Ibstock Day Nursery

A separate sleep room for Happy Hedgehogs, child-height independence in Friendly Foxes and a free-flow day for Wise Owls give Ibstock Day Nursery a clear progression from baby care to preschool. The details matter: rest has its own space, toddlers can practise looking after themselves, and older children combine their own choices with activities led by adults.

At its 17 July 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good overall. That judgement came with two useful priorities for parents: more accurate assessment of children's development and clearer explanations of what they should learn next, including ways to help at home. These deserve attention alongside the room arrangements.

Based at Ibstock School on Central Avenue, Ibstock, LE67 6NE, the nursery accepts early-years children from two months to 60 months and has 73 places in total. School-age provision runs separately through Mighty Oaks. Nursery attendance includes morning and afternoon sessions, with an all-year opening pattern.

Rooms and Ages

Happy Hedgehogs, the room for children aged 0–2 years, combines a home corner and messy play with quieter areas and a separate sleep room, giving babies spaces for both activity and rest. For parents comparing baby provision, the separation of sleeping and playing is a concrete feature to weigh rather than a general promise about comfort.

Friendly Foxes serves children aged 2–3 years, using accessible toilets, individual pegs, stories and familiar routines to build self-care and independence. These are practical opportunities to try things for themselves: managing belongings and using the toilet become part of the nursery day.

Wise Owls is the preschool room, where free-flow provision combines activities chosen by children with adult-led learning, changing resources and routines intended to prepare them for school. Its emphasis is on independence as well as participation, rather than asking every child to follow the same activity throughout the day.

For older children, Mighty Oaks provides out-of-school care for ages 4–11, with creative activities, sport and messy play. This is a separate offer from the baby, toddler and preschool rooms, useful for families considering childcare for siblings at different stages.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS statutory framework shapes learning through play and children's development across the nursery day. Alongside it, Birth to Five Matters supports the play-based approach. Exploring, staying involved in an activity and trying out ideas are the stated learning behaviours; observations and assessments are shared through the Famly app. For parents, this connects what children do with a way of following their progress.

In July 2024, mathematical experiences grew out of ordinary play. Children weighed compost, encountered number recognition and heard words describing position and size. This gives counting and comparison a practical purpose, rather than treating early maths as a separate exercise detached from what children are doing.

In July 2024, children drew on memories of a fire brigade visit during later play. Children remembered the use of water to tackle a fire, then used spray bottles on a painted fire image. They revisited colour mixing too. The useful pattern is the link between an experience, remembering it and applying that knowledge in another activity.

Outdoor and Community Life

Outdoor play areas form part of the current offer. In July 2024, children helped friends across a wobbly bridge and over logs, practising balance and coordination while working together. Bubble play became an opportunity to count as well as move. These examples show how physical activity, friendship and early mathematical ideas can share the same experience.

The strongest outdoor detail is therefore about what children did with the space. The bridge and logs gave them something to negotiate, while helping a friend added a social task. For families who value learning through active play, that combination is more informative than a broad description of outdoor provision.

Relationships and Communication

Settling is tailored to the child, with three hours usually allocated and adjustments made according to need. That flexibility matters for babies and toddlers whose first separation from family may need a different pace. The settling arrangement is a starting point rather than a fixed test children must complete on schedule.

Handovers and the Famly app provide daily messages and updates. Staff also use the app for observations and assessments, so communication includes both the day's events and information about development. Parents can follow nursery life through more than one channel.

In July 2024, electronic communication, parent evenings and daily conversations kept families informed about activities, but explanations of the next learning step and ideas for home were inconsistent. Assessment also needed greater precision when identifying children's developmental stages. Knowing what happened during the day and knowing what comes next are different needs; the latter was the point requiring attention.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the July 2024 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities good, with prompt responses to emerging needs and effective work with other agencies. Current staffing roles include a SENCo and designated safeguarding leads. These give families identifiable responsibilities within the team, while the effectiveness judgement remains tied to that inspection date.

In July 2024, visual timetables helped children understand the sequence of their day, and staff used a gentle, consistent manner when guiding behaviour. Babies recognised familiar routines around lunch and singing. Predictability gave children a way to understand what was happening and take part with increasing independence.

Health visitors were involved in oral-health work in July 2024, and families received toothbrushes and toothpaste. Snack time was renamed fruit and vegetable time to encourage healthy choices. Staff also had opportunities for training and meetings about their workload, providing a dated picture of how professional support operated.

Sessions and Attendance

The nursery opens Monday to Friday, 8am–6pm, across the year, with closures for bank holidays and a Christmas break. Its session menu includes 8am–9am, 9am–noon and noon–3pm, followed by a choice of 3pm–5pm or 3pm–6pm. A 9am–3pm session is also referenced in the meal arrangements. These give families shorter blocks as well as a day spanning morning and afternoon.

Mighty Oaks starts before-school care at 8am, with breakfast included, and offers after-school care ending at either 5pm or 6pm. Holiday Club runs during half terms and the summer holidays. Those arrangements may be useful for school-age siblings alongside nursery attendance.

The address is Ibstock School, Central Avenue, Ibstock, Leicestershire, LE67 6NE. Enquiries can be made on 01530 265829 or by email to nursery@ibstockcollege.co.uk, and tours can be booked. Being based at a school does not guarantee a Reception place: families apply for state-school entry through their home local authority.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered, including 15 or 30 government-funded hours for ages 9 months+, subject to eligibility. Funding can be stretched across the year. Private sessions are also offered, and the nursery accepts childcare vouchers and Tax-Free Childcare. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

Lunch is included in privately paid 9am–3pm sessions, while lunch on funded sessions and tea carry separate optional charges; parents may bring a packed lunch or tea instead. Breakfast, lunch and tea are provided, with dietary needs catered for.

Parents supply nappies, wipes, cream and sun cream, as well as clothing and outdoor items such as wellies and a puddle suit. These consumables remain separate from the session and meal arrangements, so they belong in a family's practical planning as well as its childcare budget.

The optional Curriculum Enhancement Fee contributes to additional experiences alongside everyday learning. Children still take part if their parents decline the contribution. The fees and funding page explains this structure, including the distinction between funded sessions and privately paid sessions with lunch included.

• Learning updates. In July 2024, assessment accuracy and explanations of children's next learning steps needed improvement. At a visit, ask to see how a Famly update now connects an observation with the next activity and a useful idea for home.
• The planned building move. A move into a new purpose-built nursery building is planned. Ask how its timing will affect your child's room, sleep arrangements and settling experience.
• Meals and funding. Lunch inclusion depends on the session and whether it is funded, while the enhancement contribution is optional. Request a written quotation matching your intended attendance so the separate choices are clear.
• Settling pace. Settling usually totals three hours but is adapted to each child. Discuss how those sessions would be organised around your child's routines and your own working pattern.

Ibstock Day Nursery suits families seeking morning sessions, afternoon sessions or attendance spanning both, with school-age wraparound care as an additional option. Happy Hedgehogs' separate sleep room and Friendly Foxes' practical self-care arrangements give younger children's needs tangible space in the offer; Wise Owls adds a more independent preschool day.

The Good judgement from July 2024 provides a positive inspection position, balanced by specific questions about assessment and communication of next steps. For parents, the most useful comparison is between those priorities and the learning updates they are shown, alongside the room arrangements and the cost structure for their chosen sessions.