Poplars Blossoms Nursery School

Small, bright rooms and a carefully prepared move to The Willows Preschool give Poplars Blossoms Nursery School a clear identity: this is care for babies and toddlers, with the next stage planned around familiar adults. Based in Sherwood, Nottingham, it accepts children from three months to three years and has capacity for 60 children. The emphasis is on play, relationships and growing independence.

At its July 2023 inspection, Ofsted judged the nursery Good overall and found safeguarding effective, while identifying inconsistent behaviour guidance and interactions that did not always take children's learning further. Those findings provide a useful balance to the nursery's emphasis on individual attention. Morning and afternoon half days sit alongside day sessions, with funded childcare offered to eligible families.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage sets the requirements for children's learning, development and care: in everyday terms, play and routines help children develop communication, physical skills and independence. Alongside this, the group-wide Poplars Approach uses learning through play and small-group experiences, with activities shaped around children's development. Its practical value lies in adapting experiences to the child rather than expecting every child to work at the same pace.

Blocks, finger painting, shared stories and exploring nature are part of the current offer. Cosy corners and areas for play with materials that have several possible uses give children different ways to take part. A child can build, talk or experiment; quieter activity also has a place. These are useful details for families who want learning to emerge through familiar experiences rather than formal lessons.

In July 2023, children combined boxes and crates to invent vehicles, with adults helping them sustain their pretend play. Physical activity included balancing and large movements in the garden, while furniture gave younger children something to pull themselves up against. These examples show how ordinary materials supported imagination and movement at that time.

British Sign Language adds another way to communicate. Regular BSL circle activities, signs during meals and changes between activities, and visual displays bring signing into daily routines. In March 2025, the nursery also planned storytelling with signs, signed nursery rhymes and a BSL Nature Trail introducing signs for things encountered outdoors. That was a dated event; the ongoing use of signing is the more useful everyday feature.

Relationships and Communication

Key-person relationships shape the settling process. Staff learn children's interests, needs and familiar routines, and work with families at the child's pace. This makes the relationship with a particular adult a practical part of care, especially when a baby or toddler is adjusting to time away from home.

Emotion cards and visual prompts give children who are not using speech a way to express feelings. Stories and songs also open conversations about emotions, while practitioners put simple names to feelings during everyday interactions. The emphasis is concrete: help a child communicate distress or excitement, then support them through it.

In July 2023, parents received progress updates and ideas for learning at home, including counting and recognising letters. Children also practised feeding themselves, with help adjusted to their stage of development. These were useful links between nursery routines and skills families could encourage at home.

Moving to Preschool

At three, children move to The Willows Preschool at Portland Court. Preparation begins with a transition book to explore with their family, followed by visits accompanied throughout by their key worker or another familiar carer. The book makes the new setting less unfamiliar; the accompanying adult provides continuity while the child gets to know it. Families choosing Blossoms should therefore think about both the baby and toddler years and the later change of setting.

Ofsted's March 2026 complaint outcome recorded a failure to notify it of a significant event, but took no further action because the provider understood the notification requirement for future events. The July 2023 inspection had also identified a missed notification about a change of company secretary; appropriate suitability checks had been completed, and children's safety, care and education were not adversely affected. The repeated notification failures deserve attention alongside the nursery's care arrangements.

Sessions and Attendance

Opening hours are 7.30am to 6pm, Monday to Friday. Day sessions in the funding arrangements run from 8am to 6pm; morning half days last 5.5 hours and afternoon half days five hours. The distinction matters: the opening window begins earlier than the stated day session, so families should match their chosen pattern to the hours they need.

Funded hours can be taken during term time or spread across the year. The stretched option runs across 51 weeks, reducing the weekly allocation while distributing it more evenly. Additional care beyond funded hours is optional and paid for separately. These choices serve different routines, from a shorter half day to a day session, and from school-term attendance to funding spread through the year.

Getting There

The address is 205 Edwards Lane, Sherwood, Nottingham, NG5 3JA. Bus routes 40, 71, 87, 88 and 89 are listed for the nursery, giving families several public transport options to consider against their own route.

Funding and Paid Extras

The nursery offers 15-hour and 30-hour funded childcare entitlements, with the working-family offer extending to eligible children from nine months. Eligibility conditions apply, and funding does not make every part of an attendance pattern free. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

For funded days, food and non-food resources are covered by a separate daily consumable contribution, explicitly described as voluntary; families declining it provide a packed lunch that follows the nursery's healthy-lunch guidance. Meals, consumables and additional childcare time are itemised separately on invoices, making the distinction between funded time and other costs useful when comparing attendance patterns. The funding and charges page sets out this structure.

• A move at three. Preschool takes place at The Willows Preschool, with a transition book and accompanied visits. During a visit, discuss how that move would work for your child and family.
• Consistency in adult guidance. In July 2023, behaviour expectations varied between staff, and some conversations stopped before extending children's understanding. Ask how practitioners now give consistent guidance and develop children's ideas during play.
• Notification responsibilities. The March 2026 outcome recorded a missed significant-event notification and no further action. Families can discuss how responsibility for notifications is managed now.
• Funded-day costs. The daily contribution is voluntary, with a packed-lunch alternative. Compare a written quotation for your chosen sessions with the funded allocation and the costs shown separately.

Poplars Blossoms suits families seeking baby and toddler care built around familiar adults, play and a prepared move to preschool. Morning half days, afternoon half days and day sessions give it relevance to different attendance needs, while term-time and stretched funding offer further choices.

Signing in everyday routines and the transition book give the care model substance. The July 2023 weaknesses in staff consistency and the March 2026 notification finding remain relevant decision points alongside those strengths.