Hopscotch Day Nursery

A converted schoolhouse, a separate soft gym and a garden directly accessible from Jungle Room give Hopscotch Day Nursery a clear physical character. This Belmont setting combines indoor space for movement with outdoor play and quieter places to rest. Its appeal starts with the practical shape of a child's day.

Hopscotch has capacity for 44 children, accepting ages from 12 months to 5 years, at 16 Avenue Road, Belmont, Sutton, SM2 6JD. At its October 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good and judged safeguarding effective. That dated judgement sits alongside a current offer built around play, a key person system and individual learning records.

Morning and afternoon sessions sit alongside day bookings.

Rooms and Ages

Children are grouped by age and ability across three rooms: Disney Room and Little Monkey’s Room serve younger children, while Jungle Room serves older children.

Jungle Room has direct access to its own garden area, allowing older children to move between indoor and outdoor activity throughout the year. Elsewhere, the main garden has a safety floor and two sections, with space for the nursery's outdoor equipment.

A purpose-built soft gym, separate from the nursery rooms, keeps physical play possible when the weather interrupts garden activity.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage provides the framework for learning and care, with children learning through play and developing skills through everyday experiences. Hopscotch combines opportunities to choose toys and activities with a structured routine. Creative work, stories, singing and early letter and number activities give that broad approach concrete expression.

Alphabet Phonic Song pairs letter sounds with short phrases, using the tune of Skip to my Lou. It gives early sound work a musical form.

In October 2022, staff planned from children's interests, information gathered from parents and observations of their learning. Babies explored toy cars, toddlers practised taking turns with garden equipment, and older children took part in phonics activities. These examples show how different stages of development shaped activity at that time.

There was also a specific teaching weakness in October 2022: staff sometimes used questions that offered children little scope to expand their answers. The improvement priority was to make conversations more useful for developing early language. For parents, the relevant distinction is between having songs and stories in the day and using everyday exchanges to help children say more.

Relationships and Communication

A key person follows each child's development and shares it with parents. When a child starts, the All About Me sheet is completed together with their parent or guardian, drawing in information about development and any previous setting. That gives the relationship a practical starting point: the child's existing experiences inform what staff record and plan next.

Child Learning Journey records bring together artwork, photographs and observations. The policy calls for observations each month and monthly contributions from parents, so experiences at home can become part of the developmental picture. Parents have a route to contribute, rather than only receiving an account of nursery life.

Newsletters come every two months, while parent evenings are planned twice a year when possible. Daily conversations with staff complement those more formal opportunities. Sensitive matters are discussed privately under the confidentiality policy, giving families a defined way to raise concerns about changes at home or their child's behaviour.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the October 2022 inspection, Ofsted found that children with additional needs received substantial support, with key workers and the coordinator for special educational needs involving parents and other agencies, using specialist programmes and training, and helping children progress from their starting points. This is a dated finding about the support delivered, rather than a blanket promise about every future placement.

For children learning English as an additional language, current arrangements include visual resources, books, basic signing, EAL cards and bilingual staffing. Close contact with parents is part of that approach. These are concrete ways to support understanding and participation when a child's home language differs from the language used in an activity.

Quiet areas within each room accommodate rest, with an individual mattress and bedding for children who sleep. Tooth brushing is encouraged after lunch, and each child has a named cup; parents may supply a toothbrush and toothpaste if they choose. The accessible cups allow older children to take part in their own hygiene routine with staff supervision.

In October 2022, children practised independence by helping with dressing and clearing leaves using rakes. Staff also used family pictures and personal books to connect nursery life with home. Those small tasks and familiar images made independence and belonging part of ordinary activity at that time.

Behaviour guidance centres on adult example, encouragement and consistent routines, while also allowing an age-appropriate time-out. Families should consider how those methods fit their own approach. The child protection policy sets out confidential recording of concerns, escalation to supervisors and referral to social services where necessary; those are arrangements, rather than a current inspection assurance.

Sessions and Attendance

Opening hours are 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, across the year, with bank holidays closed. Morning sessions run from 8am to 1pm; afternoon sessions run from 1.15pm to 6pm. Day and full-week bookings are also offered, giving parents a choice between shorter sessions and broader attendance.

Completion of a registration form puts a child on the waiting list. Bookings take account of age, family circumstances and availability. Enquiries can be made through the contact form or by telephone on 020 8770 0761.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered through the 15-hour entitlement for disadvantaged two-year-olds, the universal 15-hour entitlement for three- and four-year-olds, and the extended 30-hour entitlement for eligible working parents of three- and four-year-olds. Extended funding is restricted to existing families who qualify. Funding can follow 38 term-time weeks or be stretched across 52 weeks; eligibility and the agreed attendance arrangement remain separate considerations.

Requested hours beyond funded provision are charged separately. Meals are also charged separately, including on funded attendance, and the fees and chargeable extras page identifies meal charges as optional. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation. Parents may provide toothbrushes and toothpaste for the tooth-brushing routine if they wish.

A cook prepares food in the nursery's kitchen, with snacks, lunch and tea forming the food offer. Vegetarian, halal and diabetic diets can be catered for, while the example menu includes dishes such as macaroni cheese and chicken curry with rice.

Fees are due in advance on the first day of each calendar month and remain payable when a child does not attend. A non-returnable deposit is taken when a booking is made and credited against the first monthly bill. Leaving requires one calendar month's notice. These terms matter as much as the session rate when considering holidays, changes to working arrangements or a move to another setting.

• Language development. The October 2022 improvement priority concerned making better use of conversations with children. During a visit, ask how practitioners now use questions and follow-up exchanges to extend children's language.
• Room changes and settling. Disney Room and Little Monkey’s Room serve younger children, while Jungle Room serves older children. Ask how the settling period and subsequent room moves are planned for your child.
• Funded attendance and extras. Extended funding is for eligible existing families, and meals are separately charged and optional. Consider the written attendance agreement and quotation together, including the term-time or stretched arrangement.
• Behaviour guidance. The policy includes encouragement, consistent routines and an age-appropriate time-out. Discuss how staff use these methods in practice and how they would respond to situations familiar to your child.

Hopscotch suits families seeking either morning or afternoon sessions, as well as those choosing day bookings. The schoolhouse setting, Jungle Room's outdoor access and the separate soft gym make space for movement a clear reason to consider it. The key person and learning records give parent communication a defined structure.

The October 2022 Good judgement provides a positive inspection position, with a specific language-development priority to weigh alongside it. For a family choosing Hopscotch, the strongest case is the combination of usable play spaces, shorter attendance options and a documented way to connect home and nursery learning.