Clifton Tots

Went in for a trial shift here and had a few disturbing observations, I got the impression some of the staff were lovely however the manager I dealt with treated me with contempt and mild mockery however occasionally deigned to throw me fake smile. I cannot for the life of me grasp what I may have done to offend her, perhaps she suffered a breakup with someone resembling me, or I had a similar appearance to a father she doesn't get on with or it was simply the fact that I'm a male and to appear fair she had to atleast pretend to entertain the possibility of hiring me. One child was clearly distraught about being left at the nursery by her parents and the staff member observing me seemed to lack empathy for the child, I got the impression they had repeatedly felt this way for a prolonged period but never-the-less the cold dismissiveness towards a child's emotional needs was unacceptable. I do sincerely hope the treatment of myself by manager was more a reflection of misdirected stress than of what I will politely refer to as a hostile and condescending personality. The shift was tiring however I have no doubt I could have adapted, the children were nice but I expect the prejudice against my appearance that overlooked my warmth of heart ruined my chances particularly given my more rugged typically masculine appearance.
Mar 31st, 2023

The staff are absolutely lovely and trying their best, but this nursery is so poorly managed and understaffed it made me nervous leaving my children and I had to take them out. There is no reception. The front door is secured, but often left open. If the door is locked you have to ring every single bell until someone answers, or get lucky and someone will randomly walk past, and let you in. There is a cumbersome check-in/check-out process where you have to sign a register. Not something you want to even think about on a really busy school run. The car park is incredibly small and difficult to get in or out in the dark and rain. Despite their best efforts the girls could not get our baby to sleep, so we stayed a few days for settling in. It was instantly obvious - constant noise, bright lights, doors opening and closing - and too short staffed to handle it. At the end of the day the staff look absolutely exhausted, especially in babies. They need a higher ratio of staff to kids. We were using another nursery in parallel so we have a good benchmark. The other nursery has a reception, a lot more staff, totally clean, a quiet room to sleep separate from the noise, we know everyone who works there including the managers... I have never ever seen any of the managers at Clifton Tots after a whole year.
Feb 13th, 2023

Jun 30th, 2019

...three of my four children have been attending this nursery. For years we have known the staff, from Marcella to Amelia to some of the lovely nursery ladies as we call them..and we can only recommend it. Today I left in a rush after dropping my little one to toddler floor where incredible preparations were happening for the childrens Christmas party...and my heart was overwhelmed by all the effort that was put into trying to make the room amazing for their precious customers! The idea that I leave and left my most precious treasures with this lovely and caring people is so reassuring when at work!Will never be able to thank them enough. Merry Christmas to all of you!
Jan 15th, 2018

A fantastic nursery - everyone really cares about the children and our little ones love going there everyday (they would go on weekends if they could!!). They really go above and beyond in how hard they work to make it such a warm and friendly place for the kids to learn and play - well done to you all for creating such a wonderful nursery!
Oct 2nd, 2017