Hemsley House Nursery School

Familiar stories, early steps and close contact with parents give Hemsley House Nursery School its clearest character. At its 17 October 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated the Terrace Road setting Good overall, with stronger adult interaction to extend toddlers' language identified as the improvement priority. That combination matters: there were clear strengths in children's everyday experience, alongside a specific teaching issue for families to explore.

The nursery has capacity for 34 children at 7 Terrace Road, Maidstone, ME16 8HU. In October 2024, the children attending were aged 0 to 2; the account of nursery life below concerns that baby and toddler provision.

In October 2024, learning grew from activities suited to very young children. The early years foundation stage brings learning, development and care together: here, examples included practising movement, exploring words through play and learning to take turns. Familiar stories gave children a starting point for predicting which animal a character might encounter next. Their interests shaped the activity.

A blackboard, paintbrushes and water offered another route into learning. Children made circles of different sizes and experimented with controlling tools, combining early mark-making with hand movements. Babies practised standing and moving beside furniture as preparation for walking. These were small, age-appropriate steps towards doing more independently.

Sand play also carried a language purpose. Toddlers hid objects and explored words describing position, while sharing the activity with other children. Babies watched bubbles form when staff shook sensory bottles; toddlers explored sound by tapping a separate container filled with sand. Staff paired actions with words, giving babies and toddlers something concrete to connect with new vocabulary.

Outside, a squirrel in the garden became an opportunity for spontaneous conversation. A plank supported on a tyre gave children a balancing challenge, with staff nearby to help. Watching another child try first made the activity social as well as physical. These October 2024 examples show how ordinary materials could support movement, curiosity and confidence.

The limitation was adult timing. During that month, some practitioners working with toddlers missed opportunities to join their play and take their language further. Interesting resources alone were therefore not the whole answer: the quality of the conversation around them mattered too.

At the October 2024 inspection, Ofsted found effective safeguarding arrangements and effective communication support for children with SEND or English as an additional language, including signs and visual boards showing what would happen next. Those practical communication tools helped children understand routines and express themselves.

Settling in received careful attention in October 2024. Staff worked closely with parents and used resources that children already recognised, including favourite stories. For a baby or toddler adjusting to care away from home, that familiarity gave staff a useful starting point for building relationships.

Everyday independence was also part of care. Children practised handwashing after nappy changes and attempted to put on coats and wellington boots before outdoor play. Adults encouraged children to try, rather than completing each task for them. Care routines became opportunities to practise skills.

Communication extended beyond a brief exchange. In October 2024, parents could discuss their child's development face to face and through online assessment records, receive books and resources for learning at home, and attend coffee mornings with staff and other parents. This gave families several ways to stay involved, with both individual discussion and contact with other families.

The address is 7 Terrace Road, Maidstone, ME16 8HU. Its capacity of 34 places describes the whole nursery, rather than the number of children sharing an activity or attending on a particular day.

In October 2024, opening hours ran from 7.30am to 6.30pm, Monday to Friday, for most of the year. These are opening hours at that date, rather than a description of a particular bookable session. The nursery also received funding for children aged two years in October 2024.

• Conversation during toddler play. Extending language through adult interaction was the October 2024 improvement priority. On a visit, ask how practitioners now build conversations around sand play, stories and children's spontaneous interests.
• Settling through familiarity. Close work with parents and familiar resources shaped settling in during October 2024. Ask how your child's favourite stories and routines would be used during their first days.
• Planning attendance. The October 2024 opening window covered weekdays from 7.30am to 6.30pm. What current booking pattern, funded-hours arrangement and written quotation, including meals and consumables, would apply to your child?

Hemsley House suits families who value settling built around familiar resources and practical involvement in their child's learning. The October 2024 picture combines familiar stories, physical exploration and useful parent communication. For parents of toddlers, the decisive question is how consistently adults now extend language during play: that is the clearest point to assess alongside the settling arrangements.