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The Ark Pre-School Nursery Liphook

Ofsted: Good
(Jun 2025)
·The Church Centre, Portsmouth Road, Liphook, GU30 7DJ · Hampshire
Number of places
28 places
Age range
2–4 yrs
Last inspected
Jun 2025
Local authority
Hampshire

About this day nursery

The Ark Pre-School in Liphook offers a nurturing and stimulating environment where children aged 2 years to school age can embark on a journey of discovery. With over eight years of experience, the nursery is dedicated to providing high-quality early years education, encouraging children to explore, ask questions, and develop their innate strengths through play-based learning and engaging activities.

Situated next to the Church Centre in central Liphook, The Ark Pre-School prides itself on integrating joy, creativity, and care into every child's early developmental stages. The team believes that early years education forms a crucial foundation for future learning and growth, fostering an atmosphere where every child can thrive and build confidence as they learn through play.

What it's like

Children arrive at the setting happy and excited to see their friends. Staff plan activities that build on children's interests. Staff take time to build strong attachments with children and parents through home visits and settling-in sessions, providing high-quality, consistent care.

Play-based learningCommunity-focusedAccepts various funding typesNo top-up fees for funded hours

Pricing & funding

Fees are charged per session, with options including early sessions, morning and afternoon sessions, lunchtimes, full days, and after-school care. Rates are structured across two age bands: two-year-olds and three-year-olds. Additional costs include a termly voluntary contribution and a fee for booking changes.

Funding accepted

15 hours — eligible 2-year-olds15 hours — universal (3–4 yrs)30 hours — working parents (3–4 yrs)

Good to know

  • Charges apply for hours attended outside of funded entitlement or for non-eligible children.
  • A voluntary contribution is requested termly.
  • A fee is charged for making changes to booked sessions.

Key facts

Opening hours

Monday to Friday, during term time, from 8.15am to 3.30pm

Age range

2 years to school age

Term time / All Year

Term Time

Ofsted Inspection

Ofsted rating for The Ark Pre-School Nursery Liphook

Last inspected 6 June 2025 · Lucy Short

Safeguarding effective
Overall effectiveness
Good
Quality of education
Good
Behaviour and attitudes
Good
Personal development
Good
Leadership and management
Good

What it's like to attend

Children arrive at the setting happy and excited to see their friends. Staff plan activities that build on children's interests. Staff take time to build strong attachments with children and parents through home visits and settling-in sessions, providing high-quality, consistent care.

Inspector highlights

  • Children are provided with excellent opportunities to develop their physical skills using a range of equipment.
  • Children are able to choose from a broad range of activities and enjoy moving freely from one experience to another.
  • Children know it is tidy-up time when they hear the tambourine and respond quickly and positively.
  • Interactions between staff and children are relaxed and natural, with mostly high-quality conversations.
  • Children thoroughly enjoy choosing a book and sitting on an adult's lap for a cuddle and a story, which encourages a love of stories.
  • Children are taught how to keep themselves safe and learn how to risk-assess equipment outside with support.

Areas to develop

  • 1support staff to know when to adapt their teaching so that children remain focused and engaged in meaningful learning.
  • 2enhance staff's knowledge of how to extend children's vocabulary during conversation even further.
Inspection #10398690 · Source: OfstedView full Ofsted report

What parents say

Verbatim quotes recorded in the Ofsted inspection

Parents value the support they receive from staff. They describe how their children enjoy attending the setting and how their progress has come on in leaps and bounds since joining. Parents enjoy attending the family singing sessions and feel very much involved in their child's learning.

Inclusion & environment

How they support every child

SEND provision

The curriculum is inclusive for every child, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Staff know every child really well and use this knowledge to support them in their learning. Staff use prompts, such as sign language or visual picture cards, to help children with SEND understand when it is time to share a bike or wait their turn.

Outdoor space

Children are provided with excellent opportunities to develop their physical skills using a range of equipment. Children enjoy using bikes, slides and a large tractor tyre outside to practise balancing, jumping, sliding and running. Staff join in with children's games to enhance their learning, such as drawing round staff using chalk on the playground to learn about shape and size. Children are taught how to keep themselves safe and learn how to risk assess the equipment outside with support.

Inspection history

Date: November 2019

  • June 2025Good
  • November 2019Outstanding

Frequently asked about The Ark Pre-School Nursery Liphook

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This listing has been compiled from official Ofsted records, the nursery's own website, details provided directly by the nursery where available, and other trusted public sources. We regularly review and update listings to keep the information as accurate as possible. Learn more