The Hunny Jar Day Nursery, Coalville

Balance bicycles, toddler dancing and practical help with toilet training give this nursery’s May 2024 picture its character. The address is 81 Kilby Road, Fleckney, LEICESTER LE8 8BP, and it accepts children aged 2 to 60 months, with capacity for 41 children in total.

At its 15 May 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good overall and personal development Outstanding. The useful detail is in children’s everyday experiences: practising coordination, talking together and becoming more independent.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage sets the requirements for children’s learning, development and care; in everyday terms, play helps children build communication, physical skills and independence. In May 2024, babies practised passing objects between their hands, while older children worked on pencil grip and making marks. These were small steps towards skills they would use later.

The bicycle academy added opportunities to learn to ride. During May 2024, preschool children also steered balance bicycles past obstacles and into designated parking spaces. Toddlers’ music and dance activities moved from energetic movement to a calmer finish, giving them practice in responding to instructions as well as moving their bodies.

Language learning also ran through ordinary routines in May 2024. Staff talked through babies’ play as it happened, giving words to their experiences. At lunch, preschool children exchanged comments with adults and one another. Conversation was part of the meal, giving children opportunities to listen and reply alongside eating together.

Hula-hoops brought a social element to physical play at that inspection. Preschool children waited for their turn and celebrated when another child managed to keep a hoop moving. The task involved more than practising a movement: children also had to make room for somebody else’s attempt. Staff encouraged them to consider the effects of their actions on others, making cooperation something to practise during play.

Outdoor and Community Life

In May 2024, outdoor equipment included ladders for toddlers to climb. Babies explored sand and paint indoors, alongside opportunities to move around independently. Physical exploration took different forms for different stages.

Another activity that month began with passing cars. Children predicted colours, compared their guesses with what happened and recorded the results on a white board. It turned an ordinary observation into a shared task involving conversation and recording.

At the May 2024 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective, praised communication with parents and judged support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities positively, including staff training and cooperation with families and other professionals. These findings matter to parents seeking both individual support and a clear account of their child’s day.

In May 2024, families received photographs, brief daily updates and conversations at collection, together with ideas for continuing learning at home. Staff comforted babies and encouraged preschool children to talk about their feelings. Care included attention to individual routines and personalities.

In May 2024, staff invited parents to potty workshops intended to align toilet-training approaches at home and nursery. Children were encouraged to wash their hands before meals, and staff supported toileting as children became ready. Independence was built through manageable everyday tasks.

The nursery opens Monday to Friday, from 7.30am to 6pm, across the year. Closures include bank holidays and one week at Christmas, which families need to account for when arranging childcare.

In May 2024, funded early education was provided for children aged two, three and four. That dated participation is separate from a family’s eligibility and the attendance arrangement they choose.

• Following children’s interests. In May 2024, staff sometimes redirected children towards a planned task rather than developing their curiosity about sounds made with pots and spoons. Ask how practitioners now adapt activities when children take them in a different direction.
• Your baby’s routine. Babies received comfort and support with individual routines in May 2024. During a visit, discuss how your child’s sleep and settling arrangements would work.
• Funding and attendance. In May 2024, children aged two, three and four could receive funded early education. Ask which funded arrangement and booking pattern would fit your family, including the treatment of meals and consumables in a written quotation.

This nursery suits families who value practical independence, physical play and communication about learning, alongside weekday opening across the year. The May 2024 examples give those priorities substance, from bicycle practice to coordinated toilet training. Responsiveness to children’s changing interests is the point to explore most closely.