Little Minds Day Nursery

Small decisions and practical independence give Little Minds Day Nursery its character: children choosing books with conkers, preparing fruit and learning to serve lunch. These were concrete features of daily life in January 2024.

At its January 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good, judged safeguarding effective and found that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities benefited from individual learning plans and professional support. Based at Moorends Family Hub in Doncaster, the nursery accepts children from six months to five years and has 63 places in total.

The early years foundation stage sets requirements for children's learning, development and care; here, its inspection-time examples included counting during play, sharing stories and practising everyday skills.

In January 2024, activities often began with a book, with staff adapting them to children's existing abilities. Numbers around the rooms gave children opportunities to count during play. A light-up ball signalled whose turn it was to speak, while objects in a basket helped children choose songs. These physical prompts made participation easier to understand.

Independence had practical substance. Babies practised feeding themselves, older children served meals, and fruit preparation introduced safe knife use. Safety knives and vegetables in the home corner gave children another opportunity to rehearse those skills.

The January 2024 improvement priorities concerned participation and language: babies needed more help to join singing, preschool children needed clearer explanations of unfamiliar vocabulary, and two- to three-year-old children needed more consistent encouragement to speak.

In January 2024, each child had a key person and approached familiar staff for comfort. Adults listened to children's preferences: conkers placed in jars represented votes for snacks or books. Choosing had a visible consequence.

Later safety findings qualify the earlier inspection picture. Ofsted's April 2025 compliance outcome documented corrections to fencing, outdoor risk controls and supervision, while its June 2025 outcome confirmed that actions covering cleanliness, identifying hazards, responding to behaviour and supporting children with special educational needs had been met. These were dated outcomes, rather than a new overall inspection grade.

The address is Moorends Family Hub, 161 Marshland Road, Moorends, Doncaster DN8 4SB. Opening hours are 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, across the year, with closure on bank holidays and for one week at Christmas.

In January 2024, the nursery provided funded early education for children aged two, three and four. That is an inspection-time account of participation, rather than a promise of a funded place today.

• Language and singing. The January 2024 priorities covered babies joining songs, explaining vocabulary to preschool children and encouraging children aged two to three to speak. During a visit, ask how staff now build these opportunities into each age group's day.
• Safety and individual support. The April and June 2025 outcomes concerned safety-related practice, with the June actions confirmed as met. Ask how the resulting procedures work in daily supervision and individual support.
• Attendance and costs. The opening window spans the working day. What booking patterns, funded arrangements and written quotation would apply to your child's attendance?

Little Minds suits families seeking care from babyhood through the preschool years, with practical independence and child choice prominent in its January 2024 daily life. Its Good judgement is useful context, but the later compliance outcomes also deserve attention. The most useful visit will explore how today's language work, supervision and individual support operate in practice.