid is awarded to nurseries that go above and beyond to keep children safe.
Practitioner

We are finalists for Nursery Management Today’s best nursery practitioner of the year national award.
5-star hygiene

Our top of the scale five-star food hygiene rating recognises our exemplary hygiene standards.
Apprentice

Our outdoor lead won Trafford and Stockport College's Early Years, Health And Education Apprentice Of The Year Award.
Diamond Award

Winning Cheshire East’s Early Help Community Diamond Award, recognised our support for children’s wellbeing and the local community.

Fees & funding

We ensure that fees are kept to a minimum whilst enabling us to provide the best start for your child. You may be able to access help with your fees through childcare funding. We accept most childcare vouchers.

Learn more

Welcome

We warmly welcome you to come and and take a closer look at what we do.

7.30am – 6pm
poppies@elmscot.co.uk
Sugarpit Lane, Knutsford, Cheshire, WA16 0NH
01565 977998

‘Poppies is incredible. The staff are enthusiastic, knowledgeable and really care. They organise educational activities and amazing extracurricular stuff like animal visiting, forest school and a magician. My boys are learning so much every day’.

Poppies parent
‘They have a great outdoor space and are a short walk to a large field and a National Park so they get to go exploring often. I could not be happier and we are so incredibly glad we found Poppies’.

Poppies Parent
‘Absolutely amazing nursery! Our daughter has developed so much thanks to the incredible staff. She actually screams with excitement when we get to nursery and always has a huge smile on her face when we pick her up’.

Poppies Parent
‘The staff are so creative and come up with some wonderful ideas. They really engage with the children’s individual interests and support their development. We have been impressed at the range of activities they get to take part in’.

Poppies Parent
‘Our little one always has great experiences every day! We’re very pleased with the outdoor space and time spent with Forest School and walks out to the park and the food is just fantastic.’

Poppies Parent
‘They go above and beyond to support the stages of your child’s development and make sure children spend as much time as possible outdoors exploring nature. I go to work not worrying at all.’

Poppies Parent
‘A wonderfully nurturing, creative and enriched environment with staff who genuinely care. Good organisation, lots of additional activities and outings in the local area. We’re so pleased, and wouldn’t want our child to attend anywhere else.’

Poppies Parent
‘We really couldn’t praise Poppies highly enough, and sending our son there is one of the best decisions we have made as parents. The staff are amazing. They make him feel so welcome and at home every day and he always comes home beaming.’

Poppies Parent
‘Children arrive happy and are eager to attend the nursery. Staff are friendly and offer a wide range of activities that ignite children’s interest and curiosity. Stimulating learning opportunities build on children’s interests, development needs and what they need to learn next’.

Ofsted
‘I have had great experiences with Poppies and would highly recommend it. We were at another nursery before this and the difference we have seen between the two is huge.’

Poppies Parent
‘Our little boy absolutely loves going to nursery and has come on leaps and bounds since starting. He loves outdoor play and exploration which they promote.’

Poppies Parent
‘We moved to Knutsford and just couldn’t find the right nursery for our daughter. We saw lots of nurseries where the staff didn’t even smile at us. When I looked around Poppies I knew instantly this was the right nursery for us. Every staff member was really welcoming and smiled’.

Poppies Parent