A Hopscotch Day
Start with a Smile
Every morning begins with a familiar face. Children are welcomed by someone they know and trust, with a big smile to help them settle in. Breakfast is ready for anyone who needs it, and then it’s time to dive into the day.
Child-led Play
Children learn best when they’re having fun — which is why we follow their lead. Our team responds to their interests, creating activities that spark curiosity and make every day feel new and exciting.
Mealtimes
Good food fuels busy bodies. We’ve teamed up with Little Tums, a local specialist in childcare catering, to provide healthy, tasty meals that children love. Throughout the day, we also offer snacks and organic milk to keep everyone happy and energised.
Making Learning Fun
With over 37 years of experience, we know what makes children light up. Our curriculum blends the latest early years approaches with everything we’ve learned across generations. From messy play in the baby room to science experiments in preschool, learning always happens through play, discovery and joy.
Sweet Dreams...
Rest is just as important as play. Babies drift off in Community Playthings hand-crafted wooden dream coracles, while older children nap on cosy mats alongside their friends. Every child follows their own routine, so sleep times feel calm, familiar and comforting.
Outdoor Adventures
Fresh air and freedom are part of every child’s day. Through our Hopscotch Explorers programme, children head out to local parks, the beach and even the woods - building confidence, resilience and a love of nature. When the weather keeps us inside, our nurseries also have soft play spaces, so there’s always room to run, climb and explore.
Hometime
By the end of the day, children are ready to head home with stories to tell, smiles to share and sometimes a creation tucked under their arm. Parents get a full update on meals, naps and activities — along with snapshots of their child’s adventures, shared securely through Famly.
Other Activities
Messy Play
We get messy so you don’t have to! We have messy play activities for all of our children, whatever their age. We use a range of interesting resources, from playdough to ice to shaving foam so children have different sensory experiences every day.
Music
Singing and dancing focused activities are a core part of our daily routines whilst playing music in our nurseries helps children learn about different styles and how different types of music can affect our moods - calming classical or pop for dancing fun!
Exercise
We love being outside, either in our gardens or on trips. In winter we wrap up warm and keep moving whilst in summer we wear our hats, slather on suncream and shimmy into the shade to keep cool. All our nurseries have soft play areas so we can always keep active.
Art
Our diverse art activities promote imagination and creativity. Children are encouraged to experiment with different colours, papers and textures to create their own masterpieces!
Rooms and Supervision
Our rooms are thoughtfully designed and carefully resourced to keep children engaged, inspired and happy — without ever feeling overwhelmed. Resources are rotated regularly, giving children fresh opportunities to explore, discover and learn.
Across all our nurseries, we use Community Playthings’ beautifully crafted wooden furniture. This consistency helps children feel at ease and makes moving between rooms and age groups a smooth, familiar experience.
We also go above and beyond when it comes to supervision. In our larger nurseries, we have supernumerary staff to give children that extra attention and care. And for our 2–3 year olds, we’ve chosen to keep a lower ratio of 1 adult to 4 children across every Hopscotch setting, because we believe smaller groups are better for building strong bonds and giving each child the best start.
Key Workers
At Hopscotch, every child has a Key Person - someone they can build a close bond with, and someone you can always turn to.
Your child’s Key Person takes time to understand their needs, routines and preferences, making sure they feel safe, secure and valued every single day. They’ll share updates with you about your child’s experiences, from the activities they’ve enjoyed to the milestones they’re reaching, so you always feel connected to their nursery journey.
This special relationship gives children a strong sense of belonging and helps them thrive, while giving parents the confidence of knowing there’s a dedicated person looking out for their little one.
Age groups
To find out more about what happens on an average day in each of our age groups, click on the links below.
