Pink Hippo Day Nursery & Pre-school

A dedicated Sensory Room, a separate place for babies to sleep and a garden children can choose to use give Pink Hippo Day Nursery & Pre-school a clear character: space for activity, with room to slow down. This purpose-built setting in Seaton has capacity for 40 children aged 0 to 60 months. Its physical layout makes an important distinction between the needs of babies and those of older children.

At its May 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Outstanding and found safeguarding effective. Conversation, cooperative play and practice of new skills featured strongly in children's experiences then.

Attendance can combine flexible hours on different days or full days from 8am to 6pm. The booking minimum needs clarification before families commit, because two versions of the nursery's terms give different requirements.

Rooms and Ages

The Nursery Room has a Community Playthings Baby Gym, a mirror with a support rail, low feeding chairs and a canopy-covered story den for movement, shared meals and quieter play. An adjoining sleep room has cots and rest beds chosen for each child's developmental stage.

The nursery generally chooses to take no more than 9 under-twos at once, the number its baby room was designed for. This is a usual operating choice, rather than an unconditional room cap or the whole nursery's capacity.

The Pre-school area serves children over two, with low sinks, construction resources, a home corner and a listening station; accessible transparent tubs and child-sized washing and toileting facilities support independence.

The Sensory Room brings together a tall bubble tube, floor-based fibre optics, textured furnishings and light-based resources for sensory exploration and relaxation. Access is limited to three children at a time, accompanied by a first-aid-trained member of staff. It is intended for all children, rather than reserved for those with additional needs.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) shapes the day through play, interaction and topics that follow children's interests. This is the shared early-years framework, while Pink Hippo's practical choices include treasure baskets, cooking, planting and growing, and opportunities for children to initiate activities alongside those led by adults. Babies' routines are organised around their individual rhythms in cooperation with parents.

In May 2023, conversation was woven into activities: older children explored unfamiliar food vocabulary, including jalapenos, while babies and toddlers joined songs through movement, actions and simple language. Older children also used tokens to choose games. That gave turn-taking and decision-making a concrete form, rather than leaving cooperation as an abstract expectation.

At that time, sharing and cooperative play responded to children's needs; climbing, cycling and investigating sand and water gave them opportunities to practise physical skills.

Outdoor and Community Life

A roofed deck connects outdoor play with the enclosed grassed garden, helping children spend time outside across different weather conditions. The garden includes tunnels through a grassy hill, a bug hotel, a painting easel and a wooden music frame. Behind the building, a greenhouse and growing area connect planting activities with a physical place where children can see things develop.

Free-flow access lets children choose outdoor play when the arrangement allows, with an outdoor toilet supporting independence.

In May 2023, regular bus and tram journeys and spending book day tokens at a local bookshop extended learning into the community. A musician visited weekly for singing, dancing and instrumental play.

Relationships and Communication

Each child has a key person who follows their development and provides a link between home and nursery. Tapestry, an online journal, holds the child's learning record. That gives families a continuing account of achievements and development, alongside conversations about the day.

Staff aim to give verbal updates, using a parent contact board for essential information when conversations cannot happen. A separate meeting room allows private discussions.

For babies and younger children, care follows individual routines agreed with parents. The adjoining sleep room has a viewing panel and video monitoring, so sleeping children have dedicated accommodation with arrangements for observation. Rest is treated as part of the room design.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the May 2023 inspection, Ofsted found that staff adapted teaching and resources to address gaps in learning, and judged SEND support highly effective, with the special educational needs coordinator working alongside parents, staff and other professionals. The practical detail is the adjustment of what children experience, rather than a general promise that everyone will receive identical provision.

Current arrangements include a gently sloping access path, an accessible toilet and shower room, and sensory facilities available to all children. Staff hold paediatric first-aid certificates; unfamiliar visitors must provide identification and visitors are supervised. These are care and security arrangements, separate from the dated judgement on their effectiveness.

Food choices include twice-daily snacks such as cheese, vegetables and fruit, while lunches can be brought from home under the healthy lunchbox policy. During school terms, freshly cooked meals supplied by Seaton Primary School can instead be purchased on request, so that option carries a separate charge.

Sessions and Attendance

The nursery opens Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm. Full-day bookings use that entire window, while flexible bookings allow different hours on different days. Families can therefore choose a consistent full day or book different hours on different days, subject to the nursery's booking terms.

Both versions of the terms require two sessions each week, but they differ on the length of those sessions. The annual opening pattern also needs resolving before a family plans holiday cover. Bank holidays and a Christmas closure apply in both versions.

Paid fees are due monthly in advance. A registration charge applies to both fully funded and fee-paying places, with different refund conditions: the funded-place charge is returned after one full month's attendance, while the fee-paying charge is returned on departure only when accounts are settled and adequate notice has been given. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

Getting There

The address is 47 Scalwell Lane, Seaton, EX12 2DJ. A covered area provides pushchair storage, and the sloping pathway gives access to the entrance. Enquiries can be made through the contact form, by telephone or by email.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered through 2 Year Old Funding, Early Years Entitlement and Extended Entitlement, with term-time and stretched arrangements. The Capped Funded Model limits funded attendance to the nursery's own session structure; buying extra hours is not required, although additional private hours can be purchased.

Two-year funding is subject to assessment and authorisation through Devon County Council. Accessing the full Early Years Entitlement allocation requires attendance across two days, between no more than two settings. Extended Entitlement requires eligibility verification before the funded term and resubmission of eligibility information every three months. Losing eligibility makes booked sessions chargeable at the nursery's full rates, subject to its notice terms.

The nursery describes close links with local primary schools. Attendance does not guarantee a school place. Those links should be understood separately from the purchase of school-supplied lunches.

• Booking and holiday cover. The terms conflict: one version requires two seven-hour sessions and gives 50 opening weeks, while another requires two four-hour sessions and gives 51 weeks. Ask which minimum and Christmas closure apply to your proposed booking before committing.
• The youngest children's day. The usual under-two limit is 9, and babies have an adjoining sleep room. During a visit, discuss how the actual daily group, individual sleep routines and use of the Nursery Room would work for your child.
• Food and funded attendance. School-term cooked lunches are purchased separately, and funded sessions follow the Capped Funded Model. Request a written breakdown for your intended pattern, including snacks and non-food consumables, so that the funded hours and additional charges are clear.

Pink Hippo suits families seeking either flexible hours across different days or full-day bookings, with particular appeal for those who value separate baby sleeping accommodation and substantial sensory and outdoor provision. The May 2023 Outstanding judgement gives the review its quality anchor; the rooms explain what families are choosing physically.

The booking minimum and annual calendar need settling before commitment, so families can judge attendance against their child's routines and their working week.