Roberts Day Nursery

Calm areas with sensory lighting, a garden for exploration and music sessions centred on feelings give Roberts Day Nursery a clear emphasis: emotional development belongs alongside learning through play. Inside Fratton Community Centre in Portsmouth, children have books, a large touch screen computer and art and design spaces to pursue their interests. The approach starts with what catches a child's attention, then builds activities around it.

At its August 2025 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good, judged safeguarding effective and found that children made progress, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). That judgement sits alongside specific teaching improvements to consider, rather than a claim that every aspect of practice was equally strong.

There are 41 places in total. The nursery welcomes children from birth to five and separates play spaces for babies, toddlers and preschool children. Full-day, morning and afternoon sessions are announced from October, with shorter sessions for families using only their 15 funded hours.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the framework for learning and care: children develop through play across its areas of learning. Roberts adds a child-led approach, using children's interests to shape activities rather than expecting everyone to follow an identical task. Books and the large touch screen computer support stories and topic research, while the art and design areas give children another way to explore ideas.

Individual play spaces cater for babies, toddlers and preschool children. Preschool children also have access to a shared garden with free-flow play, allowing exploration to move between indoors and outside.

Early Talk Boost is a speech and language programme used specifically for children preparing to leave for school. Its purpose here is communication development before that transition. It complements learning and care under the EYFS.

In August 2025, story activities included discussion of characters and predictions about what might happen next. Children had opportunities to express an opinion, listen to others and handle books.

The August 2025 teaching priorities were clear: adults needed to develop children's learning more consistently through their interactions, and planning needed more accurately chosen next steps for each child. For parents, the distinction matters: an appealing activity is only part of the picture; the adult's response and the choice of what follows also shape its educational value.

Outdoor and Community Life

The secure garden provides space for discovering nature as well as physical play. In August 2025, children tackled climbing and obstacle activities, built towers with construction bricks and used bikes, scooters and water play. That combination brought movement and practical experimentation into the outdoor day.

Library Link brings a worker into the nursery each month with books for children across the age groups, followed by storytelling.

Past visitors have included Millers Arc Farm, which brought opportunities for contact with farm animals, and Zoo Lab, which introduced creatures such as snakes and large snails.

Relationships and Communication

Settling begins with a key worker and at least two induction sessions. The first normally lasts an hour, with the parent and child playing alongside other children and support from the key worker; a short separation can follow once the child settles. During the second, the parent may leave for about an hour, depending on both their needs and the child's. A longer induction can be arranged where settling takes more time.

This gives separation a gradual structure. It also gives the key worker opportunities to learn about the child before the regular attendance pattern begins.

Daily record sheets cover practical details such as drinks, food, nappy changes, activities and mood. Three parent evenings each year provide time to discuss the learning journey and agree next steps with the key worker. Progress discussions can also be arranged between those evenings, so the scheduled meetings are one part of communication rather than its only channel.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

Two Special Educational Needs Coordinators (SENCOs) work with families and staff. A SEND policy and an example individual education plan or SEN support plan form part of the nursery's support arrangements. These give parents specific mechanisms to discuss when their child needs additional help, rather than a general promise of inclusion.

Mini Minds Matter is the nursery's wellbeing approach, combining help with recognising feelings, talking about them and finding ways to manage them. Within it, myHappymind introduces children to how their brains and emotions work. Modules include Meet Your Brain, which explores managing emotions, and Relate, which addresses friendships and relationships. The programme adds explicit language for feelings to the everyday experience of playing with others.

Boogie Mites wellbeing sessions use movement and music for expression and connection. Yoga adds simple poses, stories and breathing exercises. Each room also has a calm area furnished with soft materials and gentle sensory lighting, where a child can pause with adult support. These are practical resources for moments when a busy play session becomes overwhelming.

In August 2025, staff used visual prompts and explanations to help children understand changes between activities. Rest mats and bedding were available for children needing sleep. Staff also worked with outside professionals on strategies for children whose learning needed additional support.

Nursery staff and children prepare morning and afternoon snacks using seasonal fruit and vegetables, with a vegetarian option; key workers discuss individual dietary requirements with families. Food activities also involve exploring ingredients and how they are prepared.

Sessions and Attendance

The nursery address is Fratton Community Centre, Trafalgar Place, Portsmouth, PO1 5JJ. Opening hours are 8am to 6pm on weekdays, across 51 weeks of the year. It closes for bank holidays and for a week spanning Christmas and New Year, an important distinction from uninterrupted year-round care.

Sessions announced from October are full days from 8am to 6pm, mornings from 8am to 1pm and afternoons from 1pm to 6pm. Families using only their 15 funded hours have a separate choice: mornings from 9am to noon or afternoons from 1pm to 4pm. The minimum booking is two sessions each week, and invoices are issued weekly.

Enquiries can be made by telephone on 023 9229 6919 or by email to Info@robertscentre.org.uk. An enquiry form and an application route are also provided.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare includes 30 hours funded childcare, two years old funding and 15 hours for funding for eligible families. Private sessions are also offered, and hours beyond a child's funded allocation may incur an additional charge. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation; families should budget around the attendance pattern and any extra hours together.

• Teaching beyond the activity. The August 2025 priorities concerned adult interactions and individually matched next steps. During a visit, ask how practitioners take a child's interest further and show how that informs the next activity.
• Two session timetables. Standard mornings and afternoons differ from the shorter sessions for families using only 15 funded hours, and bookings require at least two sessions weekly. Discuss which pattern fits your working hours and your child's settling plan.
• The complete cost of attendance. Extra hours beyond the funded allocation may incur an additional charge. Ask for a written quotation showing the treatment of meals, snacks and non-food consumables for your chosen booking, including funded hours.
• Emotional support in practice. Mini Minds Matter combines programmes with calm areas and adult support. Ask to see how the key worker uses these resources when a child struggles with separation or changes of activity.

Roberts suits families seeking the morning, afternoon or full-day sessions announced from October, with shorter options for families using only their 15 funded hours. Its strongest practical features are the child-led activities, structured settling and tangible wellbeing resources: music, breathing exercises and calm areas give the emotional emphasis substance.

The Good judgement from August 2025 is a useful starting point, while the teaching priorities give families something precise to explore. For a child who needs additional communication or emotional support, Early Talk Boost, SENCO involvement and the wellbeing approach provide clear discussion points. The choice rests on how those arrangements work for the individual child and the attendance pattern the family needs.