The Chase Nursery Holland Park

A tree house and fish pond give outdoor play a concrete identity at The Chase Nursery Holland Park. This purpose-built nursery stands within the grounds of Holland Park Primary School in Clacton On Sea, with separate named rooms for babies and toddlers and a garden where children can explore living things.

At its November 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good, judged safeguarding effective and found that children made good progress, including those receiving support through the special educational needs coordinator. Those are dated judgements, rather than a promise about an individual child's experience.

The nursery accepts children from three months, with provision extending to age five, and has 54 places in total. Its strongest practical features are the outdoor spaces, a key person for each child and a structured process for planning additional support. Opening hours run from 8am to 5.30pm on weekdays; school-age morning and after-school care also operates here.

Rooms and Ages

Ladybird room is for babies, while Caterpillar room serves toddlers; Butterfly room completes the named room structure. These names give families a useful starting point for understanding how children are organised as they grow.

In November 2023, babies practised using a slide with adult help and encouragement. Their care also respected individual sleep routines: staff allowed them time to wake gradually, with quiet music and foot massages in the calm room. That combination of physical exploration and an unhurried waking routine gives a more useful picture of baby care than the room name alone.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS provides the framework for children's learning, development and care. Here, play, conversation and observations of what children can do help shape their next steps; it is the educational foundation, rather than an extra programme exclusive to this nursery.

In November 2023, staff planned activities around children's interests and used their starting assessments to identify appropriate challenges. Children could reach resources themselves and choose their own play. That arrangement gave them scope to act on their ideas, rather than waiting for an adult to select everything.

Daily sensory play included disco dough, an activity combining music, movement and dough manipulation to exercise small hand movements. Singing also threaded through the day, giving children repeated opportunities to practise language. These examples connect early learning to ordinary experiences: moving hands, joining songs and talking about discoveries.

Outdoor and Community Life

The development garden contains a tree house and fish pond, with opportunities to feed the fish and take part in pond dipping when appropriate. Outdoor gardens extend the space for exploration and play, making the grounds part of the nursery day rather than simply somewhere to expend energy.

In November 2023, children searched for bugs and talked about their discoveries, using new vocabulary as they described what they had found and what the creatures needed. The useful connection is between observation and conversation: an outdoor discovery becomes something to explain, discuss and investigate.

Relationships and Communication

Each child has a key person responsible for observations, providing a consistent link between everyday care and learning. Settling sessions can be extended to meet a child's needs, and an initial parent meeting covers home life, concerns and the information staff need to support the child.

Tapestry is used for parents to contribute pictures and examples of learning at home. Children also have an online Learning Journal and a scrapbook of work and observations, with assessments at the end of each term. Together, these give families more than one way to follow their child's development and contribute their own knowledge.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

A SENCO role supports planning for children with additional needs. The nursery's Local Offer describes a graduated process of assessing needs, planning support, putting it into practice and reviewing it. Parents participate in those decisions, so support is organised around the child rather than treated as a fixed package.

Individual support can use a One Page Profile or One Plan, with the key person and SENCO overseeing targets. Reports from health visitors and speech and language therapists can inform planning, and an inclusion partner can provide further advice. These are concrete mechanisms for bringing family knowledge and professional input together.

The Local Offer also provides for adjustments to trips and discussion with parents before an outing needs extra planning. For a move to another educational setting, the SENCO prepares the paperwork and arranges information sharing with parental consent. That continuity matters when the next team needs to understand an established support plan.

Sessions and Attendance

Nursery opening hours are 8am to 5.30pm, Monday to Friday. The nursery operates for 45 or 48 weeks a year, with bank-holiday closures and two-week breaks at Christmas and in August. Those breaks need to be part of a family's annual childcare plan.

Separate provision for school-age children includes MORNING CLUB from 8am and AFTER SCHOOL CLUB options running from 3pm to either 4.30pm or 5.30pm. These club arrangements are for school-age children; nursery children are charged at nursery rates. They should therefore be considered separately from nursery attendance.

Holland Park enquiries can be made on 01255 425899 or by emailing hollandpark@thechasenursery.co.uk.

Getting There

The address is Holland Park Primary School, Holland Road, Clacton On Sea, CO15 6NG. Parking is along nearby roads, with families asked to keep residents' driveways and the school entrance clear.

Sharing school grounds does not guarantee a Reception place. Families still use the local authority admissions process for a state-school application; nursery attendance and school admission are separate decisions.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered through 15- and 30-hour arrangements. Eligibility depends on the entitlement concerned, so those hours should not be read as an automatic allocation for every child. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

• Annual childcare cover. The 45- or 48-week operating arrangements include Christmas and August breaks, alongside bank holidays. Discuss which attendance arrangement applies to your child and how those closures fit your working year.
• Language and independence. In November 2023, questioning sometimes missed opportunities to develop children's reasoning, and children were not consistently encouraged to care for resources after play. During a visit, ask how staff now build problem-solving and tidying into everyday routines.
• The youngest children's day. Ladybird room serves babies, and the November 2023 account describes individual sleep routines and gradual waking. Ask how your child's feeding, sleep and settling needs would shape their day.
• The complete childcare cost. Funded hours and school-age clubs are separate arrangements. Request a written quotation that identifies any charges or parent-provided items for meals, snacks and non-food consumables, as well as the attendance pattern being priced.

Outdoor exploration and organised support for individual needs give this nursery its clearest character. The tree house and fish pond provide tangible opportunities for discovery, while key-person observations and individual planning give parents a defined route into discussions about development.

It suits families seeking nursery care from babyhood onwards, including those who also need MORNING CLUB from 8am or AFTER SCHOOL CLUB from 3pm to either 4.30pm or 5.30pm for school-age children. The November 2023 findings give a positive inspection position, tempered by specific work needed on questioning and children's responsibility for resources. The annual closure pattern is the practical consideration to weigh alongside that picture.