Canoe Lake Nursery

Growing vegetables, experimenting with colour and visiting a library bus gave Canoe Lake Nursery a practical, outward-looking character in August 2023. These were experiences children could take part in themselves, with adults extending the conversation rather than simply directing the activity.

Ofsted rated the Southsea nursery Outstanding at its 7 August 2023 inspection, judging its education highly effective. It accepts children aged 3 to 60 months. The dated assessment provides a strong starting point for families considering its care and learning.

The early years foundation stage is the framework for children's learning, development and care: here, the August 2023 examples included play, conversation and practical tasks that helped children explore ideas.

In August 2023, children investigated potatoes they had grown in the garden, examining roots and discussing how plants get nourishment. Colour mixing offered another route into experimentation: children worked out how to make purple using red and blue. These activities connected an explanation with something children could test themselves.

Babies explored citrus fruit while staff introduced descriptive vocabulary and counting. Frequent library bus visits and outings into the surrounding community added experiences beyond the nursery. The converted pavilion and spacious garden formed the physical setting for that inspection-era day.

Planning in August 2023 started with what children already understood and could manage, with staff choosing activities to develop that knowledge further. The colour-mixing task illustrates the approach: children used their existing understanding of red and blue to explain how purple could be made. The garden activity brought a different connection, between growing vegetables, examining their roots and anticipating eating the harvest. Learning had a practical purpose children could understand.

Behaviour also had a clear everyday language at that visit. Children could explain expectations about gentle hands, considerate speech and walking. Staff helped them understand why kindness mattered, rather than leaving the rules as instructions to memorise. For families, this is a useful example of how relationships and expectations supported participation in shared activities.

In August 2023, staff comforted babies and younger children and helped them settle into their activities. Children practised doing things for themselves, serving food, putting away tableware and cutting fruit with help when needed. Everyday care doubled as an opportunity to develop practical skills.

Parents received guidance for continuing learning at home, including encouragement to read together. Staff also had training plans and feedback, with some having recently undertaken further learning about babies' care.

Snack-time conversations in August 2023 connected food with looking after the body. Children discussed fruit and vegetables, why too many treats were unhealthy and the importance of drinking water in hot weather. These exchanges gave everyday routines an educational role: eating and drinking became opportunities to explain choices, alongside the practical work of preparing fruit and clearing plates.

Communication with families at that visit extended beyond an account of activities. Parents described receiving information about learning and ways to continue it at home, with shared reading a concrete example. Staff development had a similarly practical structure, combining discussions about performance with individual feedback and training plans. The baby-support course was an example of further learning directed towards the needs of younger children.

At the August 2023 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and praised staff's support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, including plans developed with families and professionals. Outing risk assessments, safeguarding training and clear reporting procedures were part of the arrangements assessed then.

The address is Nothern Pavilion And Bowling Green, Adjacent To Eastern Parade, Southsea, PO4 9RF. Opening hours are 7.30am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, across the year, with closures for bank holidays and one week at Christmas.

In August 2023, the nursery received funding for early education for children aged two, three and four. That is a dated funding position rather than a description of today's charge structure.

• Attendance and costs. The opening window runs from 7.30am to 6pm on weekdays. At a visit, which booking patterns and funded arrangements would fit your family, and what would the current written quotation include?
• A dated assessment. The Outstanding judgement dates to August 2023. Give that assessment its proper weight while considering how the nursery's present routines fit your child's needs.

Canoe Lake Nursery merits consideration for families seeking weekday care for babies through to older nursery children. Its August 2023 strengths lay in purposeful practical activities, conversational teaching and growing independence. The year-round opening pattern also suits families whose childcare needs continue beyond school terms, subject to the bank holiday and Christmas closures.