Little Lambs Nursery

French doors opening towards the garden, a baby room built around sensory exploration and preschool swimming lessons give Little Lambs Nursery a recognisable character. Its setting is a large detached family home in Sharples, Bolton, and outdoor learning runs through the offer.

Ofsted rated the nursery Outstanding on 8 June 2022, finding that children made rapid developmental progress through learning tailored to their needs. That judgement belongs to that visit. The current offer includes Forest School, an outdoor-learning programme intended to develop independence and confidence, alongside room-based activities and preparation for moving on to school.

Little Lambs has 60 places in total and accepts children aged 2 to 60 months. Laughing Lambs, Skipping Lambs and Pre-school organise the nursery experience by stage. Families can book full days or morning and afternoon half-days, giving the setting a broader practical fit than a single attendance pattern.

Rooms and Ages

Laughing Lambs is the baby room, with its room description extending to around eighteen months; instruments, tactile materials and books support sensory exploration, while songs and movement give babies different ways to engage.

Skipping Lambs begins at eighteen months and extends to around three years, combining a role-play home corner and sand-and-water area with French doors that connect indoor activity to the garden. This is a room designed around increasing independence. Finding their photograph at the start of a session gives children a recognisable participation routine, while a nearby bathroom supports potty training in cooperation with parents.

Pre-school serves children aged three to four, balancing more structured parts of the day with exploration, creative play and activities children choose themselves. Adult-led experiences respond to individual development rather than replacing children's own interests.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage provides the framework for learning, development and care: in parent language, play and everyday experiences support children's growing communication, physical skills and understanding. Little Lambs adds Forest School and offers preschool children the opportunity to take swimming lessons, which carry a separate charge.

In June 2022, children investigated water by operating a hand pump and changing its course with rocks. That is a useful illustration of the learning: a physical task became a problem to solve, with children testing how their decisions affected the flow. Handling an old telephone and radio also gave them concrete objects through which to explore the past.

Communication was woven into play in June 2022. Babies used visual prompts, sounds and singing, while older children discussed models they had made and used role play to retell stories. Working with materials also exercised the hands needed for early writing. The examples show how conversation, movement and making things can contribute to the same learning experience.

Outdoor and Community Life

The garden connection is especially clear in Skipping Lambs, where children can see outdoors through the French doors and move between inside and outside. Forest School extends the outdoor emphasis beyond the room's resources. For a child who enjoys exploring, this makes outdoor learning part of the nursery's educational offer rather than simply a break between indoor activities.

In June 2022, children also practised managing physical challenges: they used ladders while building taller structures and noticed obstacles that could cause trips outside.

Relationships and Communication

A key person links care, observation and activity planning. In Laughing Lambs, the relationship begins through several settling visits involving the child and parent, giving them time to become familiar with the practitioner who takes particular responsibility for their needs. Skipping Lambs also assigns a key worker, whose observations inform the experiences planned for each child.

Baby routines receive concrete attention. Staff work with parents on sleep patterns, feeding times, milk, bottle preparation and weaning, with a daily diary covering food, feeds, nappies and activities. That gives parents a practical account of the day, as well as a way to keep nursery care connected to home routines.

In June 2022, parents took part in interactive sessions and received resources to continue learning at home. Their views also contributed to the nursery's development.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At its June 2022 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and that staff responded promptly to developmental delays with activities addressing children's needs. These are dated findings about practice and support, rather than a present-day guarantee. Current arrangements include staff training certificates in first aid, safeguarding and food hygiene.

In June 2022, mindfulness and wellbeing sessions formed part of the children's experience, alongside stories representing different cultures and individual differences. These sessions helped children manage their feelings, while the stories introduced different cultures and individual differences. The nursery's current approach also includes planning around children's interests and developmental needs, with observations feeding into activity choices.

Meals and snacks are made fresh each day, and the nursery has its own chef preparing home-cooked food. Individual needs are considered in meal preparation.

School transition has a tangible structure. Pre-school uses a development summary and a child passport covering interests and individual requirements, shaped through consultation with local teachers. Teachers are invited into nursery, and children visit their new schools and take photographs to share afterwards. The value is preparation and information sharing, helping the next setting understand the child rather than implying an admissions advantage.

Sessions and Attendance

Little Lambs opens Monday to Friday, from 7.30am to 6pm, across 50 weeks of the year. It closes on bank holidays and for two weeks over Christmas and New Year. Families therefore need an alternative arrangement for those closures even when choosing attendance across the year.

Parents can choose a regular combination of full-day or half-day sessions, subject to availability. Morning half-days run from 7.30am to 1pm; afternoon half-days run from 1pm to 6pm.

Additional sessions depend on availability, and changes to a child's planned sessions require two weeks' notice. That notice matters if working days change: the regular booking can be adjusted, but the nursery needs advance warning.

Getting There

The address is North House, 771 Blackburn Road, Bolton BL1 7JL. Enquiries and visit arrangements can be made by telephone or email, providing a direct route to discuss a proposed regular booking.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered for eligible two-, three- and four-year-olds. The entitlements described include means-tested funding for two-year-olds, 15 funded hours for three- and four-year-olds and 30 funded hours for eligible three- and four-year-olds. Eligibility conditions matter when planning the balance between funded attendance and additional paid care.

Private sessions are also offered, with fees payable in advance by Direct Debit or Standing Order. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation; the fees page sets out the booking and payment structure. Preschool swimming lessons have an additional charge, so they should be considered separately from the regular session arrangement.

• Funding and the complete quotation. Preschool swimming carries an additional charge, and funded attendance depends on eligibility. What would your proposed booking include, how would funded hours be delivered, and how would meals and consumables be treated?
• Baby routines and settling. Laughing Lambs uses settling visits, an individual routine and a daily diary. Use a visit to discuss how your child's feeding, sleep and separation needs would shape that plan.
• Changing attendance. Session changes require two weeks' notice, while extra sessions depend on availability. Families with changing working patterns should weigh that condition against the morning, afternoon and full-day choices.
• School preparation. Pre-school combines child-chosen activity with greater daily structure and offers a nursery uniform for purchase. Discuss how those arrangements and transition visits would suit your child.

Little Lambs suits families seeking either full-day attendance or morning and afternoon half-days, with sensory baby play, garden access for toddlers and a more structured preschool stage. Its strongest practical details are the individual baby routines, the indoor-to-outdoor connection in Skipping Lambs and the information shared when children move to school.

The June 2022 Outstanding judgement provides a strong dated assessment. For today's choice, the room arrangements, attendance options and charge structure give parents concrete points to weigh against their child's needs and their own schedule.