Little Toes Day Nursery Bottesford

Chickens, ducks and a former doctors’ surgery give Little Toes Day Nursery Bottesford a recognisable character. Preschool children have weekly forest schools, outdoor learning through practical experiences, while trips to Little Jacks Farm and the village duck pond take exploration beyond the nursery garden. For families who want nature woven into childcare, these are concrete reasons to consider it.

The nursery has 30 places in total and accepts children from 2 months to 5 years. At its September 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated it Good and judged safeguarding effective. That judgement sits alongside two practical improvement points: consistent responses to unwanted behaviour and better organisation at mealtimes. Both deserve attention when choosing care.

Morning, afternoon and School day sessions sit alongside flexible hours. The attendance choices are useful for families whose childcare needs differ across the working week; the precise patterns belong below.

Rooms and Ages

The age-group descriptions separate the needs of babies from those of older children. The group-wide baby-room arrangement used here emphasises a key person, continuity with routines at home and access to a private garden. An outdoor sleeping area is another concrete part of that arrangement. For a young baby, the important distinction is between somewhere to play and somewhere intended for rest.

The four age-group labels carry the following detail:

• 0-1 Years: the smallest base room centres on relationships and familiar routines, with direct access to a private garden and an outdoor sleep area.
• 1-2 Years: the same baby-room arrangement emphasises continuity of care, a key person and movement between the room and its private garden.
• 2-3 Years: child-chosen play, imaginative activities and coordination sit alongside encouragement with toilet training.
• 3+ Years: hands-on experiences and community outings help preschool children explore their surroundings and prepare for Reception.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage provides the required framework for learning, development and care: children build skills through play and everyday experiences. Here, activities follow children’s interests and are adjusted to what they can do. The practical implication is that learning can begin with a child’s chosen activity rather than everyone completing an identical task.

Gardening, dance and music extend that play-led day. Baking also features in the daily-life description, while walks give staff opportunities to introduce road safety. These experiences connect learning with recognisable actions: growing something, making something and moving safely through the village.

In September 2024, children used pretend domestic situations to explore familiar experiences, including shopping and preparing food. Family photographs prompted conversations about the people important to them and how families differ. That gives imaginative play and conversation a personal starting point, rather than treating them as separate exercises.

Outdoor and Community Life

Weekly forest schools for preschool children bring chickens and ducks into the nursery’s outdoor offer. The garden also has areas for different ages, arranged so children can still see and socialise with one another. For siblings, that creates opportunities for contact while retaining spaces suited to their different stages.

Little Jacks Farm and the local duck pond are named outing destinations. Emergency services day brings ambulances, police cars and fire engines to the nursery for children to explore. The value is the connection between play and real people, animals and vehicles; an outing or visitor gives children something tangible to discuss afterwards.

In September 2024, regular outings included the allotment, library and park. At the park, staff helped children work out how to descend climbing equipment and showed them how to propel a swing. Babies explored puddles in the nursery garden. Those observations give substance to the outdoor emphasis: it involved physical challenges and experimentation as well as time outside.

A no food play policy adds a different community link. Instead of using edible ingredients for messy activities, the nursery buys such foods for donation to local food banks. It is a practical choice about how resources are used, rather than another activity competing for space in the day.

Relationships and Communication

The youngest children’s care is organised around their key person and routines from home. That makes sleep and familiar habits part of the care plan, rather than expecting babies to fit one timetable. The private garden and outdoor sleep area sit alongside that personal approach; families considering baby care should look at how the arrangement works for their child.

Blosso connects parents with daily nursery life through messaging, diaries, photographs and videos. It provides more than a collection of occasional updates: parents have a route for communication as well as a record of their child’s day. For a family spending substantial time apart, that practical contact can help conversations about care remain specific.

In September 2024, staff gathered information from parents before children started and used it to shape their care. Parents also received updates about development, with suggestions for continuing learning at home. The useful thread is continuity between home and nursery, rather than two disconnected accounts of the child.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the September 2024 inspection, Ofsted found that staff identified children needing additional help and worked with families and other professionals to put targeted support in place. This describes a mechanism for responding to a concern: observation, discussion and support tailored to the child. It is more useful than a general promise that every need will be accommodated.

Food is cooked at the nursery each day, with chef-prepared meals accommodating dietary requirements such as vegan and gluten-free diets. Independence also forms part of care, although in September 2024 some older children waited for help with cutting food while staff assisted babies; responses to unwanted behaviour were inconsistent too. These findings matter because daily routines need to work for children who require different kinds of help at the same time.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is The Welby Practice, Bottesford Surgery, 25 Walford Close, Bottesford, Nottingham, NG13 0AN. The nursery opens Monday to Friday throughout the year, closing for bank holidays and between Christmas and New Year. That pattern suits families needing continuity through school holidays, while the Christmas closure still needs to fit household arrangements.

The Bottesford session choices include AM from 7.30am to 1pm, PM from 1pm to 6.30pm and School day from 8.30am to 4pm. A day running from 7.30am to 6.30pm is also priced, and flexible hours are offered.

Enquiries can be made through the Bottesford contact form or by telephone on 0194 935 8276. Tours can be booked, and a parent pack is available. Preparing children for Reception forms part of the preschool stage through practical experiences and increasing independence.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered for children aged 2, 3 and 4, including 30 hours funding subject to eligibility. Private childcare is also offered. Funding participation should be kept separate from the actual sessions a family books: an entitlement and a weekly attendance pattern are different decisions.

Current prices come in the nursery’s written quotation. For families comparing the AM, PM and School day patterns, the useful comparison is the complete arrangement for their child, including funded hours and any additional paid attendance.

• Early starts. Opening hours give a 7am start, while the Bottesford day and AM prices begin at 7.30am. Ask which arrangement applies if care before 7.30am is essential.
• Everyday routines. September 2024 brought improvement points about behaviour responses and meal organisation, including older children waiting for help with food. During a tour, ask how these routines now work across the age groups.
• Baby care outdoors. The baby-room arrangement includes a private garden and outdoor sleep area. Ask to see how sleep supervision and your baby’s home routine fit together in practice.
• The complete funded quotation. Funding for children aged 2, 3 and 4 sits alongside paid sessions. Request one written breakdown showing how your chosen pattern combines funded hours and additional paid attendance.

Little Toes Bottesford suits families who value outdoor experiences and village connections, with attendance choices spanning mornings, afternoons, School day sessions and flexible hours. Chickens and ducks, Little Jacks Farm and daily contact through Blosso give the offer substance. The September 2024 Good judgement supports consideration, while the behaviour and mealtime improvement points make the handling of everyday routines a sensible deciding factor.