Little Explorers Nursery Goose Green

Mud play and learning shaped around children’s interests give Little Explorers Nursery Goose Green a recognisable character. Based in Goose Green Methodist Church Hall in Wigan, it combines two main playrooms with a large outdoor area and an emphasis on children learning to do things for themselves. The practical ambitions are small but meaningful: managing a coat, recognising belongings and becoming confident enough to explain what they need.

At its May 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good and judged safeguarding effective. That judgement sits alongside a specific improvement point about keeping younger children engaged during group activities. There is substance here, but also a useful question about how adult-led learning fits children’s attention spans.

Children can attend from three months to five years. Attendance is term-time, with a core day and extended-day option as well as shorter sessions; a holiday club is also offered. This makes the nursery relevant to families with different daily schedules, while the holiday arrangements need to fit the family’s wider childcare plan.

Rooms and Ages

Explorers usually accommodates the youngest children, with comfortable spaces for imaginative play and discovery; Adventurers usually serves older children, using interest-led resources and fresh challenges to broaden their experiences. Explorers is the smaller room, and the under-twos are based there. Room use is flexible around children’s development rather than being presented as a rigid progression through fixed age bands.

A large activity room allows themes begun in the main playrooms to develop into more substantial play. That matters for a child whose interest continues beyond the first activity: an idea can be revisited and expanded. Outdoors, sand, water and mud provide different materials to investigate, alongside space for jumping and running.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage provides the educational framework: children develop language, movement, social understanding and early mathematical and literacy skills through play and planned experiences. Little Explorers adds planning that follows children’s interests, with books and nursery rhymes connecting those interests to adult-led activities. The framework is the starting point; the choices of themes, resources and reporting methods give the day its local shape.

My Senses explores touch, taste and other sensory experiences, while My Community considers family, routines and the wider world. My World extends into nature, culture and space. These termly themes leave room for interests that emerge during the half term, so planning can respond to the children attending rather than simply repeating the same sequence of activities.

In May 2024, stories led into hands-on learning: children made dough figures inspired by Wiggly the Worm, while toddlers shared books with opening flaps in the reading shed. The connection is useful. A story becomes something children can handle, discuss and recreate, bringing physical skills and language into the same experience.

Outdoor and Community Life

Outdoor provision is used daily. A Forest School practitioner works within the setting, and outdoor experiences include building dens, investigating small creatures and cooking over an open fire. These are practical ways to explore the natural world, alongside everyday sensory play. Weather also becomes learning material, from collecting rain to discussing changes in living things.

In May 2024, children worked together to build routes from tyres and crates, testing movement while staff helped them take turns. Current community outings include visits to care homes, nature reserves and the local library. The destinations extend children’s experiences beyond the nursery rooms, bringing people, books and natural surroundings into their understanding of the world.

Relationships and Communication

Every child has a key person who observes development, plans next steps and shares information with parents. Settling begins with an informal discussion and a series of inductions shaped around the child and family, with a parent staying for the first induction. This gives the key person an opportunity to learn about routines and needs before taking over care more fully.

OPAL, short for observation of play and learning, structures progress reporting: families receive a report every six months, with informal key-worker discussions at three and nine months. EYlog provides photographs, observations and messages, and parents can contribute experiences from home. Together, these arrangements give families both periodic discussion and a way to share something relevant between meetings.

The team includes a manager with an NPQ in Early Years Leadership and a deputy who holds the setting’s SENCO role. A Wellbeing Lead also works at Goose Green, with calming activities forming part of that role. These are identifiable responsibilities, giving families a clearer route for discussing development, additional needs or emotional wellbeing.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the May 2024 inspection, Ofsted found that staff planned around individual needs, including SEND, and that observation-led teaching supported children’s progress. The current support process begins with the key person, who raises concerns with the SENCO; parents then help develop an Individual Education Plan where appropriate. Health Visitors and Speech and Language professionals can contribute to targeted support.

The building is on one level, with an alternative flat doorway to the outdoor area and a disabled toilet. Those physical arrangements are useful alongside the support process: access to activities depends on the environment as well as the plan for an individual child.

Food follows a two-week menu, and the team includes a chef working in the nursery kitchen. Lunch is charged separately; for children using funded hours, an optional food package covers meals and snacks across the day.

Preparation for school concentrates on independence, including handwashing, toileting, putting on coats and helping themselves to food and drinks. Teachers are invited to meet children and discuss their learning journeys before the move. In June and July, transition play uses items such as backpacks, uniforms and lunch boxes, making the next stage more familiar through things children can explore.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Goose Green Methodist Church Hall, Sefton Road, Wigan, WN3 6QU. Opening hours are Monday to Friday, 8.30am to 6pm, during term time. The nursery closes on bank holidays, and holiday club provision sits alongside the term-time nursery offer.

Core Day runs from 9am to 4pm, while Extended Day runs from 8.30am to 6pm. The shorter option is labelled AM or PM Session and carries a 9am to 1pm time. Afterschool club runs from 4pm to 6pm, and breakfast club is also offered. Days can be chosen to suit the family, with extra sessions possible: this is a choice of attendance patterns rather than one uniform day for everyone.

Enquiries can be made by telephone on 01942 901026. There is no signup fee. The different session lengths make the written booking agreement important, especially where a family combines nursery attendance with work or another regular commitment.

Funding and Paid Extras

The nursery accepts all forms of government funding and allows funded hours to be used flexibly within each term. Private paid sessions are also offered. The fees and funding page explains the charge structure; current prices come in the nursery’s written quotation.

For children accessing funded hours, Little Extras are optional additions charged separately. Food covers breakfast, lunch, tea and snacks; Personal Care covers items including nappies, wipes and creams, with families sending a change of clothes. The Digital option covers the EYLog parent app, online meetings and a memory stick containing the child’s photographs and learning journey when they leave. Families select which, if any, of these additions they want, so the funded entitlement and the extras should be considered separately.

• Group activities. In May 2024, some younger children lost interest when shared activities continued too long, and improving their planning was the development priority. During a visit, ask how staff now adjust the length and format for the youngest children.
• Term-time attendance. The nursery day operates during terms, with holiday club offered separately and bank-holiday closures. Consider how the core day, extended day or shorter session fits both the working week and school holidays.
• The youngest room. Explorers accommodates under-twos and is the smaller playroom. Ask how many babies usually share the room on your intended days and how their different routines are managed.
• Choosing extras. Funded-hours food, personal care and digital services are optional, separately charged additions. The nursery allows families to look around without booking; use that opportunity to discuss which additions suit your child and how the resulting agreement works.

Little Explorers Goose Green suits families who value daily outdoor play, learning that follows children’s interests and a clear key-person relationship. Its core day and shorter session serve different needs from the extended day, while the term-time calendar is a central part of the choice. The Good judgement from May 2024 gives the review a sound inspection basis, with group-activity planning the point to examine closely. The strongest appeal is concrete: space to develop play, practical preparation for independence and regular ways for parents to follow learning.