Hopscotch Day Nursery Regents Park

Shelby the nursery tortoise, vegetables grown for harvesting and a garden with wooden hideouts give Hopscotch Day Nursery Regents Park a recognisable character. Children help shape the activities, resources and menu choices. Their preferences have a practical place in the nursery day.

At its July 2025 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good, judged safeguarding effective and found that individual support helped children, including those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), make good progress. The improvement points concerned consistent behaviour expectations and helping parents continue learning at home. Both matter alongside the positive judgement.

The nursery takes children aged 3 to 60 months at The Manor, 188 Regents Park Road, Southampton, SO15 8NY. Morning, afternoon, school day and full day attendance run throughout the year, giving families several ways to organise childcare.

Rooms and Ages

The four rooms comprise Under 2s, Toddlers and two Preschool rooms, with routines and experiences suited to each stage.

In July 2025, independence showed up in small, practical tasks: babies cleaned their faces and hands after lunch, while older children helped themselves to vegetables and poured drinks. These are useful everyday skills. Children had opportunities to take responsibility for manageable parts of their own care.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage provides the framework for children's learning, development and care, with play and everyday routines giving children opportunities to practise language, movement, relationships and independence. At Regents Park, children's choices influence what staff put into those experiences, including the resources and activities they use.

In July 2025, toddlers working on a wooden railway were encouraged to inspect the pieces and work out how to connect them. Staff drew attention to differences between the surfaces instead of completing the track for them. The task left children with a problem they could solve themselves.

Stories also became physical experiences. During that visit, children explored the snowy episode of We're Going On a Bear Hunt through outdoor play with shaving foam, bringing sensory exploration into storytelling. Simple Makaton signs accompanied spoken words for everyday needs, including finishing and waiting. These examples show how communication could extend beyond listening to an adult read or speak.

Outdoor and Community Life

The garden combines sandpits, planting areas, climbing opportunities and wooden hideouts. There is room for movement alongside places for imaginative play, so outdoor time can involve more than running around. The vegetable-growing garden gives children produce to harvest; Shelby adds a living animal to the setting's daily surroundings.

Environmental awareness forms part of ordinary nursery practice. The garden provides concrete material for this: plants change, produce can be harvested and children encounter the natural world alongside their play. The city centre setting also gives access to community experiences and historical architecture, extending the setting's interests beyond its rooms.

A key person provides continuity between a child's family circumstances and nursery routines. In July 2025, staff used what they knew about individual children to help them settle and plan their next learning steps. For parents, the practical value is a familiar member of staff who understands more than an age band.

In July 2025, visual reminders made instructions easier to understand for children with additional needs. Respect for individual preferences also extended to personal care: staff sought children's agreement to nappy changes and made sure familiar comforters accompanied sleep. Staff also worked with families and other professionals, revisiting support plans and arranging additional resources.

Current SEND arrangements include the nursery's SENDCO, the coordinator for additional-needs support, with assistance from area managers and head office. This gives families a defined support role to discuss their child's needs with, rather than relying solely on general assurances about inclusion.

Famly, the digital communication app, carries regular nursery updates. Its level of detail depends on the funding package: basic access covers routine information and assessment, while enhanced access adds photographs, videos, observations and a downloadable learning journal. That distinction matters if detailed updates are a priority for your family.

A dedicated nursery cook caters for individual dietary preferences and allergies. Families managing an allergy should discuss current food-handling arrangements during a visit, including how their child's requirements are communicated to the team.

Sessions and Attendance

Opening hours are 7.30am to 6pm, Monday to Friday. The Full Day runs from 8am to 6pm; Morning is 8am to 1pm and Afternoon is 1pm to 6pm. Breakfast Club covers 7.30am to 8am.

School Day options run from 8am to 3pm, 8.30am to 3.30pm or 9am to 4pm. The later two options and Breakfast Club are excluded from the Basic Funded Offer. These are meaningful differences: a shorter day can fit family routines, while the early breakfast period extends the start of a booked day.

The Basic Funded Offer applies funding to one morning or afternoon block per day and requires one attended session to fall on Monday or Friday. Session patterns cannot change within a funded term, and changes require two months' notice for the following term. Premium Flex permits changes within a term with one month's notice, subject to space, and allows funding across session types up to a maximum of 10 hours per day.

Getting There

The address is The Manor, 188 Regents Park Road, Southampton, SO15 8NY. On-site parking gives families a practical option for journeys by car. Enquiries can be made through the branch enquiry form or by telephone on 023 8077 6655.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare has two packages: the Basic Funded Offer and Premium Flex Offer. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation; the important distinction is how sessions, food, consumables and digital access fit together.

Under Basic, catered meals and snacks carry an optional voluntary contribution; families who decline it receive a standard cold lunch and snacks. Non-food consumables also carry an optional contribution, and families who opt out bring nappies or training pants, wipes, creams and sunscreen each day. Packed lunches and snacks from home are not permitted.

Premium Flex charges separately for meals, snacks and non-food consumables through its combined funded-hour charge, with families opting into both categories. Children receiving disadvantaged funding under Basic receive catered food and non-food consumables without charge. Enhanced digital access and applicable activities are also tied to the chosen package or contribution, so the package affects more than the food bill.

• Behaviour expectations. In July 2025, staff did not consistently reinforce sharing and care of resources. During a visit, ask how the team now applies the same expectations across rooms.
• Learning beyond nursery. The July 2025 improvement point included sharing children's next learning steps and practical ideas for home. Ask to see how these are communicated through your chosen Famly package.
• Funding and attendance. Basic combines fixed session blocks, a Monday-or-Friday requirement and restrictions on changes; Premium Flex allows more adjustment. The fee information gives differing minimum booking patterns, so obtain the exact minimum for your proposed package in writing before committing.
• Dietary arrangements. The nursery has a dedicated cook and caters for allergies, while Basic offers a cold-food alternative when families decline the catered-food contribution. Discuss the current arrangements for your child's diet and allergy needs during a visit.

Regents Park suits families seeking morning or afternoon attendance as well as school day or full day childcare. Its garden, vegetable growing and Shelby give children concrete experiences to return to, while the July 2025 examples show independence and communication being practised through ordinary tasks.

The choice needs care around funding restrictions and the level of parent communication included. The behaviour and home-learning improvement points deserve direct discussion, but the combination of outdoor play, children's influence over activities and several attendance patterns gives families clear reasons to consider this branch.