Hopscotch Day Nursery Titchfield

A racetrack, a mud kitchen and a quiet outdoor corner give Hopscotch Day Nursery Titchfield more than one pace of play. This semi-rural nursery combines space for movement with a long-serving leadership team, including room leaders and a dedicated cook. Continuity is a substantial part of its character: familiar adults and established routines matter when a young child is learning to spend time away from home.

At its January 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good, found safeguarding effective and judged that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities were progressing well. The important qualification concerned extending children's interests, especially among older children. Warm relationships and practical independence were clear strengths of the daily routines observed.

The nursery has capacity for 75 children and accepts children from three months to five years. Under 2s, Toddlers and Preschool organise care by age and stage. Morning, afternoon, school day and full day bookings are offered throughout the year.

Rooms and Ages

Three rooms give children a progression through nursery rather than one mixed-age space. Under 2s, Toddlers and Preschool each have routines and experiences adapted to children's development. For parents, that makes the move between stages an important part of the nursery relationship, alongside the initial settling period.

In January 2024, younger children practised managing shoes and coats before moving into preschool. Babies tackled a low ramp with adult encouragement and help on the descent. These were modest physical challenges with a useful purpose: children could attempt something for themselves while an adult remained close enough to support them.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage links children's learning, development and care; here, play and everyday routines provide opportunities to practise language, movement, social skills and independence. In January 2024, laying a meal table became a counting activity as older children worked out the chairs and tableware needed. Learning did not depend solely on a planned group activity.

Language also ran through ordinary interactions. In January 2024, staff talked babies through what was happening and repeated words, while older children encountered more precise vocabulary during an ice investigation. That connects language to something a child is actually doing, giving new words an immediate meaning.

There was a limit to this interest-led work. In January 2024, some activities ended while children still wanted to investigate, reducing the opportunity to take their thinking further. The improvement priority was to help staff recognise those moments and extend them, especially for older children. That matters for families who want curiosity followed through rather than simply a succession of activities.

Outdoor and Community Life

Outdoor provision includes water play, sandpits and climbing toys, alongside the racetrack, mud kitchen and role play areas. A cosy outdoor corner adds somewhere quieter. The value lies in the different kinds of play these spaces accommodate: movement, pretend cooking, experimenting with materials and time to pause.

In January 2024, adults joined children at the mud kitchen and helped them think about recipes and other children's preferences. The physical resource became a social activity too, with children considering someone else's ideas as well as their own.

Settling received patient attention in January 2024. Younger children were comforted when upset, and staff allowed time for separation from parents. That is a useful picture of how adults responded to children needing reassurance, rather than expecting every child to settle at the same speed.

Current communication uses Famly, an app for updates between nursery and home. Its level of detail depends on the funding package: the Basic Funded Offer includes limited digital resources, while enhanced access brings observations, photographs, videos and a downloadable learning journal. Families should weigh communication alongside attendance and charges when comparing the packages.

SEND support involves the nursery's SENDCO, with help from area managers and the group's central team. In January 2024, the coordinator worked with external professionals and shared individual strategies with practitioners, while parents received updates about development. This gives families a concrete support mechanism to discuss around their child's needs.

A dedicated nursery cook supports individual dietary requirements and allergies. Food arrangements also depend on the chosen funding offer, so catered meals and the alternative cold lunch need to be considered alongside the care routine.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is The Stables, Little Abshot Road, Fareham, PO14 4LN. Opening hours are 7.30am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, with sessions offered all year round; the nursery closes for bank holidays and Christmas.

Full Day runs from 8am to 6pm, Morning from 8am to 1pm and Afternoon from 1pm to 6pm. Premium Flex offers School Day choices from 8am to 3pm, 8.30am to 3.30pm or 9am to 4pm; Basic permits only the 8am to 3pm option. Breakfast Club covers 7.30am to 8am and is excluded from the Basic Funded Offer.

The Basic Funded Offer allows one funded morning or afternoon block each day. Its written terms require a Monday or Friday session, prevent changes during a funded term and require two months' notice for changes taking effect at the next funded term. Premium Flex allows funding across session types, up to ten hours daily, with changes subject to a month's notice and space availability.

Getting There

On-site parking is available, and the semi-rural setting has access to the M27 between Portsmouth and Southampton. This makes the road connection a practical consideration alongside the session start and finish times.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered through the Basic Funded Offer and Premium Flex Offer, alongside paid sessions. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

Under Basic, meals and non-food consumables can attract separate voluntary contributions: families opting out of catered food receive a standard cold lunch and snacks, while those opting out of consumables bring nappies, wipes, creams and sunscreen daily. Premium Flex requires both food and consumables charges; children receiving disadvantaged funding under Basic receive catered meals, snacks and consumables free of charge, and packed lunches or snacks from home are not permitted.

Enhanced digital tools and applicable activities form part of the non-food package. The distinction is consequential: the choice affects the attendance rules, communication package and what parents need to supply, as well as the bill.

• Extending older children's learning. January 2024 identified activities ending before children had finished exploring. During a visit, ask how practitioners now recognise and develop a sustained interest.
• Basic booking minimums. The Basic terms describe three morning or afternoon sessions, but the comparison table gives two. Obtain the agreed minimum and weekly pattern in writing before committing, including the Monday or Friday requirement.
• Food and daily supplies. Basic offers a cold-food alternative and requires daily consumables from families who opt out; Premium Flex includes separate charges for both categories. Families managing allergies should confirm how current meal arrangements accommodate their child.

Hopscotch Titchfield suits families seeking either morning or afternoon sessions, as well as those choosing school days or full days. Its outdoor spaces and continuity among senior staff give it a recognisable character, while the January 2024 findings provide concrete examples of patient settling and practical independence.

The funding choice deserves close attention. Basic and Premium Flex create materially different arrangements for session changes, food, supplies and digital communication. Choose the package around the child's routine and the family's actual working pattern, with the agreed Basic minimum settled in writing.