Little Plums Nursery Long Eaton

Baby Plums, age-designed wooden furniture and a large outdoor area with a soft surface give Little Plums Nursery Long Eaton a clear physical character. Play leads the day, with sensory exploration for babies and increasing independence as children grow. The setting is on Nottingham Road, at its junction with Station Road, and has capacity for 70 children aged 3 to 60 months.

At its April 2026 inspection, Ofsted judged achievement, behaviour and routines, welfare and wellbeing, curriculum and teaching, inclusion, and leadership and governance to meet the Expected standard, with safeguarding standards met. The practical strengths were familiar adults, hands-on experiences and communication with families; the development priorities concerned language, the use of stories and more targeted support for teaching.

Private sessions and funded childcare are offered across 51 weeks, with full-day, morning and afternoon bookings. That gives families several ways to organise attendance, while the charge structure makes it important to distinguish funded hours from additional care and meals.

Rooms and Ages

Baby Plums has resources for sensory exploration and developing crawling and walking, giving physical development a clear place in the room's design. Little Plums has activities and resources selected for its age and developmental group. Big Plums provides a spacious room for children to develop.

Across the rooms, wooden furniture is designed for the relevant age group, while light, neutral interiors and temperature control shape the surroundings.

In April 2026, babies explored reflective objects, nesting materials and toys that responded to their actions. They stacked, posted and banged objects, experimenting with what happened next. The What's in the box? singing activity connected objects with familiar songs: babies chose an item, anticipated their turn and responded with movement and babbling. It brought touch, sound and participation into the same experience.

Learning and Activities

EYFS is the framework used to track development here: children learn through play, while staff share observations with families and use their knowledge of each child to plan what comes next. The nursery's learning aims put communication alongside numbers, stories, shape, celebrations and creative work, with experiences intended to encourage curiosity and imagination.

In April 2026, toddlers practised filling containers, pouring and moving materials, combining practical exploration with opportunities to solve problems. Preschool children chose toppings for pretend pizzas made from dough, using imaginative play to express their own ideas. Children also took responsibility for setting out activities, tidying resources and helping prepare for meals.

The same month's teaching priorities deserve attention. Adult conversation did not consistently stretch vocabulary or thinking, and staff sometimes missed opportunities to describe children's play. Books were enjoyed independently and together, and a lending library supported reading at home, but stories needed a more deliberate place across learning. Staff development also needed closer attention to these aspects of teaching.

Outdoor and Community Life

The enclosed outdoor play area has a soft ground surface. Guest specialists deliver language, science and music experiences, and short trips take children into the surrounding community. These additions bring different people and settings into children's learning, although the central offer remains play and exploration.

In April 2026, outdoor activities included tunnels, steps, a slide, stepping stones and balance beams. Children also talked about vegetables they were growing to eat later. Physical exploration and food growing therefore supplied practical subjects for learning, from trying a movement to talking about where food comes from.

Relationships and Communication

A dedicated keyworker is part of the settling offer, alongside a free settling-in period and attention to each family's circumstances. Staff training covers attachment and supporting children through changes. For a child transferring from another setting, the nursery shares relevant developmental information with that setting or a childminder, helping adults maintain a connected account of the child's needs.

Parent Zone, the parent app, allows families to contribute observations from home and message staff; nursery observations are shared through it too. Home observations help staff plan learning.

In April 2026, children sought comfort from adults they knew, including babies who stayed close to staff when unfamiliar people were present. Daily handovers covered children's experiences, development and wellbeing.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the April 2026 inspection, Ofsted found that children with SEND and those facing barriers to learning made steady progress, supported by individual plans, adapted activities and advice from external professionals. Visual prompts helped children understand routines and changes, while learning was divided into manageable steps. These are specific mechanisms parents can discuss in relation to their own child's needs.

In April 2026, preparation for school included conversations about feelings, opportunities to ask questions and familiarity with the routines of moving on. The emphasis was practical and emotional preparation. Children could begin to understand what would change and talk about it with familiar adults.

That month's mealtimes included home-cooked food prepared by the nursery cook, with children talking together about meals they enjoyed. Meals therefore also provided opportunities for social conversation.

Sessions and Attendance

Full-day sessions run from 8am until 6pm. Half-day bookings can be taken in the morning, from 8am until 1pm, or in the afternoon, from 1pm until 6pm. Flexible hours are also offered, so the booking options extend beyond a single full-day pattern.

Opening hours are 7.30am to 8pm, Monday to Friday, across 51 weeks. The setting closes for bank holidays and a week at Christmas, with a 3pm finish on Christmas Eve. Earlier starts or later finishes can be arranged separately. Opening hours and booked session times are different, so families should base their plans on the session they purchase.

Getting There

The address is 126 Nottingham Road, Long Eaton, NG10 2BZ, on the corner with Station Road. Enquiries can be made by telephone on 0115 973 4442 or through the contact form, which also offers a callback request.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare includes provision for eligible children over nine months, two-year-olds, and three- and four-year-olds. The term-time offer covers 38 weeks: 15 hours per week for three- and four-year-olds, up to 30 hours per week for eligible working parents of that age group, and up to 15 hours per week for eligible two-year-olds. Funding can be taken during term time or stretched over 51 weeks, allowing the entitlement to be distributed across the year.

Funded hours are applied first without a childcare charge; hours remaining in a partly funded session are paid for, and additional sessions use private rates. Meals carry a daily charge for partly or fully funded sessions, with alternative arrangements offered through the office manager. The distinction matters: funded childcare hours and the meal arrangement are separate parts of the booking.

Regular private bookings and ad hoc sessions have different terms, with a surcharge applying to ad hoc attendance. Fees are paid monthly in advance; session changes and late collection carry charges. Late payment also carries charges and can result in suspension of the child's place. The fees page sets out the structure. For current prices, ask the nursery for a quotation.

• Language and teaching. April 2026 priorities covered staff conversation, more systematic use of books and closer coaching of teaching practice. During a tour, ask how these changes are being put into everyday play and story sharing.
• Settling and transfer. A free settling-in period and dedicated keyworker form part of the offer. Discuss how these would work for your child's routines, especially if another setting or childminder is involved.
• The funded booking. Stretched funding and daily meal charges on partly or fully funded sessions can shape the final arrangement. Ask how your chosen sessions would divide into funded and paid hours, which meal alternative would apply, and who supplies nappies and wipes.

Little Plums suits families seeking morning or afternoon sessions as well as full-day attendance, with the option to stretch funding across the year. Its physical spaces, parent app and individual settling arrangements provide useful foundations for family life.

The April 2026 picture was one of children exploring, taking responsibility and building relationships with familiar adults. The balance lies in teaching: language-rich conversation, purposeful reading and more closely targeted staff development were the next steps. Families who value practical play and communication with staff have clear reasons to consider it, alongside specific improvements to discuss.