The Hive Day Nursery

Pea planting, insect conversations and children learning to handle watering cans give The Hive Day Nursery its character: everyday experiences become opportunities to talk, think and try things independently. At its June 2025 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good and found safeguarding effective.

At 74 Church Road, Steep, Petersfield, GU32 2DG, the nursery has capacity for 15 children aged 6 to 36 months. That is a whole-setting figure, rather than the size of an individual group.

The early years foundation stage sets the requirements for children's learning, development and care; here, the June 2025 examples show how play and everyday routines brought learning into children's day. Ofsted found at that inspection that the planned curriculum helped children make good progress.

In June 2025, children's interest in insects and webs prompted conversations about caring for living things and remembering earlier learning. Planting peas introduced ideas about size as children considered the holes they needed to dig. These were practical reasons to use language, rather than isolated exercises.

Gardening also gave children repeated opportunities to practise familiar tasks, including filling watering cans and tending plants. Climbing equipment suited different stages of physical development, with staff judging when to step in and helping children learn to manage risks. Making sandcastles offered another chance to learn through doing and take pleasure in a finished creation.

In June 2025, staff gathered information about children and their families before they started, helping them settle into nursery life. Children approached staff confidently, and even recent starters participated in shared activities. Familiar relationships supported participation.

Communication extended beyond daily care. In June 2025, parents could discuss their child with different members of staff, received updates about development and were given ideas to continue learning at home. Staff reviewed children's development to decide what to introduce next. Leaders supported the team through meetings, training and attention to staff wellbeing.

Children also practised considerate behaviour: sharing toys, offering a ball to another child and responding to adults modelling polite language. However, in June 2025, adults sometimes stepped in before children had enough time to understand instructions and complete tasks themselves. Giving children more thinking time was the required improvement.

Opening hours are 8am to 5.30pm, Monday to Friday, during term time, with closure during school holidays. The Church Road address puts the nursery in Steep, Petersfield. The holiday pattern matters as much as the daily opening window when arranging childcare around work.

• School-holiday cover. The nursery operates during term time and closes for school holidays. Families needing continuous childcare will need a separate holiday arrangement.
• Time to try independently. In June 2025, staff sometimes completed tasks too quickly for children. On a visit, ask how practitioners now give children time to understand an instruction and have a go themselves.

The Hive suits families seeking term-time childcare for babies and toddlers, with learning rooted in conversation, gardening and practical exploration. Its June 2025 strengths were familiar relationships and purposeful everyday activities. The improvement point is equally practical: adults need to leave enough space for children to do things themselves.