Paskals Day Nursery, Farnley Road

Beanstalks made from play dough, babies discovering the sound of crushed pasta, and children balancing a plank across logs: hands-on learning gives Paskals Day Nursery, Farnley Road its character. These examples from May 2024 show everyday materials being used for language, creativity and practical problem-solving rather than simply keeping children occupied.

At its May 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good, judged safeguarding effective and found skilled SEND support, including visual aids that helped nonverbal children express their needs. The practical detail matters: children had ways to communicate beyond speech, while staff could use those responses to understand their learning.

The nursery has 25 places in total and accepts children from birth to 60 months. Its address is 6 Farnley Road, Balby, Doncaster, DN4 8TS. Opening hours are 7.30am to 6pm, Monday to Friday.

Rooms and Ages

The Baby and Pre-Toddler Room serves children from birth to 24 months, with exploration through touch, colour, sound and movement. That gives the youngest children a sensory starting point, before language becomes their main way of exploring and communicating.

In May 2024, babies practised using feeding utensils and scooping tools, then moved towards drinking from glasses rather than lidded beakers. These were small, practical steps towards doing more for themselves. Older children served their meals and practised managing coats and zips, linking independence to familiar parts of the day.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage sets the requirements for children's learning, development and care; here, play and everyday routines provide opportunities to practise communication, movement and self-care. It is the common foundation for early years provision, rather than a separate branded programme.

In May 2024, Jack and the Beanstalk supplied a shared theme for several activities. Children created beanstalk pictures, repeated patterns with coloured beans and used play dough to explore differences in size. One story therefore connected creative work with early mathematical ideas. Staff confidence in teaching size was uneven, however, and this became an improvement priority.

Language work was equally concrete. During the same month, staff linked the noise of crushed pasta to a descriptive word for babies, while older children discussed unfamiliar vocabulary in stories. Singing, stories and a daily welcome activity gave further opportunities to listen and respond. Group activities needed better adjustment for differing abilities: younger children and children with SEND sometimes disengaged when stories ran too long or lacked supporting resources.

Outdoor and Community Life

In May 2024, children experimented with a wooden plank and two logs, moving the supports until the plank balanced. Staff encouraged persistence as they worked out the solution. The physical materials made the problem visible: children could change the arrangement and see whether their idea worked.

In May 2024, Ofsted found that children formed close relationships with staff and that parents received useful information about care and learning, including ideas to try at home. This connected nursery activities with family life rather than leaving parents with only a general account of the day.

Care routines also offered opportunities for respect and independence that month. Staff explained nappy changes beforehand, babies practised washing their hands and wiping their faces, and resources supported learning about oral health. Familiar boundaries helped children understand expectations for behaviour.

The May 2024 findings also require a clear qualification. Following a safeguarding concern, managers recognised that relevant procedures had been followed incorrectly. They refreshed their safeguarding knowledge and strengthened risk assessment and supervision procedures. Families should read the positive safeguarding judgement alongside that procedural failure and the response to it.

Sessions and Attendance

Opening hours are 7.30am to 6pm on weekdays. The nursery operates throughout the year, with closures for bank holidays and Christmas. For working families, the opening window and holiday closures are the useful starting points for matching childcare with their own timetable.

Getting There

The address is 6 Farnley Road, Balby, Doncaster, DN4 8TS. This is the Farnley Road setting, with the Baby and Pre-Toddler Room alongside provision for older children.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered from nine months to four years, subject to eligibility. The entitlements include 15-hour childcare funding for two-year-olds, 15-hour funding for three- and four-year-olds, and 30-hour funding for three- and four-year-olds. Eligibility remains a condition of the offer; these entitlements should not be read as a promise of a particular attendance arrangement.

Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

• Group learning and early maths. In May 2024, stories did not consistently hold younger children's or SEND children's attention, and some staff needed more confidence teaching size. On a visit, ask how stories are adapted and how staff now support these mathematical ideas.
• Safeguarding procedures. Managers acknowledged incorrect handling of procedures before May 2024 and responded with updated knowledge, risk assessments and supervision arrangements. Ask how those changes are maintained in everyday practice.
• The full childcare bill. Funding is subject to eligibility. Ask for a written quotation explaining the attendance arrangement and the treatment of meals and non-food consumables before agreeing a place.

Paskals suits families seeking childcare from infancy through the preschool years, with weekday opening hours extending into the early evening. Its May 2024 examples give substance to the learning offer: sensory exploration for babies, story-linked activities and practical independence for older children.

The Good judgement sits alongside specific improvement work on group activities, teaching size and safeguarding procedures. Those points deserve direct discussion. The strongest reason to consider this nursery is the combination of practical learning and the communication support demonstrated in May 2024.