Portslade Day Nursery and Pre-School

A mud kitchen, a Baby Snug and a garden with space to climb give Portslade Day Nursery and Pre-School a recognisable character: sensory exploration runs alongside a gradual move towards independence. At its January 2025 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good and found safeguarding effective. That judgement came with two clear priorities: sharper intentions behind planned activities and better representation of children's cultures and heritage.

The nursery cares for children from 3 months to 5 years on Old Shoreham Road in Portslade, Brighton. Its three named rooms organise the journey from early sensory play to preparation for school. For parents, the useful distinction is between those stages, rather than a single description of the nursery day.

Rooms and Ages

Baby Snug accommodates babies aged 3 to 18 months, with room to crawl, rest and explore sensory resources, and activities shaped around their interests and development. This gives the youngest children opportunities to explore at their own pace rather than follow the older children's programme.

Toddler Den serves children aged 18 to 30 months, combining textured materials, songs and creative experiences with a more structured plan and support for growing independence, including potty training. Pre-School Study begins at 30 months and continues until children start school, building activities around their interests while introducing early literacy, number work and science.

The rooms have spaces for pretend play, books and movement. Those physical choices matter: children can switch between imaginative activity, quieter exploration and practising coordination, rather than having every experience centred on one type of resource.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage sets the requirements for children's learning, development and care; here, play gives children opportunities to practise communication, movement and early thinking skills. The room arrangements make that progression concrete, moving from sensory exploration towards more involved stories and experiments.

In January 2025, babies used gestures to request water and express polite responses, while outdoor water play involved carrying jugs to a water-play system. These were practical opportunities to communicate a need and handle objects independently. Toddlers explored toys that responded to their actions, and bubble blowing was linked with an action rhyme, bringing movement and language into the same activity.

For preschool children that January, figures helped bring a bear-hunt story to life, with conversation about the characters' feelings. Paint mixing prompted children to predict an outcome and test it. These examples show what learning through play looked like at the time: a story became a discussion about emotions, while a creative activity became an experiment.

Outdoor and Community Life

The garden includes a mud kitchen and equipment for both smaller-scale play and bigger physical challenges. Space for balancing, climbing, running and construction gives outdoor play several purposes, from imaginative cooking to practising movement. For a child who enjoys active exploration, this is a substantial part of the setting's appeal.

Independence starts with ordinary routines. In January 2025, babies practised washing and drying their hands and disposing of the towel themselves. Staff also helped them recognise their belongings. These small tasks gave children a role in looking after their own needs.

At the January 2025 inspection, Ofsted found that staff supported children's emotions consistently and that leaders worked effectively with other professionals, using additional funding to meet individual needs. The concrete value for families was support that connected daily interactions with help from outside the nursery where needed.

Communication involved both conversation and an online system in January 2025, with families receiving information about learning and development. Staff gathered details about children's needs and family backgrounds, although that knowledge did not always translate into children seeing their own cultures represented in nursery life. Understanding a family and reflecting that understanding in the room are separate tasks.

For toddlers, potty-training support sits within Toddler Den's emphasis on independence. Baby Snug also provides space for rest and sleep alongside exploration, making care routines part of each room's purpose.

The nursery's address is 221 Old Shoreham Road, Portslade, Brighton, BN41 1XR. It opens Monday to Friday from 8am to 6pm and operates across the year, closing on bank holidays and between Christmas and New Year. The weekday window gives families a clear boundary for planning care around work.

Enquiries and tour bookings use 01273 442354. The opening hours describe the nursery's operating day; families should use their agreed attendance arrangements when planning the hours their child will attend.

• Purpose behind activities. In January 2025, staff did not consistently make the intended learning clear enough when planning experiences. On a visit, ask how an activity in your child's room connects with what they are learning next.
• Culture and belonging. The January 2025 improvement priorities included fuller representation of children's heritage. Ask how your family's languages, traditions and everyday experiences would become part of room life.
• Attendance and costs. The nursery opens from 8am to 6pm on weekdays. Before committing, ask for the attendance options and a written quotation covering funded hours, meals, consumables and any additional charges.

Portslade will appeal to families looking for care from babyhood through to school preparation, with sensory play, outdoor movement and increasing independence built into its room descriptions. Baby Snug, Toddler Den and Pre-School Study give that progression a clear shape.

The January 2025 findings provide useful examples of communication, emotional support and learning through play, alongside specific work needed on activity planning and cultural representation. Those priorities make purposeful questions for a visit, while the garden and age-based rooms give families concrete features to weigh against their child's needs.