Shooting Stars Nursery School

Babies now take centre stage at Old Down Hall. Since August 2026, this Basingstoke setting has catered exclusively for children under two, with a stated maximum of 15 attending at once and a move to Kempshott Village Hall when children turn two. That makes the next-stage move part of the childcare decision from the outset.

Ofsted rated Shooting Stars Nursery School Good at its 21 March 2022 inspection. That judgement predates the change to an under-two setting, so it describes an earlier, mixed-age nursery rather than assessing today's baby-only arrangement. The current physical offer includes a substantial indoor play space, a small garden and another room used for sleep and smaller-group activities.

Term-time attendance and year-round care sit alongside morning, afternoon and daily booking patterns. The strongest reasons to consider Old Down are its emphasis on following children's play, its separate space for rest and its regular outdoor wildlife activities.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage is the statutory framework for children's learning, development and care: in everyday terms, play supports communication, physical development and relationships alongside other learning. Shooting Stars adds a shared approach across its two settings in which practitioners respond to what children are doing, rather than interrupting their play to begin a pre-planned activity. Adults join the play and teach the next step as an interest develops. For a parent, the useful distinction is how teaching happens within an activity a child has already chosen.

At Old Down Hall, the main indoor space is accompanied by a smaller room for sleeping and small-group activities. This gives rest its own physical space rather than making the main play area serve every purpose. The small garden provides another setting for play, while regular wildlife sessions use the nearby nature reserve to introduce children to the world outdoors.

Sporty Little Stars is the named weekly outdoor sports session at this branch. It adds an organised movement activity to the play-based day. Its weekly frequency is a useful practical detail, although the nursery's recent change of age group makes the way activities are adapted for babies an important visit topic.

In March 2022, children's interests helped shape experiences beyond the nursery: an interest in pets led to a pet-shop visit. Other experiences included music and movement, wildlife projects and visits involving the police and a farm. These illustrate the earlier nursery day; they should not be read as a current programme of outings for the under-two setting.

The change to baby-only care puts relationships, rest and staff deployment high on the decision list. Old Down now plans for more practitioners than the legal staffing requirement demands, but this is a staffing approach rather than a published numerical ratio. The smaller room used for sleep is a concrete part of the care arrangement, with small-group activities also taking place there.

A manager role covering Old Down and Kempshott Village Hall combines SENCO and safeguarding-lead responsibilities and works across both settings each week. This identifies where responsibility for additional needs and safeguarding sits, while keeping those responsibilities separate from any claim about current effectiveness.

At the March 2022 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and SEND support effective, with concerns identified promptly, outside professionals involved and additional funding helping children make progress. Those findings provide a dated assessment of practice, not an assurance about the reorganised setting.

In March 2022, staff collected information from families when children first started attending and used their knowledge of children's interests and achievements when planning learning. The baby area's organisation, however, needed attention so that it better supported wellbeing and close relationships with key staff. Some adult conversations also stopped at repeating children's words instead of developing vocabulary or allowing fuller explanations. The March 2022 improvement actions also called for stronger practitioner interactions within everyday routines and activities. These are material limitations alongside the positive judgement, especially for families considering baby care.

Sessions and Attendance

Old Down Hall is at 364 Kempshott Lane, Basingstoke, RG22 5UY. Opening hours are 8am to 5pm on weekdays, with operation across 50 weeks and a term-time attendance option. Term-time places are payable across 38 weeks; year-round places are payable across 50 weeks. These are attendance and payment patterns, not a statement about how funded hours are distributed.

Morning bookings start at either 8am or 9am and finish at noon or 1pm. Afternoon choices run from noon until 3pm, 4pm or 5pm, or from 1pm until 4pm or 5pm. Daily patterns include 8am starts finishing at 3pm, 4pm or 5pm; 8.30am to 3.30pm; and 9am starts finishing at 2pm, 3pm, 4pm or 5pm. Other hours, including half-hour starts, can be arranged. The breadth matters: families can choose a shorter daily pattern as well as a morning, afternoon or longer day.

Enquiries can be made through the contact form or by telephone on 07900 600243. Children move to Kempshott Village Hall at age two, so continued attendance involves a change of site.

Funding and Paid Extras

Shooting Stars offers funded childcare in partnership with Hampshire County Council and also sells private hours. The shared funding offer includes universal funded education of 15 hours for three-year-olds and extended funded education of 30 hours for working parents. These are shared-setting terms, not an entitlement statement for Old Down's current under-two intake.

For under-twos, the whole-day price includes breakfast, lunch and tea; meals are otherwise individually charged. A Quality Premium is charged for funded hours to enhance provision. Families should obtain a current written quotation setting out the chosen attendance pattern and its charges.

• Baby care after the change. Old Down became an under-two setting in August 2026, while the March 2022 baby area needed better organisation to support close relationships. On a visit, ask how key-person continuity, sleep and staff deployment work in the current layout.
• Moving sites at two. The next stage is at Kempshott Village Hall. Consider whether changing childcare location at that age fits your family's routine, and discuss how the move is prepared.
• Funding and the quotation. The offer includes funded hours, private sessions, different meal arrangements and a Quality Premium on funded attendance. Ask which entitlement applies to your child's age and how the written quotation treats meals and non-food consumables.

Old Down suits families seeking care for a child under two who value teaching through children's chosen play, a separate space for rest and regular outdoor experiences. Morning and afternoon sessions give it relevance beyond longer daily care, while term-time and year-round attendance serve different family routines.

The baby-only change is the decisive feature. The Good judgement is useful historical context, but it predates that reorganisation and included concerns about the baby area and some staff interactions. A decision should therefore give real weight to today's care arrangements and the planned move to another site at two.