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Independent thinkers
Adults and children build knowledge together. We ask more questions than we answer, and plan from what each child is fascinated by this week.
Nursery & pre-school · Hanham, Bristol
Where small people have big ideas.
An education-led nursery for children from three months to five years. We follow their curiosity, listen to what they think, and build each day around it.
- Ofsted registered
- 15 & 30 funded hours accepted
- Qualified teachers on the team
3 mths – 5 yrsBabies, toddlers and pre-school
7:30 – 6pmMonday to Friday, with breakfast club
51 weeksOpen all year, closed at Christmas
2 gardensOutdoors every day, whatever the weather
Our approach
Children aren't empty jugs to fill.
We see every child as a thinker with their own theories about the world. Our job is to take those ideas seriously, and learn alongside them.
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A key person who knows them
Every child has a key person who plans for them, tracks their learning journey and is your first call for anything, big or small.
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Home and nursery, joined up
You know your child best. We share what we see, ask what you see, and agree next steps together so learning carries on at home.
Rooms & gardens
Three rooms, one for every stage.
Calm, neutral spaces where the play does the talking. Children move up when they are ready, not when the calendar says so.
The Nest
A gentle, unhurried room for our youngest. Routines follow yours from home, and there is always a lap free.
- Sensory play
- Sleep room
- First steps
The Burrow
Big feelings, bigger opinions. Toddlers explore freely with adults close by to help with sharing, boundaries and words.
- Messy play
- Role play
- Potty support
The Treehouse
Our pre-school and school readiness programme. Children's ideas shape the room, and free-flow doors open to the garden.
- School readiness
- Early phonics
- Free-flow outdoors
Two gardens, all weathers
One garden is for moving fast: a track for bikes, trikes and scooters. The other is an outdoor classroom, set up fresh each morning. Wellies live by the door.
- 🚲 Bike & scooter track
- 🥣 Mud kitchen
- 💧 Water trays
- 🏖️ Sand pit
- 🖍️ Chalk boards
- 🧺 Help-yourself stores
Our curriculum
Four things we want every child to leave with.
Our own curriculum sits on top of the Early Years Foundation Stage. It is written in the child's voice, so everyone knows what we are aiming for.
Self-worth
Knowing who you are, that you belong here, and that your family and history matter.
- I belong here and I know my part in it.
- I am proud of what makes me a good person.
- I can look after myself in lots of small ways.
- I know when I can, when I can't, and that both are fine.
Emotional understanding
Naming feelings, having room to feel them, and noticing them in other people.
- I know what my feelings feel like.
- It's OK not to be OK.
- I know what helps me feel all right again.
- I can tell when a friend needs some help.
Relationships
Feeling safe, trusting others, and knowing how to be part of a group.
- I feel safe and I can be honest.
- I know how to show respect, and how it feels to get it.
- I can join in and learn with others.
- I know when I want company and when I want to be on my own.
Resilience
Sticking with hard things, asking for help, and speaking up kindly.
- Hard things get easier when I keep trying.
- I know what I can do and when to ask for help.
- I can disagree politely and say what I think.
- I have more than one way to face a challenge.
A day with us
What a full day looks like.
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Breakfast club and a slow start🎨
Child-led play, indoors and out🥕
Freshly cooked lunch together😴
Sleep or quiet stories🌳
Garden time and small-group projects👋
Tea, home time and a proper handover
Sessions & fees
Clear prices. No surprises.
Pick the sessions that fit your week. Funded hours can be taken term-time only (38 weeks) or stretched across the year (51 weeks).
| Session | Price |
|---|---|
| Full day8am – 6pm | £90.00 |
| Morning8am – 1pm | £54.00 |
| Afternoon1pm – 6pm | £54.00 |
| Breakfast club7:30 – 8am | £8.50 |
| Extra hourWhen we have space | £10.00 |
Paid sessions include meals, nappies, wipes and our enriched curriculum. Funded-only places are completely free, and the optional extras are exactly that: optional. You never have to buy extra hours to use your funding.
Estimate your week
- Hours booked
- Funded hours used
- Estimated weekly fee
A guide only. Funded hours are taken off pro rata at the session rate; your exact pattern is agreed in your funding agreement.
SEND offer
Every child, properly included.
Support for special educational needs and disabilities is part of everyday practice here, led by our SENCO at each setting.
Talk to our SENCOHow do you spot when a child needs extra help?
Each child's learning journey is assessed regularly against our curriculum. If progress in an area slows, their key person offers different, tailored opportunities first. If concerns continue, they bring in our SENCO and talk with you, then carry out focused observations to see what would help.
What support will my child get?
Planning starts from your child's age, stage, interests and what they can already do. We adapt the room, the routine or the adult support as needed, and agree next steps with you so home and nursery pull in the same direction.
Who oversees my child's learning?
Their key person plans, observes and assesses, and is your first point of contact. Room leaders and the nursery manager oversee all learning, and every adult in the room knows and cares for your child.
Do you work with outside professionals?
Yes. With your agreement we share the two-year progress check and work with health visitors, speech and language therapists and any other setting your child attends.
The team · Hanham
The grown-ups your child will know by name.
Families say
Parents put it better than we can.
★★★★★He runs in without looking back, which says it all. His key person spotted his thing for diggers in week one and built half a term around it.
★★★★★The handovers are real conversations, not a tick sheet. I always know what she ate, who she played with and what made her laugh.
★★★★★The fees page was the first one I actually understood. Funded hours explained in plain English, and nobody pushed extras on us.
We're recruiting.
Want to work somewhere that values its staff as much as its children? Send us your CV and a short covering letter.