Jumpin Jacks

A summer house for toddlers, a reading den for preschool children and separate spaces for crawlers and more mobile babies give Jumpin Jacks a clear identity: play changes shape as children grow. This Doncaster nursery takes children from six months to five years, with outdoor areas attached to its age-group spaces. The physical arrangement matters. Babies have gentler opportunities to explore, while older children can tackle construction, messy play and increasingly independent activities.

At its November 2021 inspection, Ofsted rated Jumpin Jacks Good and found safeguarding effective, highlighting children's confidence, relationships with staff and support for spoken language. That is a dated judgement, rather than a description of every aspect of today's provision. The current offer includes freshly cooked food, daily digital updates for parents and termly outings or visiting experiences.

Full-day and half-day bookings serve different family routines, with an earlier start available as an extra. The emphasis is on age-appropriate play, with preschool activities adding phonics, music and sport as children approach school.

Rooms and Ages

Baby Rooms, for six months to two years, combine soft sensory resources with separate crawler and toddler spaces, while the Baby Garden adds gentle outdoor exploration through water, sand, plants and movement. Following each baby's own routine is part of the arrangement, so families can share how their child spends the day rather than immediately fitting everything around a single timetable.

Toddler Rooms, for two to three years, emphasise communication, social development and early problem-solving, with an outdoor summer house containing construction and imaginative-play resources. Sheltered outdoor spaces also allow quieter activities. That gives children alternatives to active play when they want to read, draw or join a smaller group.

Preschool Rooms, for three to five years, bring early literacy, numeracy and independence together with a more challenging outdoor space containing a sandpit, mud kitchen and reading den. Playful phonics activities introduce letters and sounds, while practical projects give children opportunities to work together and make decisions. School preparation here includes trying things for themselves, alongside early reading and writing activities.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the framework for learning and care. Structured play and individually planned activities support its areas of learning, combining adult guidance with children's interests.

Preschool music sessions involve instruments, singing and movement; sport sessions add active participation, and church sessions introduce community values. These are concrete additions to the day rather than a separate named curriculum. They let children encounter different kinds of activity as well as the everyday play within their room.

In November 2021, children experimented with building tunnels and finding ways to make their doors work. Language teaching also extended beyond a single conversation: staff modelled unfamiliar words and brought them into sensory activities, art and pretend play. The useful connection was between hearing a word and having opportunities to use it. Adults sometimes answered their own questions too quickly, however, limiting children's time to work out a response.

Outdoor and Community Life

Each age-group area has its own garden, bringing outdoor exploration close to the room and adapting activities to children's stage of development.

Termly trips and educational visits include animal encounters, local outings and a Christmas pantomime. The mix brings experiences into the nursery as well as taking children beyond it. These occasions broaden the day beyond familiar room resources, while their termly pattern gives families a useful sense of how they fit into nursery life.

Relationships and Communication

For babies, care follows individual routines and involves close work with families. This is a practical starting point for settling: familiar patterns can shape the day while children get to know their surroundings and the adults caring for them.

In November 2021, familiar toys and activities helped children settle, and staff used puppets and stories to support conversations about emotions. Children also used sand timers when taking turns with toys. Those examples show how relationships and behaviour were supported through concrete tools children could understand, rather than relying only on verbal reminders.

Current parent communication combines photographs and daily updates through an online system with termly newsletters, parent evenings and Stay and Play Sessions as part of parent partnership. Staff also talk through the child's day at collection, including what they have eaten. Digital information and a conversation therefore serve different purposes: one keeps a record of the day, while the other allows an immediate exchange.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

The management team includes SENCO roles, and designated safeguarding lead responsibilities are assigned within that team. All team members are paediatric first aiders. These are specific arrangements families can discuss in relation to their child's needs; they do not replace the dated safeguarding judgement.

Illness procedures include moving an unwell child to a quieter area with a member of staff and contacting the family for collection. The policy also provides additional help with hygiene for children with SEN or greater vulnerability to infection. This makes support a practical part of daily care rather than a general assurance about inclusion.

A cook prepares meals on the premises, and individual cultural and dietary requirements can be accommodated. The sample menu includes pasta bake with vegetables, fruit and savoury snacks, giving parents concrete examples of the food served across the day.

Sessions and Attendance

Jumpin Jacks is at 159 Doncaster Road, Edenthorpe, Doncaster, DN3 2QE. Its standard opening hours are 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, with a separately charged early start from 7.30am. It operates for 51 weeks each year and closes on bank holidays and at weekends.

Full days run from 8am to 6pm. Half days can be booked either from 8am to 1pm or from 1pm to 6pm, giving families a choice between morning and afternoon attendance as well as the full day. Term-time-only bookings are also part of the offer. The early start is an addition to the standard day, so it needs to be included when comparing the total booking arrangement.

Admissions enquiries and tour bookings can be made by telephone on 01302 890534 or by email at jumpinjacksnursery@gmail.com.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare includes the working-parent entitlement from nine months to school age, eligible two-year-old funding and the universal entitlement for three- and four-year-olds. The working-parent entitlement is 30 hours a week, eligible two-year-old funding is 15 hours, and the universal 15 hours starts in the term after a child's third birthday. Eligibility conditions apply to the relevant entitlements. Stretched and shared funded arrangements are offered.

Meals are included in the standard private session fee. Consumables are charged separately, and funded bookings carry separate essentials and extras charges according to whether attendance is for a half day or full day. Families should obtain the current prices in the nursery's written quotation; the fees and funding information sets out the charging structure.

The early start and late collection also carry charges. These details matter when comparing a booking with the hours a family actually needs, especially where work commitments extend beyond the standard session.

• Time to think. In November 2021, adults sometimes supplied answers before children had enough time to respond. During a tour, ask how staff now use questions and pauses to extend children's reasoning.
• The funded booking total. Funded sessions have separate essentials and extras charges, while the early start is an additional cost. Ask for a written breakdown for the precise pattern your family intends to use.
• Your child's outdoor stage. The Baby Garden, toddler summer house and preschool reading den serve different ages and kinds of play. A visit is an opportunity to discuss how your child will use the spaces attached to their room.

Jumpin Jacks suits families seeking either full-day attendance or morning and afternoon half days, with an earlier start as an extra. Its strongest practical features are the age-group outdoor spaces, individual baby routines and several ways for parents to keep in touch with the day. Preschool phonics, music and sport add concrete experiences as children prepare for school.

The Good judgement dates to November 2021, and the improvement point about allowing thinking time deserves attention. For families whose preferred session pattern fits the offer, the combination of room-specific play and regular parent communication gives this nursery a clear appeal.