Little Owls Day Nursery, Scarning

A farm setting gives Little Owls Day Nursery, Scarning much of its character: garden exploration, visits to nearby horses and books chosen aboard a visiting Library Bus connect children's play with the world around them. Children have explored vehicles on garden ramps and tried instruments in Music and Movement sessions. Concrete experiences lead the story.

At its August 2021 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Outstanding and found that children made rapid progress in their development. That judgement belongs to 2021. Today, the setting at Railway Farm in Scarning, Dereham has capacity for 52 children aged 21 months to five years.

Rooms and Ages

Tawny Owls, Snowy Owls and Barn Owls take part in different activities at Scarning. Tawny Owls have explored a sensory farm tray using sticks to make flour marks and matching model animals with pictures; their outdoor experiences also include a decking area in the grass garden used daily.

Snowy Owls have investigated frozen dinosaur figures in a jelly activity, using tools to release them as the ice melted. That gives children something tangible to investigate: changing textures, cold surfaces and the gradual appearance of an animal. Barn Owls have used the grass garden for tree climbing, bug searches and obstacle courses assembled from loose materials, with a music wall adding another reason to explore outdoors.

These examples make the differences between the groups more useful than room names alone. Sensory exploration runs through the younger children's activities, while the Barn Owls examples involve building, working together and testing what materials can do.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage provides the framework for children's learning, development and care: play, conversation and practical exploration contribute to their learning rather than sitting apart from it. Scarning's activities give that principle a recognisable shape, from investigating melting ice to using natural materials for creative work.

Music and Movement has included learning about musical notes, trying a ukulele and dancing. Children encounter an instrument as something they can explore themselves. In Snowy Owls, yoga and mindfulness activities have involved copying practitioners' movements and using coloured fabrics alongside calm breathing; movement and quieter attention sit together in the same activity.

Stories also become starting points for play. Tawny Owls have explored Dear Zoo through animal pictures, crayons and a small-world activity containing animals and boxes. The story continues beyond listening time, giving children different ways to revisit its characters and ideas.

Outdoor and Community Life

The Library Bus visits Scarning monthly. Children select books, spend time looking through them and take their choices to the librarian before bringing them back to nursery. Choosing is part of the experience, not simply receiving an adult's selection. Books become something children help shape for their group.

Barn Owls have gathered leaves and flowers in the nature garden and collected further materials on a walk to the lake, then pressed these into playdough to investigate marks and patterns. Tawny Owls' walks have included observing ducks and a swan at the lake and visiting the horses behind the nursery. The countryside supplies real subjects for children's conversation and creative work.

In August 2021, the grassy garden also had Perspex panels in its fence through which children could watch tractors working in the fields. That detail captures the setting's rural character, while remaining a description of the garden at that date.

Relationships and Communication

Room changes involve families as well as children. Scarning has held transition evenings where parents could explore the next room, meet the next key worker and discuss the move; welcome and transition packs were also distributed through children's existing rooms. The practical value is continuity: families can understand the next stage before it becomes their child's everyday routine.

Parents' evenings at Scarning have provided time to discuss children's development. These evenings give families dedicated time with staff. Families have an opportunity to talk about how learning is developing and what their child has been doing.

In August 2021, staff gathered information from parents about children's starting points and worked with other professionals involved in their care. They also worked with local schools on children's moves into school and supported changes between nursery rooms. These were practical links between the adults involved in a child's next step, rather than an admissions advantage.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the August 2021 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective, close relationships between children and staff, and full inclusion of children with special educational needs and/or disabilities in daily routines. Those are dated findings, not a fresh assessment of today's practice.

Children's feelings have also been explored through activities at Scarning. Tawny Owls used emotion cards and mirrors to imitate expressions, alongside lavender-scented playdough explored with sticks and other natural materials. The activity gave children a concrete way to look at and discuss feelings.

In August 2021, nursery chefs prepared proposed dishes for children to taste before menu changes, using their comments to adjust the menus. Children's preferences had a practical part in deciding what they ate.

Sessions and Attendance

The nursery opens Monday to Friday, from 7.30am to 6pm, and operates throughout the year. These are opening hours. They provide a useful starting point for families comparing their working day with the nursery's operating window.

Getting There

The address is Railway Farm, Fen Road, Scarning, Norfolk NR19 2LJ. Enquiries can be made through the contact form, with a Scarning option, or by calling 01362 690777.

Funding and Paid Extras

In August 2021, the nursery provided funded early education for children aged two, three and four. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation; families comparing paid care and funded attendance should use the terms for their child's proposed arrangement.

• A dated Outstanding judgement. The assessment dates from August 2021. On a visit, discuss how today's learning and care build on the garden exploration, relationships and inclusion described at that time.
• The room that fits your child. The current age range begins at 21 months, while Tawny Owls activities include younger children's sensory play. Ask which room your child would join and how the move into the next group would be handled.
• The complete attendance quotation. With year-round opening, the cost and pattern need to work together. Request a written breakdown of the proposed sessions, funded attendance, meals and non-food consumables before agreeing an arrangement.

Little Owls Scarning suits families who value countryside experiences, hands-on investigation and children's participation in choosing books and activities. Its strongest character comes from the nature garden, nearby animals and monthly Library Bus, rather than a curriculum label. Year-round opening also matters for working families. The August 2021 Outstanding judgement gives a strong historical assessment; the room transition arrangements provide a concrete subject for discussing how your own child would settle into the setting.