Little Owls Nursery in Derby

About this day nursery

Little Owls Nursery provides high-quality early childhood education across three locations in Derby: Mackworth, Alvaston, and Sinfin. Founded in 2015 by Jo Hardy, the nursery is known for its nurturing community environment and dedicated team.

They focus on fostering creativity, exploration, social skills, and problem-solving through enriching learning spaces and daily planned activities, both indoors and outdoors. The nursery is committed to creating a strong sense of belonging for every child and family, regularly involving them in community events.

They utilise the Famly platform to update parents on their child's developmental progress, share daily activities through photos and videos, and facilitate home learning. Little Owls Nurseries provide freshly prepared, home-cooked meals tailored to dietary requirements, and their staff are paediatric first aid trained.

They offer distinct rooms for different age groups: Tawny Owls (0-2 years), Snowy Owls (2-3 years), and Barn Owls (3-4 years/pre-school), each designed to support age-appropriate development and milestones, including pre-writing skills, mathematical understanding, and phonics. The nurseries also feature sensory rooms and outdoor classrooms to encourage exploration and emotional development in all weather conditions.

Our ethos

Little Owls Nursery is committed to fostering creativity, exploration, social skills, and problem-solving through enriching learning spaces and daily planned activities, both indoors and outdoors. They aim to create a strong sense of belonging for every child and family by utilising a community-focused environment and involving families in nursery events. Their approach is supported by age-appropriate rooms and sensory and outdoor classrooms designed to encourage exploration and emotional development in all weather conditions.

What it's like

Children are welcomed warmly into the nursery. Staff prepare the rooms with activities that they know children will enjoy and which will meet their learning needs. Children have lots of opportunities to build on their physical skills, both indoors and outdoors, and staff support them with decision making.

Pricing & funding

This term-time only nursery does not charge a registration fee. Meals and snacks are provided as part of the session for children who are eligible for Flying Start funding.