Three Frogs Nursery

Daily garden play, a church-hall address in Liphook and regular updates through Tapestry give Three Frogs Nursery a clear identity. It cares for children aged one to five and has capacity for 20 children in total. The scale, outdoor routine and direct contact with a key worker are useful starting points for families choosing care for a younger child.

At its 28 July 2025 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good, judged safeguarding effective and found that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) received good support through targeted plans and collaboration with parents and professionals. The qualifications to that judgement matter too: staff development in speaking and listening, and sharper planning of adult-led learning, were the two improvement priorities.

Attendance can be mornings, mornings continuing through lunch or full days. These serve different family routines, rather than requiring everyone to buy the same length of day.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) shapes planned play: children explore materials, make things and practise early number and literacy skills. This is the shared early-years framework. Children practise these skills through planned play, including creative arts, sensory exploration and early literacy and numeracy games. Sensory exploration and creative work sit alongside opportunities to choose what to play with.

Good Morning Circle Time brings children together for songs, stories and conversation. It gives talking and listening a regular place in the day. Elsewhere, children can choose puzzles, construction, pretend play or mark-making, so the routine includes both shared activity and time to pursue an interest independently.

In July 2025, staff used children's interests to introduce new skills. A pretend pizza activity became an opportunity to practise cutting ribbon with scissors, with encouragement to persist when the task became difficult. Younger children joined action songs; older children practised holding pens during creative activities. These are concrete examples of how play can develop movement and control.

The same July 2025 findings identified a need for clearer intentions in some adult-led activities. Enjoyable participation was not always matched by sufficiently precise planning of the next learning step. For parents, the useful distinction is between an activity that keeps a child interested and one whose intended learning staff can explain.

Outdoor and Community Life

The garden is used daily, including in different weather conditions. Running, climbing and exploring nature are part of the routine, with wellies among the items children bring. Outdoor play therefore has a regular place alongside indoor creative and imaginative activities.

In July 2025, children used outdoor climbing equipment and slides, and practised throwing and kicking balls. Staff helped them approach manageable physical challenges. Football also provided a social learning opportunity: children invited others to join and waited while those who preferred not to play moved clear of the goal. Movement and consideration for others met in the same activity.

Relationships and Communication

A key person forms part of the daily routine, while parents can speak with their child's key worker. Everyday feedback is supported by Tapestry, where photographs and updates capture activities and milestones. Termly parents' evenings offer a separate opportunity to discuss development, rather than relying entirely on brief handovers.

In July 2025, conversations with parents helped staff understand children moving between home and nursery. Younger children and those with less confidence received help to become familiar with the routine. Staff also supported friendships and encouraged children to recognise how their behaviour affected other people. When emotions were difficult, children had time to acknowledge their own feelings and those of others.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

In July 2025, targeted learning plans incorporated advice from external agencies, with parents and professionals involved in arranging support. This gives substance to the inspection's SEND judgement: support was organised around individual needs and preparation for the next stage of learning.

Quiet time after lunch allows for sleep, rest or gentle activities such as drawing, reading and puzzles. Children may bring a comforter for rest, giving families a familiar item to include in the transition from home. Toilet training follows the child's home routine, with spare clothes and underwear brought in to support consistency.

Parents supply packed lunch, while breakfast, a morning snack with milk and a light tea are provided; the nursery publishes a nut-free food policy. Nappies and wipes also come from home, either as a daily supply or a pack left at nursery.

Illness arrangements have a direct effect on family planning. Children who become unwell during the day are collected, and sickness or diarrhoea requires a 48-hour gap after the final episode before returning.

Sessions and Attendance

Three patterns are offered: Morning Session runs from 8am to noon, Morning Session with Lunch from 8am to 1pm, and Full Day from 8am to 4pm. A full-time concession covers Monday to Friday, 8am to 4pm; parents still supply lunch. The recommendation is at least two sessions each week, rather than a compulsory minimum stated as a booking condition.

Opening hours are 8am to 4pm, Monday to Friday, across 48 weeks of the year. Closures comprise a week at Christmas, a week at Easter and the first two weeks of August. On Christmas Eve, the nursery closes at 1pm. That August break is a practical consideration for families whose work continues through the summer.

Getting There

The address is Liphook Methodist Church, London Road, Liphook, GU30 7AN. Enquiries can be made through the contact form, by email or by telephone.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered alongside private sessions. The entitlements include up to 30 weekly hours for eligible working parents of children aged nine months to four years, 15 hours for eligible two-year-olds, and 15 hours for all three- and four-year-olds, with up to 30 for qualifying working families. The funding age threshold does not alter the nursery's accepted starting age of one year.

Funding is stretched across 48 weeks, using fewer funded hours each week than a term-time arrangement. Families can combine those hours with extra paid sessions, allowing a funded allocation and a longer attendance pattern to sit together. Parents supply packed lunch, nappies and wipes for their child's attendance. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation; the sessions and funding page explains the attendance options and funding structure.

• Learning intentions. The July 2025 improvement priorities concerned speaking and listening and the precision of adult-led planning. On a visit, ask staff to explain how a current activity develops those skills and how they choose the next step for a child.
• The working-day fit. Full days end at 4pm, while morning choices finish at noon or 1pm. Compare those collection times and the first two weeks of August closure with your work commitments.
• Food and allergies. Lunch comes from home under a nut-free policy. Families managing allergies should confirm current practice for both packed food and nursery-provided snacks.

Three Frogs suits families choosing between a morning, a morning with lunch and an 8am to 4pm day. Daily outdoor play, a defined rest period and Tapestry updates make its routine easy to understand, while stretched funding can sit alongside paid attendance. The July 2025 Good judgement supports that picture, with speaking-and-listening development and more purposeful adult-led planning remaining the points to explore. The early finish and summer closure deserve equal weight in the decision.