Sir Leslie Martin Day Nursery

Sensory exploration gives Sir Leslie Martin Day Nursery a recognisable character: cool water, twigs and marks made in sand turn everyday materials into opportunities for conversation. At its 2 May 2025 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good and found safeguarding effective, while identifying improvements needed in teaching development and the planning of children's next learning steps. The practical appeal is a combination of exploratory play, meals cooked on site and communication that connects nursery life with home.

Based in Hartford, Northwich, the nursery accepts children from 2 to 60 months. Its approach centres on children investigating and making choices, with quieter reading experiences alongside active play. Full-day attendance and funded arrangements delivered either during term time or across the year give families different ways to organise care.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage sets the framework for children's learning, development and care: play, communication and everyday experiences help children build skills across its areas of learning. Child-led exploration shapes the nursery's approach within that framework. Rather than treating learning as a separate part of the day, activities invite children to investigate, try things and follow their interests.

Weekly topics introduce fresh ideas, while dressing up and castle building provide starting points for imaginative play. A cosy reading corner offers a quieter option. That balance matters for children who enjoy energetic activity but also need time with a book or an adult reading beside them.

In May 2025, preschool children explored a sensory footpath using water and a tray containing twigs. Adults helped them find language for what they felt. The value lay in the conversation as much as the physical experience: an unfamiliar texture became something a child could describe and discuss.

Other May 2025 activities linked movement with early writing and mathematics. Younger children rolled toy vehicles through paint to explore the marks left behind; preschool children drew in sand with sticks and discussed the shape and length of their lines. These were practical routes into language and mark-making, rather than exercises detached from children's play.

Outdoor and Community Life

Space for play extends indoors and outside. In May 2025, toddlers explored sunflowers through pictures, planting and watching seeds develop. Following that process connected a hands-on activity with changes in the natural world. Daily stories also gave children opportunities to discuss characters and events, bringing listening and conversation into a familiar routine.

The funded-hours activity arrangements include Forest School and Science Bots as chargeable activities, alongside cookery, gardening and celebration craft materials. Families can decline chargeable activities in favour of a free activity appropriate to the early years foundation stage. The choice matters: taking up funded hours does not require accepting every activity charge.

Relationships and Communication

Daily conversations at collection and drop-off are supplemented by an online learning journey shared with parents. This gives families both immediate information about the day and a continuing account of their child's learning. Information about home routines and interests also helps staff understand the child beyond nursery activities.

In May 2025, staff and parents exchanged information about babies' care, helping routines remain consistent between home and nursery. Families were also involved in a sound activity, finding objects at home whose names began alike. It was a concrete way to connect an early language experience with family life, rather than leaving all learning at nursery.

Clear routines were another feature of daily life in May 2025. Children understood what would happen next and took part in tidying resources. Babies received patient guidance with putting metal objects into a basket, while older children increasingly contributed independently. Small communal tasks gave children opportunities to practise responsibility as part of an ordinary day.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

Settling sessions include discussion of dietary requirements, allergies and medical conditions. Parents are also asked about other professionals involved with their child, and the enrolment form gathers information about special educational needs or disabilities. These conversations create a starting point for planning around an individual child's circumstances.

Meals are prepared on site, with ingredients sourced locally where possible; the nursery's food policy includes a vegetarian option and menu adaptations for allergies or intolerances. Weaning arrangements can follow the family's approach at home, including baby-led weaning.

The May 2025 improvement priorities deserve attention alongside these everyday arrangements. Staff development targets needed to address how adults interacted with children more precisely, rather than concentrating chiefly on the activity being provided. Observations also needed to lead more clearly to the next important learning step for each child. For parents, the useful distinction is between collecting records of development and using them to decide what a child needs next.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is The Martins Building, Bradburns Lane, Hartford, Northwich, CW8 1LU. Opening hours are 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, with closures for bank holidays and the working days between Christmas day and New Year’s Day. A full-day session runs from 8am to 6pm.

Additional sessions can be requested with at least a week's notice, subject to availability. Changes to agreed contractual hours require 30 days' written notice, and missed attendance through illness or holidays remains chargeable. These terms make it important to choose a regular pattern that fits the family's likely routine, rather than assuming unused attendance can be recovered later.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare includes the 15-hour and 30-hour entitlements, subject to eligibility and council confirmation. Families may use funding during term time or stretch it across 51 weeks. The minimum booking requirement is two sessions across two days where total attendance falls within the 15 or 11.18 funded hours allocated to some families.

For purchased additional unfunded hours, meals, consumables and activities are included in the charge. Funded-hours-only attendance has separate optional charges for food, non-food consumables and activities; parents may instead supply food and consumables or choose alternatives to chargeable activities. Food provision covers breakfast, a hot lunch, tea, snacks and fruit, while the consumables category includes nappies, wipes, creams, formula and medicine.

A refundable deposit is required to register a place. If the requested days cannot be accommodated, alternative sessions may be offered and families can join a waiting list for their preferred pattern. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation; funded and purchased hours have different charge structures.

• Planning the next learning step. The May 2025 priorities concerned more precise staff development and better use of observations. During a visit, ask how an observation now leads to a specific next step for your child.
• Funded attendance and extras. The minimum of two sessions across two days applies where total attendance falls within the 15 or 11.18 funded hours allocated to some families; food, consumables and activities have optional charges for funded-hours-only attendance. Discuss the proposed timetable and any parent-supplied alternatives together before agreeing the arrangement.
• Food and settling. Menu adaptations and support for home weaning routines form part of the offer. Families managing allergies should confirm current preparation arrangements and explain their child's requirements during settling.

Sir Leslie Martin Day Nursery suits families seeking exploratory play, on-site food preparation and regular communication between home and nursery. Its attendance arrangements accommodate both full-day care and term-time funded attendance, with stretched funding offering another way to distribute entitlement across the year.

The May 2025 picture combines engaging practical activities with specific work needed on adult teaching and assessment. That makes the strongest decision question a concrete one: how well does the nursery turn what it notices about your child into the next useful learning experience? The sensory play, online learning journey and flexible treatment of funded extras give families clear features to weigh alongside that question.