Hazles Farm Day Nursery

A dedicated baby sleep room, repeated woodland sessions for toddlers and a two-storey Jungle Gym give Hazles Farm Day Nursery a recognisable mix of quiet care and physical adventure. Different ages have their own outdoor spaces, while the Forest School area provides another setting for learning.

At its March 2023 inspection, Ofsted judged the nursery Good and found safeguarding effective. That judgement is dated: the current attractions are the room arrangements, visiting activities and clear choice of attendance patterns. On Hazels Road in Shrewsbury, SY4 4HE, the nursery has capacity for 98 children, with an accepted age range of 3 to 60 months.

Long Day, Full Day, Short Day and morning or afternoon half days provide several ways to organise attendance. The distinction between standard paid sessions and optional charges alongside funded hours matters just as much as the timetable.

Rooms and Ages

The Baby Room takes children from 3 months to around 15 months and combines its own kitchen, Sleep Room, Messy Play Area and Outside Play Area with weekly HartBeeps visits. Having a separate place for sleep gives rest a defined space alongside the busier parts of baby care.

For children from 15 months to 2 years, the Rising Two's Room has its own kitchen and areas for messy and outdoor play, with HartBeeps also visiting weekly. This intermediate room separates the earliest baby stage from the toddler group; its resources still allow movement, exploration and hands-on play.

The Toddler Room covers ages 2 to 3, with its own messy-play and outdoor spaces, a weekly Diddi Dance visit and three Forest School sessions each week. Movement therefore comes through both an organised dance activity and outdoor exploration, rather than depending on one part of the timetable.

Children aged 3 to 4 use the Pre-School Room, which has its own messy-play and outdoor areas and several Forest School sessions each week. The woodland element continues as children get older, rather than ending when they move beyond the toddler stage.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS provides the framework for children's learning, development and care: play, conversation and everyday routines are opportunities to develop skills. Alongside that shared framework, Hazles adds identifiable activities with different purposes. HartBeeps brings interactive movement and music; Diddi Dance provides structured dance that encourages coordination and physical activity.

Forest School means outdoor learning sessions here. Children explore the woodland area, make crafts and toast marshmallows over a campfire. All rooms can take part during the week, although the stated frequency differs between rooms.

In March 2023, songs supported by puppets, conversations over meals and shared picture books were part of the day. Children could select stories and choose songs, giving them ways to take an active part in language activities. Independence was also practised through small tasks: babies used spoons, while older children worked on dressing themselves. These are useful examples of learning embedded in ordinary care.

Outdoor and Community Life

The Jungle Gym is a two-storey soft-play facility accessible to children throughout the nursery. It adds another option for active play alongside the individual outdoor areas and woodland sessions. That combination gives physical exploration more than one setting.

In March 2023, babies practised crawling, walking and climbing outside, while older children investigated small creatures and listened to wildlife sounds in the forest area. A purpose-built outdoor classroom also supported books and nature activities. These observations show how outdoor space was being used at that point, rather than simply counting it as a facility.

Home links have concrete resources too. At Home Learning Packs can be borrowed from the office, and the Lending Library lets families sign books out to share together. Nursery Bears go home for weekend adventures, with drawings or photographs brought back for discussion during circle time. Each gives children a reason to connect experiences at home with nursery conversation.

Relationships and Communication

In March 2023, settling followed a structured process that involved parents in establishing children's starting points. Children formed close relationships with their key person, and staff used knowledge of individual interests and needs when supporting their next steps. For families, the useful detail is the connection between settling, knowing the child and planning their learning.

An online learning journal was in use in March 2023, allowing parents to follow activities and learning. Staff also shared behaviour strategies that families could try at home. Together, those practices made communication more specific than a general account of whether a child had enjoyed the day.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the March 2023 inspection, Ofsted found that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities made very good progress, supported by agreed targets, work with parents and other agencies, and additional training around medical needs. Experienced staff worked with the special educational needs coordinator, and additional funding supported individual targets. The important mechanism was coordinated support for the particular child, rather than a broad promise about inclusion.

The current team structure includes designated safeguarding lead roles, and induction covers child protection, food hygiene and paediatric first aid, with training renewed periodically. These are arrangements for staff preparation; the dated safeguarding judgement remains the inspection finding above.

One development point deserves attention. In March 2023, supervision took place, but some staff did not fully understand their professional development priorities; clearer direction was needed to help them extend their teaching skills. Families can use that specific issue to frame a useful discussion about staff development now.

Sessions and Attendance

The attendance menu is unusually easy to distinguish. Long Day runs from 7am to 6pm, Full Day from 8am to 6pm, and Short Day from 8am to 3.30pm. AM Half Day is 8am to 1pm; PM Half Day is 1pm to 6pm. The shorter day changes the finish time, while the half days offer genuinely different attendance patterns.

The nursery operates throughout the year and closes on bank holidays. Enquiries can be made through the branch form, by telephone on 01939 250234 or by email. Its address is Hazels Road, Shrewsbury, SY4 4HE.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded hours and additional privately paid hours are both part of the charging structure. Standard paid childcare sessions include food, consumables and Enhanced Learning Provision. During funded hours, food and consumables carry separate optional charges, so the cost structure differs according to how attendance is paid for.

The food included depends on the session: morning attendance includes breakfast and lunch, while the afternoon half day includes snacks and snack tea. Longer standard sessions include both parts of that provision, with milk included too.

Optional funded-hours consumables can include dental-care supplies, sun protection, nappy bags, spare clothing and bedding for rest. Families may supply their own items instead. That choice is useful, but it needs to match the child's individual care routine.

Enhanced Learning Provision is also covered by a voluntary charge during funded hours. It includes music and dance sessions, outdoor learning, visits to local attractions and seasonal celebrations; some trips may have an additional charge. The sessions and charges page sets out the categories, and current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

• The baby's daily rhythm. The Baby Room has a separate Sleep Room as well as its own kitchen and outdoor area. During a visit, discuss how sleep and feeding routines work alongside weekly HartBeeps sessions.
• Funded-hours choices. Standard paid sessions include food, consumables and enhanced activities, while funded attendance separates optional charges. Discuss which items you would supply and which activities your child would join before agreeing the booking.
• Staff development. In March 2023, some practitioners needed clearer professional development priorities. Ask how supervision now turns those priorities into changes in daily teaching.

Hazles Farm suits families choosing between extended attendance, a shorter day and morning or afternoon half days, with woodland activity a recurring part of the nursery experience. The separate baby sleep space, intermediate Rising Two's Room and regular visiting activities give its offer substance across different stages.

The March 2023 Good judgement provides a dated quality reference, while the staff-development point gives families something specific to explore. Its strongest practical case is the combination of age-specific spaces and several attendance patterns. For funded attendance, understanding the optional extras is an essential part of assessing the fit.