Tiny Tots Nursery School

A converted red-brick farmhouse, a rustic garden and a separate sensory room give Tiny Tots Nursery School a recognisable character. Outdoor space is part of the attraction: children have age-specific garden areas, with the neighbouring running track and walled garden also used for play and exploration. For families choosing between settings, that combination offers different places for movement, quieter activity and sensory exploration.

At its February 2026 inspection, Ofsted judged achievement, inclusion, behaviour and routines, welfare, and leadership to be Strong standard, with curriculum and teaching at Expected standard and safeguarding standards met. The distinction matters. This is a positive account of care and children's development, alongside a specific teaching improvement concerning younger children's early mathematics.

Tiny Tots has capacity for 81 children and accepts children aged 2 to 60 months. Its Basingstoke home is Down Grange Farmhouse on Pack Lane. Full days, mornings and afternoons give families different ways to organise attendance, rather than a single day-length option.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS provides the framework for children's learning and care, bringing language, physical development, relationships and early mathematical understanding into play and everyday routines. Cookery gives children ingredients to investigate; the garden provides space for movement and outdoor exploration.

In February 2026, babies investigated wooden spoons, metal tins and hoops in spaces with fewer distractions. Moving and stacking objects gave them practical ways to explore shapes and solve early problems.

Storytelling connected indoor activity with outdoor exploration. In February 2026, toddlers collected natural materials on walks linked to Room on the Broom, then used their finds to act out parts of the story. That gives a book a life beyond listening time: children can handle objects, revisit events and use words while making their own version of the narrative.

Older children made potions, painted and played with water in February 2026. Conversations during activities explored ideas and characters' feelings, while lunchtime preparations brought counting into a useful task. Cups and plates became things to count for a purpose. Younger children's mathematical learning was less consistently extended, however, and improving staff's response to those spontaneous opportunities was the next step identified for leaders.

Outdoor and Community Life

Age-specific areas divide the rustic garden into spaces for different stages of development. The neighbouring running track and walled garden add other settings for outdoor activity. This makes the physical environment a substantial part of the nursery's appeal, especially for families who value opportunities for movement alongside indoor play.

In February 2026, preschool children worked together to construct obstacle courses and encouraged one another as they used them. Building the course involved making choices about space and equipment; using it gave children a reason to cooperate and respond to each other. The activity combined physical challenge with social practice.

Cookery is another concrete addition to the day. Children explore ingredients through practical sessions and have opportunities to learn about growing food. Tiny Tots also supports the British Heart Foundation through fundraising activities during the year, including sponsored challenges, bake sales and dress-up days. These give families ways to participate in nursery life and introduce children to helping others through shared activity.

Relationships and Communication

In February 2026, babies turned to familiar key persons for comfort and interaction. Staff followed individual feeding and sleep patterns, while their knowledge of children's preferences helped shape everyday care. For a parent of a baby, the useful detail is the connection between a familiar adult and the child's own routine: care was organised around the individual child.

In February 2026, staff also worked with families when circumstances changed, helping care remain consistent between home and nursery.

Everyday independence developed through manageable tasks. In February 2026, children poured water from small jugs, served snacks and helped prepare lunch tables; younger children practised finding slippers and washing their hands. These are useful steps towards doing things for themselves. Stories and conversations also gave children a way to discuss feelings and recognise emotions in others.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the February 2026 inspection, Ofsted found that children with SEND made substantial progress through specialist advice, individual care plans, adapted routines and collaboration with external professionals. The sensory room was used for physiotherapy and occupational therapy work, linking a physical space to children's specific support needs.

The current sensory room provides a calmer space for sensory exploration and self-regulation, including provision specifically for babies. Its value is more precise than simply having another room: it gives the nursery a separate setting for experiences that may need a quieter atmosphere. Families whose children have sensory needs can make this space part of their discussion about individual care.

An on-site chef prepares meals, using locally sourced ingredients where possible, and menus accommodate different dietary requirements. Meals, milk, infant formula and snacks are included in private fees; funded attendance has a separate food charge.

Sessions and Attendance

Full Days run from 7.30am to 6pm, Mornings from 7.30am to 1pm, and Afternoons from 1pm to 6pm. The nursery opens Monday to Friday. These are separate booking patterns, so a family seeking a morning session has a different option from one arranging care across the full working day.

Tiny Tots operates throughout the year, with Christmas-week closure and two staff training days annually. Bank holidays are also accounted for in its closure and fee arrangements. Fees are invoiced monthly at the same amount each month, which helps families plan expenditure despite the calendar changing from month to month.

Enquiries can be made by telephone or through the nursery's enquiry form. The address is Down Grange Farmhouse, Pack Lane, Basingstoke, RG22 5SN. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation, allowing the chosen attendance pattern and funding position to be considered together.

Funding and Paid Extras

Tiny Tots offers the Government's 15 Hours and 30 Hours funding for eligible children aged nine months and above. Funding is stretched across 51 weeks: the respective weekly amounts are up to 11.18 and 22.35 hours. This spreads the entitlement through the year rather than concentrating it into school terms.

For families eligible for the larger stretched entitlement, the first 20 funded hours can cover parts of two full-day sessions, with the remaining 2.35 hours applied to another full or partial day. Up to 10 funded hours can be used in a day, so a full-day booking includes an additional half-hour of paid care. Families using the smaller entitlement can distribute it across full or partial days.

Private fees include food and health and hygiene supplies, including wipes, nappies, nappy cream and sun cream, as well as enrichment activities. Funded sessions carry separate charges for food, consumables and enrichment, with charges adjusted for a partial or partly funded session; enrichment charges apply to children over two, with no enrichment charge for under-twos. Alternatives to the integrated package can be discussed with the manager.

A non-refundable registration charge reserves a place, and a deposit is credited against the first invoice. Fees remain payable during a child's absence. Children first accessing funding in the summer term have a different stretched arrangement for that initial term, so that condition belongs in the calculation of their starting costs.

• Early mathematics. February 2026 teaching did not consistently build on younger children's spontaneous interest in mathematical ideas. On a visit, ask how practitioners now develop counting, comparisons and mathematical language during toddler play.
• Sensory support. The separate sensory room and February 2026 therapy work are useful starting points for an individual-care discussion. Ask how its use would fit your child's routines and any professional recommendations.
• Funding and extras. Stretched hours sit alongside separate food, consumables and enrichment charges on funded sessions. Request a written quotation for your chosen pattern, including any first-summer-term variation and the alternatives to the integrated package.
• Dietary requirements. Menus cater for different dietary needs. Families managing allergies should confirm the current arrangements for their child, including how instructions reach the adults preparing and serving food.

Tiny Tots suits families seeking either full-day attendance or shorter morning and afternoon sessions, with a farmhouse setting and substantial outdoor opportunities. The sensory room, practical cookery and story-linked exploration give the offer concrete substance. February 2026 findings provide a positive basis for considering care and inclusion, while the early-mathematics improvement deserves a direct question. Funding can support year-round attendance, but the separate charges need to be understood alongside the booked sessions.