Carousel Nursery School

A separate sleep room for babies, a light-up bubble tank for toddlers and a conservatory art space for preschool children give Carousel Nursery School a clear sense of progression. This Portsmouth nursery accepts children from 3 months to 5 years, with age groups spread across three floors. The spaces change as children grow. Rest and early exploration give way to greater independence, creative work and preparation for school.

Ofsted rated Carousel Good at its July 2024 inspection, with a curriculum built around children's next steps, independence and social development. The important qualification concerns group activities: in July 2024, their organisation sometimes left younger or less confident children unable to take full advantage of the learning. That is a useful point to explore alongside the facilities.

Full days sit alongside morning and afternoon sessions, while funded hours can follow a term-time or stretched pattern. Families can therefore consider shorter attendance as well as care across the working day.

Rooms and Ages

Baby Bunnies is the youngest group, with the baby accommodation combining a bright main play space, a messy art room and an adjoining quiet sleep room; soft play equipment, a ball pit and space for early walkers support movement and sensory exploration. Those separate spaces matter: active play, messy discovery and sleep each have somewhere to happen.

Toddler Hedgehogs has a main play room, a creative room and a sensory room, with construction and role play alongside painting, dough, textured materials, a light-up bubble tank and a black out tent. The layout gives toddlers different ways to engage, including a quieter space for stories and rest when they need a slower pace.

Preschool Owls occupies the ground floor, where connected rooms, a writing area, programmable robot toys and a conservatory art annex support independent choices, investigation and creative work. Children can move between activities and select equipment that interests them, rather than having every choice made for them.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage is the framework for children's learning, development and care here: play, conversation, exploration and growing independence are part of the educational day. Carousel's practical resources give those aims tangible form. Children can investigate with magnets and magnifying glasses, use construction materials, make things and explore books.

In July 2024, staff used information from parents to establish what children already understood and plan what they should learn next. This made children's interests part of the planning. During dough play, adults extended conversations and introduced vocabulary while children chose tools and experimented with the material. Ordinary play became an opportunity to talk, decide and investigate.

Books also had a strong presence in July 2024. Children joined in with a familiar monthly story, showing how well they knew it, while babies explored textured books. Repetition had a purpose: children could return to something they knew and join in with greater confidence. Caring for ducklings born at the nursery added a different kind of experience, giving children a practical encounter with looking after living things.

School preparation includes recognising name cards and using writing resources. Cookery and woodwork also feature in the preschool spaces, with child-sized tools and safety goggles for the latter. This is a broader preparation than practising letters alone: children have opportunities to handle materials, make choices and work through practical tasks.

Outdoor and Community Life

The nursery garden brings outdoor play into the day for each age group. Babies use it separately from older children; preschool children have dedicated access in both the morning and afternoon. Regular outings extend the experience beyond the building, with nursery pushchairs used for babies and local park walks for toddlers.

Preschool outings also include planned journeys on public transport.

Relationships and Communication

Xplor Home brings photographs, videos, health information and updates on learning into one app, accessible through phones or the web. That gives parents something concrete to follow between conversations with staff: both everyday care and what their child has been exploring.

In July 2024, staff also shared ideas for learning at home through an online journal. Parents' knowledge contributed to activity planning, so communication worked in both directions. A child's interests and existing skills could inform the nursery day, while ideas from nursery could continue at home.

Babies' routines receive practical attention. Bottle feeds and mealtimes can follow the pattern used at home, and naps are adjusted to home routines with monitoring throughout sleep. Cots and camp beds in the separate sleep room mean rest has its own space, rather than sharing the busiest play area.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the July 2024 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and good progress among children with SEND and those learning English as an additional language, supported by simple signing and work with external agencies and local schools. The useful detail is the mechanism: staff adapted communication and involved other professionals when children needed additional help.

In July 2024, adults helped children settle minor disagreements and modelled considerate behaviour. Children cooperated over construction play, passing materials to one another. Social learning was therefore part of everyday activity, rather than a separate lesson about being kind.

Toddler facilities include child-sized toilets, a sink, potties and changing provision. These arrangements allow toilet learning and nappy care to coexist within the group. Families do not need to think of that transition as an abrupt switch from one stage to another.

Sessions and Attendance

Carousel's address is 40 Northern Parade, Hilsea, Portsmouth, PO2 8ND. Opening hours are 7.30am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, over 51 weeks of the year, excluding bank holidays. The attendance choices are more useful than the opening window alone.

Full days and Monday-to-Friday full-week bookings run from 7.30am to 6pm. Morning sessions run from 9am to noon; afternoons run from 1pm to 4pm. Paid bolt-on hours extend shorter sessions at either end.

Enquiries can be made through the contact form, by telephone on 02392677377 or by email at carouselnursery@icloud.com. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation. The session choice matters when comparing that quotation, because extra hours are charged according to the attendance required.

Funding and Paid Extras

Carousel offers 30 Hour Funding and 15 hour funding. The former can be taken as 30 hours weekly in term time or stretched over 51 weeks at 22 hours weekly, subject to eligibility; the latter can be taken as 15 hours weekly in term time or stretched over 51 weeks at 11 hours weekly. These are different ways of distributing funded attendance across the year.

Funded hours must fit the nursery's specified session blocks. Hours beyond the funding are charged according to the sessions and times required, so a funded entitlement and a family's complete childcare bill are separate considerations. The opening hours and pricing page sets out that structure.

Breakfast is provided by the nursery, while parents supply lunch and/or tea; milk and water are provided at mealtimes. Younger children's feeds can be arranged around their home routine, which is especially relevant when combining a new nursery pattern with established feeding times.

• Participation in groups. In July 2024, younger and less confident children sometimes gained less from group activities because of how they were organised. On a visit, ask how staff now adapt these activities and help quieter children take part.
• A nursery across three floors. Children are grouped by age on different levels, while babies have separate garden time. During a visit, explore how your child's group moves between its rooms and outdoor space, and how transitions between groups are managed.
• Funding and the complete bill. Funded attendance follows specified blocks, with additional hours charged separately. Ask for a written quotation for your chosen pattern that also sets out the arrangements for nappies, wipes and other consumables.

Carousel suits families seeking either a full day or shorter morning and afternoon attendance, with term-time and stretched options for funded hours. Its strongest practical appeal is the progression of spaces: separate baby rest provision, toddler sensory resources and preschool opportunities to investigate, make and choose.

The July 2024 Good judgement provides a positive inspection position, but participation in group activities deserves attention when choosing it for a younger or quieter child. For parents who value communication through Xplor Home and care that accommodates a baby's established routines, there is useful substance here to weigh alongside the attendance pattern.