School House Nursery

Forest School near the nursery grounds, a minibus for exploring further afield and a ground-floor Baby Room give School House Nursery a clear outdoors-and-exploration character. On Meins Road in Blackburn, it cares for children from three months to five years and has 70 places in total. The youngest children have their own sensory space; older children move towards more independent play and an outdoor classroom.

At its September 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good overall. That judgement sits alongside practical strengths in the current offer: swimming, cooking and movement activities, settling sessions shaped around the child, and an online learning journal that parents can contribute to. The inspection also identified weaknesses in staff coaching and helping families extend learning at home. Those points deserve attention alongside the activities.

Flexible sessions sit within weekday opening hours of 7.30am to 6pm. For parents, the appeal is the combination of an individual settling process and opportunities to explore beyond the room, rather than a curriculum confined to indoor activities.

Rooms and Ages

Baby Room occupies the ground floor, with a soft space room containing sensory materials and natural resources, giving babies opportunities to explore textures and movement. Pram outings also take their experiences beyond the building. This is useful detail for parents weighing how much of a baby's day involves active exploration rather than remaining in one room.

Upstairs, Tweenie Room combines an open-plan main space with a smaller side room for stories and imaginative play, while practitioners emphasise speech and communication. The arrangement offers different settings for shared play and quieter activities. Moving on from the baby stage is linked to readiness, so the room sequence is about development as well as growing older.

Pre-school has easy access to an outdoor classroom, with activities planned around children's interests and developmental milestones. That connection matters for children who enjoy learning through movement and outdoor exploration. The emphasis shifts towards making choices and practising the skills they will need as they approach school.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage guides the nursery day: children develop communication, physical and social skills through play, alongside early reading, mathematics, creativity and exploring the world. It is the common foundation for early-years education. School House adds Forest School, using nature near its grounds and local forest parks for outdoor learning, with its minibus supporting trips further away.

Swimming lessons, football coaching and dance provide different ways to practise movement; cookery and gymnastics add further experiences. These are concrete additions to the day, rather than a named curriculum whose meaning parents have to guess. Swimming is also described specifically for preschool children in the nursery's parent guide.

In September 2022, seasonal learning linked babies' sensory exploration with older children's creative work: collected leaves became materials for exploring texture and making pictures. Staff introduced vocabulary through those experiences. Mathematics also appeared in practical tasks, with children counting flour as they made dough and exploring quantity and size. The value was in connecting words and numbers to something children were doing.

Teaching was less consistent during some group activities in September 2022. Staff did not always adapt their approach to different children's needs, and expectations about removing dummies to support language were not consistently understood. The improvement requested was more precise coaching. An attractive activity list therefore needs to be read alongside how practitioners adapt an activity for the child taking part.

Outdoor and Community Life

Forest School is supported by a mini forest school space outdoors, where natural materials become part of hands-on activities. Children also explore local parks. The parent guide describes weather clothing and wellington boots as part of preparing for outdoor play, making this a practical part of nursery life rather than an occasional fair-weather extra.

The nursery has a 15-seater minibus. Its preschool offer includes educational outings, while the Holiday Club uses trips to extend activities beyond the setting. That transport gives the nursery a way to reach experiences beyond its immediate grounds; it does not mean every age group follows the same trip programme.

Relationships and Communication

Settling sessions vary in duration and number according to how the child adjusts. A key worker is chosen around the practitioner with whom the child settles, giving the relationship a role in the transition from home. Parents can participate in activities during these sessions. The arrangement allows familiarity to develop before the child starts their usual attendance.

Tapestry is the online journal used to share observations, photographs, learning plans and nursery news. Parents can add experiences from home, so communication can flow both ways. The parent guide also describes developmental targets shared with families, termly tracking and opportunities to discuss learning with the key worker. These mechanisms give parents more to work with than a brief account of whether their child enjoyed the day.

In September 2022, families knew about activities and what children had enjoyed, but guidance on continuing the next stage of learning at home was inconsistent. Strengthening that connection was an improvement priority. For a parent choosing this nursery, the useful distinction is between receiving updates and receiving a clear idea of how to support a particular skill at home.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the September 2022 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and described support for children with SEND through monitoring, adapted activities and work with external professionals. The current team structure includes a deputy manager who also holds the SENCO role. That gives families an identified role for discussing additional needs, rather than relying solely on a general statement about inclusion.

In September 2022, children practised recognising feelings and waiting for a turn, with a timer helping them understand when a requested toy would become theirs to use. School preparation also included daily helping roles, such as distributing cups and plates or assisting with activities. These were small responsibilities with a practical purpose: children rehearsed independence through ordinary nursery tasks.

Meals are home cooked, and different options are offered for children's dietary requirements. Parents supply nappies and wipes, with formula and comfort items also included in the baby packing list.

Sessions and Attendance

School House Nursery is on Meins Road, Blackburn, BB2 6QQ. It opens Monday to Friday, from 7.30am to 6pm, across 52 weeks, with bank holidays excluded. Sessions are flexible around parents' working schedules. The opening window describes the operating day; families should distinguish that from the attendance arrangement they agree.

There is also a Holiday Club for children up to eight during school holidays. Activities respond to children's interests and learning topics, and advance booking is advised. This extends the nursery's usefulness for families with an older child, while remaining a separate offer from its early-years rooms.

Enquiries can be made by telephone on 01254 689808 or by email at schoolhouse@netstar9-childcare.co.uk. The contact form provides a route to arrange a visit, and Stay & Play Sessions let parents join activities with their child before signing up.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered for children aged nine months to four years. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation. Parents supply the personal care items described above, so these need to be part of preparing the child's nursery bag as well as planning attendance.

School preparation in Pre-school includes dressing, toileting and early sound activities. Those are practical developmental aims, helping children rehearse independence and begin exploring the sounds that contribute to later reading and writing.

• Teaching adapted to the child. Staff coaching was an improvement priority in September 2022, including adapting group activities and supporting language. During a visit, ask how practitioners adjust an activity when children need different levels of help.
• Learning carried home. September 2022 identified inconsistent guidance for parents about children's next learning steps. Ask to see how a Tapestry update connects an observation with a useful activity at home.
• Flexible attendance and funding. Flexible sessions and funded childcare from nine months to four years are offered. Ask for a written attendance and charging plan covering funded hours, private hours, meals and personal care items.
• The youngest child's routine. Baby Room has a sensory space and pram outings, while settling sessions respond to the child. Use Stay & Play to discuss how feeding, rest and the key-worker relationship would fit your baby's routine.

School House suits families seeking flexible weekday attendance and an outdoor emphasis, with a separate Holiday Club potentially useful for an older sibling. Forest School, preschool swimming and the minibus give substance to its exploration-led character. The Baby Room's sensory provision and child-led settling arrangements are useful counterweights to the busier activities for older children.

The September 2022 Good judgement supports that picture, but staff coaching and home-learning guidance were clear improvement points. The strongest fit is for parents who value practical experiences and want an active relationship with the key worker, including contributing to learning through Tapestry.