Little Star Nursery, Baby & Toddler

Babies and toddlers set the pace at Little Star Nursery, Baby & Toddler, with care based at Elm Hayes Surgery in Paulton. The nursery accepts children from birth to two years and has 9 places in total. That makes its youngest-child emphasis the central consideration for families choosing it.

At its 22 February 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good overall. The detail behind that judgement included children experimenting with dough, making decisions about their play and developing practical independence. There were also two clear improvement priorities: more sustained use of books and more help for older children to play together.

A key person and the option of a home visit give families a personal starting point. Attendance includes morning sessions and days extending into the afternoon, with the timings and additional charges set out below.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage is the framework for children's learning, development and care: play, communication and everyday routines all contribute to what children learn. In February 2023, staff planned activities around children's interests and existing abilities, using assessments to identify learning that needed further attention. The practical implication is a day shaped around the child, rather than a sequence of identical tasks for everyone.

Exploration took tangible forms that February. Children added marshmallows and glitter to dough while pretending to cook pancakes, and decorated chocolate cakes in their own ways. Using tools during these activities brought physical practice into creative play. Children could also choose outdoor toys and music, giving them a say in how their day unfolded.

Conversation accompanied the play. In February 2023, adults sang, repeated children's words and asked questions during experiments, including sending toy cars through a tube. Those exchanges gave children reasons to speak and think about what might happen next. Books needed more attention, however: opportunities to introduce stories and factual books were sometimes missed.

Outdoor and Community Life

The February 2023 nursery day extended beyond indoor activities. Children made frequent visits to a local farm, the park and the library, connecting their play with places in the surrounding community. The garden offered seed planting, while summer activities included toasting marshmallows at a fire pit. These were concrete experiences of growing, changing materials and the world outside the nursery.

Social play was a less consistent part of that picture. In February 2023, staff sometimes missed chances to help older children interact with one another. For a toddler beginning to move from playing alongside others towards shared play, that is a useful point to explore.

Relationships and Communication

Every child has an allocated key person, providing a consistent relationship for care and contact with the family. Home visits are offered so that families can discuss their expectations and children can begin building familiarity with a member of staff. The arrangement gives settling a personal foundation before nursery attendance becomes routine.

In February 2023, daily conversations with parents covered children's learning, care routines and ideas for continuing activities at home. Children also practised manageable everyday tasks, including preparing fruit and learning how to handle a knife safely. Support with tooth cleaning followed breakfast. These details show how care routines could also become opportunities for independence.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the February 2023 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and children making good progress, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. The current team includes a SENCO role and a safeguarding lead, giving families identifiable responsibilities for additional needs and safeguarding concerns.

Staff undergo enhanced DBS checks and receive training in safeguarding, paediatric first aid and food hygiene. These are arrangements for carrying out their responsibilities; the dated safeguarding judgement above is the assessment of effectiveness.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Elm Hayes Surgery, Clandown Road, Paulton, Bristol, BS39 7SF. Opening hours are 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, with attendance across the year except bank holidays and a week at Christmas. Families can contact the Paulton nursery on 01761 404227 or at littlestarbabies@hotmail.co.uk.

The numbered booking options start at 8.30am. Session 1 ends at 12.30pm, Session 2 at 1.30pm and Session 3 at 3.30pm; both Session 4 and Session 5 end at 4.30pm. This gives families a morning option, a later finish around lunchtime and longer attendance into the afternoon.

An additional paid period runs from 8am to 8.30am, and EYE funding cannot be used for it. The distinction matters when matching a funded booking to a working day: the opening window and the funded session are different arrangements.

Funding and Paid Extras

EYE hours can be used within the numbered sessions, while private attendance is charged through the session structure. Meals and snacks are charged separately, including breakfast with a morning snack, cooked lunch, afternoon snack and tea; menus run on a three-week cycle.

A separate daily consumables charge covers resources such as waterproofs and ingredients for cooking and craft activities. These meal and resource charges are additional to the funded-hours arrangement as well as relevant to private attendance. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

• Books and shared play. February 2023 brought improvement priorities for storytelling, factual books and interaction between older children. During a visit, ask how those opportunities now feature in the toddler day.
• Funding and the early start. The 8am to 8.30am period cannot use EYE funding, and food and activity resources carry separate charges. Consider the whole booking when assessing the cost of attendance.
• Settling through a relationship. A key person and an offered home visit provide a starting point. Ask how that relationship will support your child's first sessions and individual care routines.

Little Star suits families seeking care centred on babies and toddlers, with morning attendance or a longer day into the afternoon. The key-person arrangement and home visits provide practical ways to establish familiarity. Its February 2023 picture combined hands-on exploration and everyday independence with specific work needed on books and shared play. Those priorities, alongside the separate food and consumables charges, are the main decision points.