Young Sussex Nursery, Hove

A Victorian school building, four connected playgrounds and a baby garden with a miniature pirate ship give Young Sussex Nursery, Hove a recognisable character. The setting at 165 Portland Road separates babies, toddlers and preschool children into their own environments, with space for sleep, quiet play and outdoor exploration.

Ofsted rated the nursery Good on 28 April 2022. That assessment provides a positive starting point, alongside two practical areas for improvement: extending learning during children's chosen activities and preventing changes of activity from interrupting their concentration. Morning, afternoon, School Day and Full Day bookings serve different family routines.

Rooms and Ages

The Ladybirds Room gives babies a kitchen, two playrooms and a sleep room containing six cots, while the Ladybirds Garden combines grass with a rubber surface for outdoor play and includes a willow tunnel and miniature pirate ship. Six cots describe sleeping provision, not room capacity.

Around age two, children move to the Bumblebees Room, where three rooms contain accessible resources, quiet and creative spaces, role play and small world play, alongside introductions to mathematics, mark making and IT, with two outdoor areas for climbing, growing and exploring. Accessible equipment supports children's own choices.

The Dragonflies Room serves the final year before school, bringing together a reading and quiet area, a computer zone, painting and construction to support preparation for that next stage.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage provides the framework for children's learning, development and care: play supports communication, physical development and the skills needed for their next stage.

In April 2022, children's interests helped shape activities. A book prompted a volcano-making project, and children worked out which ingredients they needed, used smell to identify vinegar and telephoned older children to request tomatoes for the lava. Imagination led to practical problem-solving.

Other April 2022 activities included forming patterns with small pegs and tracing letters in sand trays. These gave children opportunities to practise the hand movements used in writing. Songs, stories and conversations also featured: adults talked through play and allowed children time to respond, while babies explored speech sounds.

There was a qualification to that picture in April 2022. Some practitioners missed opportunities to introduce a specific skill during play that children had chosen, and some transitions between activities interrupted learning unnecessarily. Independent play still needs timely adult guidance.

Outdoor and Community Life

Four interconnected playgrounds give the Hove setting several outdoor spaces to work with. The baby garden's grass and rubber surface offer different places to play, while the toddler areas include opportunities to climb and grow things.

In April 2022, additional funding supported extra nursery attendance and experiences including beach visits for disadvantaged children. Support funding extended access beyond the usual session.

In April 2022, Ofsted found effective safeguarding arrangements and strong support for children with SEND, including prompt involvement of outside professionals and the use of signing and pictures to help communication. These methods helped children understand and express themselves.

Relationships also featured in April 2022. Babies and children developed close attachments to their key person, and practitioners used information from parents to support care and learning. Babies' home sleep patterns were followed, and breastfeeding mothers were accommodated. Care followed family routines.

Support could extend home. In April 2022, families received individually selected books and resources, including materials to help address behaviour difficulties outside nursery. Resources connected nursery learning with challenges at home.

The April 2022 staffing picture included 21 staff, of whom 15 held qualifications at level three or above. Managers offered training opportunities and meetings about staff wellbeing.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is 165 Portland Road, Hove, BN3 5QJ. Opening hours run from 7.45am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, with closure on bank holidays and between Christmas and New Year. Families can contact the Hove nursery by telephone on 01273 777001 or email at hove@youngsussex.co.uk.

Core bookings are Morning, 8.15am to 1pm; Afternoon, 1pm to 5.30pm; School Day, 8.15am to 4pm; and Full Day, 8.15am to 5.30pm. Early Start runs from 7.45am to 8.15am, and Late Finish from 5.30pm to 6pm. These additions extend a core booking, so opening hours and the basic session are separate decisions.

A minimum of two core sessions each week must be maintained. Hove offers attendance throughout the year and term-time attendance, but the latter continues through half terms. It removes the obligation to pay for childcare during the main Christmas, Easter and summer holidays, rather than following every school closure. Extra holiday sessions can be booked subject to space and staffing.

Registration requires completed paperwork; deposits depend on the attendance category.

Funding and Paid Extras

The nursery accepts Universal funding for three- and four-year-olds, Early Learning funding for eligible two-year-olds and Working Parent funding for eligible children from nine months. Funded hours can support attendance across the year or term-time attendance, with a separate Funding-Only model. The eligibility conditions still apply; participation does not mean every child qualifies for every entitlement.

Funding-Only attendance uses Morning, Afternoon or Full Day sessions within the child's allocation. It cannot be combined with standard paid attendance, cannot be term-time only and does not include session swaps. Switching between Funding-Only and standard attendance normally takes effect at the start of the following term. Standard bookings can combine funded hours with paid hours, with the funding applied subject to each session's cap.

Snacks, nappies and sun cream come without an additional charge, including on funded sessions. Cooked lunch is a separately charged, optional extra; choosing a packed lunch avoids that charge. Funding-Only sessions do not require the purchase of meals or extra paid hours. This separates the childcare entitlement from the lunch choice.

A non-refundable registration charge applies, except for Funding-Only children. Standard deposits are refunded within 14 days of the child leaving, provided at least three months' attendance has been completed, the required notice has been given and final fees and outstanding charges have been paid in full. Funding-Only deposits are refunded shortly after Headcount Day of the child's first full term; disadvantaged two-year-old Funding-Only children require no deposit. Leaving requires at least one month's written notice, and reducing regular core sessions requires a calendar month's notice. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation for the chosen pattern.

Getting There

Paid parking is available on Portland Road and Marmion Road; roads south of Portland Road have free parking except from 10-11am and 7-8pm. Aldrington Train Station is a short 5 minute walk to the north, up Tamworth Road, with services towards Brighton and Worthing, while bus routes 2/2A, 46 and 49 run along Portland Road.

• Teaching during chosen play. In April 2022, some adults missed opportunities to extend an activity and some changes of activity broke children's concentration. During a visit, ask how staff now decide when to add a skill and how they protect sustained play.
• Baby-room arrangements. Ladybirds has a separate sleep room with six cots and its own garden. Ask how sleeping, outdoor play and the needs of the babies attending that day are organised together.
• Funding and attendance. Funding-Only bookings exclude term-time attendance and session swaps. Compare that model with standard attendance before committing to a pattern, especially if school holidays shape your childcare needs.
• Contract commitments. Two weekly core sessions are the minimum, and leaving or reducing attendance requires notice. Request the written quotation and refund conditions for your proposed booking; half-term attendance also needs to fit a term-time family's plans.

Young Sussex Nursery, Hove suits families considering morning or afternoon sessions as well as School Day or Full Day attendance. Its strongest current draw is physical: separate age-group environments, a dedicated baby sleep space and several outdoor areas give families concrete arrangements to assess.

The April 2022 Good judgement supports interest, while the teaching and routine concerns provide a useful test for a visit. Funding-Only and term-time models offer different practical benefits, but their conditions matter. The best fit depends on matching the child's stage and the family's calendar to the actual booking model.