The Meadows Nursery School, Hailsham

A converted house and a garden used throughout the year give The Meadows Nursery School, Hailsham its defining character. This Fletcher Close setting takes children aged one to five and has 45 places in total. For parents drawn to a domestic setting with outdoor space, those are concrete reasons to look closely.

Ofsted rated the nursery Good on 4 August 2022. That judgement provides a dated assessment of its care and education, rather than a promise about every child's experience today. Morning, afternoon and full-day attendance sit alongside all-year and funded term-time options.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage sets the requirements for children's learning, development and care: in everyday terms, learning through play goes alongside communication, physical development and increasing independence. At Hailsham, children are broadly grouped as under-twos, two-to-threes and over-threes, allowing the day to be organised around different stages of development.

In August 2022, sensory exploration included handling cooked spaghetti, investigating a mixture that changed consistency and pouring water between containers. These were practical experiences with texture, movement and cause and effect. Younger children could explore with their hands, while shared water play gave children opportunities to play beside others.

Creative work also allowed room for children's own ideas. In August 2022, children painted freely and explained their pictures, while adults recognised their efforts. Small tools, screws and wooden cars provided another kind of hands-on activity, alongside shaping dough. Such tasks gave children practice in controlling their fingers and coordinating movements, useful foundations for later writing.

Stories extended beyond nursery time. In August 2022, a reading library let children borrow books to share at home, making reading a connection between the setting and family life. Routines for recognising their own names also became more demanding as the year progressed. Preparation for the next stage involved everyday independence as well as activities.

Outdoor and Community Life

The all-year garden complements the converted house, giving outdoor space a place in the nursery's offer beyond the summer months. That combination is likely to appeal to families who want a house-based setting with room for outdoor play.

Small animals, including caterpillars, chicks and ducklings, come into nursery from time to time. Parents give consent for these encounters and identify relevant animal allergies; a risk assessment sets out how visits are managed. This adds contact with living things to the nursery experience, with individual health information forming part of the arrangements.

Relationships and Communication

In August 2022, children had close relationships with their key people, and younger children sought comfort from adults. Parents interviewed at that time spoke positively about support with settling. The practical value is straightforward: familiar adults can help a child manage the separation from home.

Communication about learning needed more consistency in August 2022. Parents did not always receive enough individual information to continue their child's learning at home. This was a specific improvement point, distinct from the positive accounts of care and settling. Families who want regular ideas about what to practise together should make that part of their visit discussion.

Current communication arrangements include email for newsletters, general messages and emergency closures. Photographs and recordings document children's learning and are used in nursery displays, with parental permission and monitoring by the manager. These arrangements provide channels for information, although the usefulness of a learning update depends on its detail.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the August 2022 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and described successful support for children with special educational needs and disabilities, including visual prompts that helped them understand the sequence of their day. These are dated findings about actual practice, rather than general assurances.

The nursery gathers information about additional needs, existing professional support, home language, familiar words, allergies and sleep patterns. This gives families a way to explain the details that matter to their child. Collection arrangements use authorised adults, photographs and a password, providing a clear procedure for identifying who may take a child home.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is 5-6 Fletcher Close, Hailsham, BN27 2BW. Opening hours are 8am to 6pm on weekdays, across 50 weeks of the year, with national bank holidays excluded.

All-year attendance includes a morning session from 9am to 1pm and an afternoon session from 1pm to 5pm. Additional wraparound care runs from 8am to 9am and from 5pm to 6pm. The minimum booking is two four-hour sessions each week, so this is a repeating commitment rather than an occasional short visit.

For term-time attendance, mornings run from 8am to 1pm and afternoons from 1pm to 6pm. A separate full-day pattern runs from 9am to 4.30pm, with afternoon extensions to 5pm or 6pm. The minimum is two five-hour sessions weekly. Term-time attendance requires government funding eligibility and is subject to availability.

Booking and funded hours follow a weekly repeating pattern. The attendance choice lasts at least a term, and switching between all-year and term-time funding mid-term is not permitted. Reductions or cancellations require six weeks' written notice; illness and family absences do not bring refunds or holiday discounts.

Funding and Paid Extras

Universal and extended funding can be used with the nursery's attendance arrangements, alongside additional paid hours. The booking forms identify EYF, WPF and FF2 funding. Funding can be stretched across all-year attendance or used during term-time funding periods; booked hours beyond the weekly entitlement, and booked time outside funded periods, are chargeable.

Parents supply lunch; breakfast, tea and funded-session snacks are charged separately when families do not supply them. The food policy excludes nuts and sesame-containing foods and specifies preparation rules for food brought from home.

Nappies, cream and wipes supplied by the nursery attract separate charges when families do not provide them. A written quotation should distinguish paid childcare from food and consumables so that the total matches the intended weekly pattern.

Booking requests are reviewed before the nursery confirms sessions, funding and a start date. If a place cannot be offered, the nursery adds the request to its waiting list. Families can contact the Hailsham team at hailsham@meadowsnurseries.co.uk.

• Learning updates and teaching intentions. In August 2022, individual learning information was not consistently shared with parents, and some staff needed clearer aims for planned activities. During a visit, ask for an example of a recent learning update and how practitioners decide what an activity should teach.
• A repeating attendance commitment. All-year and term-time bookings have different session lengths and weekly minimums, and funding patterns cannot change mid-term. Match the pattern to your working week before committing, allowing for the six-week notice requirement.
• Packed lunches and allergies. Lunch comes from home, and the food policy excludes nuts and sesame-containing products. Allergy-affected families should confirm current practice and discuss suitable food preparation with the team.

The Meadows Hailsham suits families seeking morning or afternoon sessions as well as full-day attendance, with all-year care and funded term-time patterns serving different routines. The converted house, all-year garden and occasional animal encounters give the offer a recognisable shape.

The August 2022 assessment supplies a positive starting point, with parent communication and the clarity of activity planning providing the balancing questions. For families comfortable with repeating bookings and bringing lunch, this is a practical option to explore.