Hobletts Manor Infants' School Nursery Review

Mud kitchens, bikes and tadpoles give the Ladybirds nursery class a distinctly practical character. Children learn in their classroom and gardens, with adults joining their play to help develop learning and relationships. This is the nursery within Hobletts Manor Infants' School on Adeyfield Road in Hemel Hempstead.

A qualified teacher and early years practitioners work with the class. Morning, afternoon and all-day attendance choices give families different ways to arrange nursery around their day; eligible children can attend for fifteen or thirty hours.

Play connects indoor learning with outdoor exploration. In the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), practical experiences help children develop language, number understanding and social skills together. Sand and water play introduce ideas about capacity and size, while role play gives children opportunities to solve problems and use what they have learnt. Counting includes matching objects individually and recognising small quantities without counting each item.

Half-term topics give that learning a changing focus. Nursery Rhymes and Read Me a Story bring stories into the programme; Growth and Change and Creatures Great and Small turn attention towards living things. The school's mathematics approach uses Herts Essential Maths, with learning planned in small steps. For parents, the useful distinction is the combination of a planned sequence with practical activity, rather than a day defined only by its topic.

Outside, vegetable patches and flower beds sit alongside the mud kitchens, with bikes and games adding opportunities for movement. All EYFS children visit Forest School. Activities include searching for bugs, telling creature stories and dipping in the pond for tadpoles. These are concrete opportunities to explore the outdoors, talk about discoveries and learn through play with adults.

Adults participate in children's play, making relationship-building part of everyday learning. The nursery class has a qualified teacher alongside early years practitioners, so teaching and support are both represented in the team.

Lunch club is available to nursery children, who can bring a packed lunch from home. It gives families a lunch option alongside the session choices. For discussions about special educational needs, parents can contact the school's SENCO by telephone or email.

Safeguarding responsibilities sit with a designated lead and deputy leads. Staff receive up-to-date safeguarding training, and parents receive safeguarding updates through events and newsletters. Concerns about a child's welfare can be raised with the safeguarding team.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Families must make a separate Reception application through Hertfordshire County Council. For the September 2026 intake, the application deadline was 15 January 2026; that cycle is now past.

Curriculum continuity is a separate matter. Nursery and Reception teachers plan together around shared topics, organising progression across the Foundation Stage. That connects the learning children encounter across the two stages. It does not secure admission.

Morning nursery runs from 8.30am to 11.30am; the afternoon session runs from 12.30pm to 3.30pm. All-day sessions are also an attendance choice. The fifteen- or thirty-hour arrangement depends on eligibility, so families should distinguish the session pattern from the hours their child qualifies to attend.

Nursery applications are handled by the school through its online application service. The office can help with applications on 01442 213854, and general enquiries can be emailed to admin@hoblettsinfants.herts.sch.uk.

After-school care. Nursery places in the after-school club require special consideration and an application to the headteacher. Families needing this additional care should factor that approval into their plans.