Merritime Nursery

A naval-base address gives Merritime Nursery its clearest point of difference: childcare within HMS Sultan, with service families and Ministry of Defence civilian personnel its stated audience. The Gosport setting occupies a large building and has capacity for 60 children, from three months to five years. Its organisation separates age groups so that equipment and activities suit different stages of development.

At its May 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated Merritime Good overall, while identifying two improvements: more responsive deployment of staff during busy baby-care routines and better opportunities for quieter children to contribute to group discussions. Those are practical concerns, rather than abstract judgement labels. They matter when choosing care for a baby or a child who takes time to speak up.

Full days and two half-day patterns give families different ways to organise attendance. Funded hours operate during term time, while the nursery itself opens across the year with holiday closures.

Rooms and Ages

Age-appropriate sections are the organising principle here. Activities are planned around children's interests and development, with choice, independence and practical exploration part of the approach. That gives the day a different emphasis from a single activity being offered unchanged to every age group.

In May 2023, babies explored pouring with jugs and funnels, toddlers practised cooperation through shared play, and preschool children worked independently on imaginative tasks. Staff helped children build homes and castles for imaginary creatures. These examples show how equipment could support attention, conversation and problem-solving at different stages.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS Statutory framework connects learning through play with communication, movement, social development and later skills such as early reading and number work. Merritime plans around individual interests and reviews children's development regularly. The intention is to use what a child enjoys as a starting point for the next learning step.

In May 2023, creative play included wooden construction materials and webs made with pegs and rubber bands. The latter gave small fingers a practical task alongside imaginative play. Outdoor water play involved syringes, with preschool children taking care around one another. Learning and consideration for others happened together.

Group discussion was less consistent at that visit. Confident children sometimes supplied most of the answers, leaving quieter children with fewer chances to participate. For parents, the useful distinction is between having group activities and organising them so that each child can contribute.

In May 2023, a key-person arrangement helped staff understand individual children's needs, while toddler and preschool leaders worked with specialist agencies and shared assessment information. At that inspection, Ofsted found effective SEND support and safeguarding, with children making good progress from their starting points, especially in personal and social development.

The current staff structure includes a SENCO and a safeguarding lead role, alongside leadership for preschool and under-twos. Educators hold early childhood qualifications or are working towards them. These roles give families identifiable responsibilities within the team without making the staffing structure a substitute for understanding their own child's support.

Daily interactions in May 2023 were calm: staff used gentle voices and helped children resolve disagreements, including encouraging toddlers to operate a toy vacuum cleaner together. However, babies sometimes waited too long for extra help while staff managed routines. The concern was responsiveness at busy moments, so it deserves attention alongside the positive examples of relationships.

A full nursery day includes breakfast, a snack, lunch and tea, with a four-week menu featuring dishes such as lasagne, vegetable chilli and fish pie. Funded attendance does not include meals: children using 30-hour funding incur a meal charge on funded days, while those using 15-hour funding are charged only if their attendance totals 15 hours a week.

Sessions and Attendance

Full days run from 7.30am to 6pm. Half days run from 7.30am to 1pm or from 1pm to 6pm, with some flexibility subject to discussion with management. There is no minimum number of sessions, which gives families scope to choose a pattern around their commitments.

The distinction between funded and private attendance matters. Non-funded attendance is purchased in whole sessions; during funded periods, attendance can be purchased by the hour, with a minimum of five hours per day when buying hours. Outside funded periods, session charging applies again. A term-time-only placement requires management agreement rather than being assumed from a family's use of funding.

Opening is Monday to Friday, across the year, except bank holidays and the period between Christmas and New Year. Changes to sessions or hours require one month's written notice and an administration charge; leaving also requires one month's written notice, otherwise the following month's fees apply. A refundable deposit accompanies the waiting-list application, and payment is a condition of securing the placement.

Getting There

The address is HMS Sultan, Military Road, Gosport, Hampshire, PO12 3BY. Enquiries can be made through the contact form or by telephone, and visits can be arranged through the nursery.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered for eligible children aged nine months to four years, including 15-hour and 30-hour arrangements. Delivery is term-time only over 38 weeks, on full weeks; parents must tell the nursery they wish to claim funding and supply any eligibility codes issued; extended hours require an in-date code.

Private childcare is also offered. The combination of whole-session charging outside funded periods, hourly purchasing during funded periods and conditional meal charges makes the attendance pattern important to the total bill. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation; the fees page explains the charging structure.

• Busy baby routines. In May 2023, babies did not always receive extra help promptly when staff were occupied with routines. During a visit, ask how practitioners now organise these periods and respond to babies waiting for support.
• Quieter voices. Group discussions in May 2023 could be led by the most confident children. Ask how staff make space for children who need longer to answer or prefer less public participation.
• Funding and attendance. Funding covers term-time attendance, with meal charges depending on the entitlement and weekly pattern. Compare the written quotation against both funded weeks and non-funded periods before choosing sessions.
• Base access. Childcare takes place within HMS Sultan and is directed towards service and Ministry of Defence civilian families. What access arrangements would your family need for regular collection and a first visit?

Merritime suits families seeking either full-day attendance or morning and afternoon half days, with no minimum session count. Its age-based organisation and interest-led activities provide a clear account of the intended day. The May 2023 findings add useful detail, but also two concrete cautions: responsiveness during baby routines and participation for quieter children. Families weighing those issues alongside term-time funding and year-round attendance have specific points on which to base their decision.