Hamis Daycare

In April 2025, an outdoor mud kitchen, food to harvest and weigh, and toddlers measuring flour for play dough gave Hamis Daycare a practical character. At Palmer Road in Blackburn, the emphasis is on younger children: this branch specialises in care for children under three and has 40 places in total.

At its April 2025 inspection, Ofsted rated Hamis Daycare Good and found safeguarding effective, with independence and personal, social and emotional development central to its curriculum. The strongest examples involved ordinary experiences turned into learning: preparing food, sharing resources and trying out new words. Two teaching improvements matter alongside that positive judgement: extending children's thinking during play and making group activities work for everyone.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage sets the requirements for children's learning, development and care, bringing play, communication and physical development into the nursery day. In April 2025, practical activities gave those requirements concrete expression. Toddlers counted spoonfuls while making play dough and considered how much more flour they needed. Babies encountered counting through animal books and songs. Mathematics was connected to something children could handle or hear.

Language also grew out of doing things. In April 2025, staff introduced words connected with mixing and texture during play-dough making and modelled pronunciation as children played. Those exchanges gave children a reason to use new vocabulary. Group teaching was less consistent: reading sometimes moved too quickly, and questions did not bring every child into the activity. That distinction matters for parents who want both individual conversation and shared story time to support participation.

Outdoor and Community Life

In April 2025, numbered stepping stones and balance bikes offered opportunities to practise balance, while sponges and pipettes exercised children's hands. These were different kinds of physical challenge, combining larger movements with the smaller movements used to manipulate tools.

The outdoor mud kitchen added another practical dimension. In April 2025, children explored cooking and discussed hazards associated with kitchens and ovens. Real food in play areas was used for harvesting, sorting and weighing, connecting pretend play with how food grows and is bought. These examples make the outdoor provision more recognisable than a general promise of fresh air.

The teaching limitation was the next step after an activity began. In April 2025, staff did not consistently extend the thinking of children who were ready for greater challenge. Enjoying a task and deepening an idea are different things; families should weigh both when considering the nursery's learning offer.

In April 2025, adults caring for babies used songs, stories and physical affection to build familiarity. Babies reached towards them for cuddles and watched closely as they sang or read. Books and instruments were accessible to older babies moving around the space, giving them opportunities to make their own choices.

At the April 2025 inspection, Ofsted found that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities received targeted help, supported by developmental assessments, collaboration with parents and links with other professionals. That finding gives substance to the inclusion picture: support involved identifying a child's needs and coordinating a response, rather than relying on a general statement of welcome.

Mealtimes also contributed to independence in April 2025. Children selected food and took turns serving, with staff modelling polite exchanges. Kindness and sharing were reinforced through everyday interactions. Baby-room staff had undertaken safer-sleep training at that time, another relevant part of the inspection-era care arrangements.

Sessions and Attendance

Hamis Daycare's Palmer branch is at 55 Palmer Road, Blackburn, BB1 8BS. Its contact route includes telephone enquiries on 01254 725724 and email at Palmer@hamisdaycare.co.uk.

In April 2025, the nursery opened Monday to Friday, from 7.30am to 6pm, operating for 51 weeks of the year with bank-holiday closures. These are opening arrangements at that date; an opening window does not establish which attendance patterns a family can book.

Getting There

The Palmer Road premises have a driveway for parking. That is a useful practical feature for families bringing younger children by car, although it should be considered alongside the arrangements for sharing the driveway.

Funding and Paid Extras

In April 2025, Hamis Daycare provided government-funded childcare. Funding can be relevant to the overall childcare budget, but the entitlement and the attendance agreement need to be considered together. Current prices belong in the nursery's written quotation.

• Learning beyond the activity. The April 2025 improvement points concerned extending children's thinking and helping everyone participate in group teaching. During a visit, ask for examples of how staff now adapt questions, stories and play for children at different stages.
• A younger-child setting. Palmer Road specialises in children under three. Discuss how an attendance arrangement will work as your child approaches that age, rather than assuming the broader group's preschool offer applies here.
• The complete attendance agreement. Government-funded childcare was provided in April 2025. Ask which funded attendance patterns apply at Palmer Road, how meals and non-food consumables are handled, and how any additional hours fit around them.

Hamis Daycare merits consideration for families seeking an under-three setting with practical learning and an emphasis on growing independence. The April 2025 examples are its strongest selling points: food preparation, physical play and attentive interactions with babies give parents something concrete to assess.

The same account identifies a clear teaching priority. Staff needed to make group learning more inclusive and extend children's ideas more consistently. For families choosing this branch, the decision rests on how its younger-child emphasis, teaching approach and attendance agreement match their child's needs.