Opening Times
Open from 8am to 6pm with short day and half day session options available
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Attendance
51 week-a-year OR
42 week-a-year attendance
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Age Groups
For babies and children from 3 months to 5 years old.
Hassocks Day Nursery provides an excellent foundation for your child’s early years. Based in a beautiful rural location at the base of the South Downs in Hassocks, our day nursery and preschool has been designed to provide the ideal setting for your child’s growth and development.
Our newly refurbished indoor and outdoor environments consist of stimulating areas where children can learn and develop as they grow. Our dedicated professionals are committed to providing each child with personalised care and attention, ensuring that all their needs are met while they engage in fun learning activities.
Childcare Hassocks
What makes us special...
We incorporate a variety of educational theories, while always keeping the child’s best interest in mind and allowing for hands-on, experiential learning. Children in our care are happy and settled and our environment is beautiful and carefully prepared. Many children start with us in Ladybirds as babies and stay until they go to school.
Peripatetic classes
Accepting Early years Funding
Tapestry Parent App
Excellent outdoor facilities
About our Team
At our nurseries , we take great pride in our exceptional staff retention rates. This achievement is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our management team and staff members. By creating a positive and supportive work environment, we have attracted and retained highly skilled and passionate individuals committed to providing the best care for your children.
The continuity and stability our excellent staff retention brings is incredibly beneficial for the children at our nurseries. Building solid relationships with consistent caregivers allows for a sense of security and trust to develop, promoting emotional well-being and fostering healthy development.
Our experienced staff members deeply understand each child's unique needs.
Our experienced staff members work hard to deeply understand each child’s unique needs, strengths, and interests, enabling them to provide personalised care and tailored learning experiences.
We want to thank our dedicated staff members for their unwavering commitment and hard work.
We recognise and appreciate the effort and passion they put into their roles, to provide the highest quality of care and to create a nurturing and stimulating environment for your children to learn and grow.
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Natalie
Nursery Manager
With 8 years experience I love to support children's development and have a particular love for all things messy and musical!
Erin
QTS Lead Early Years Teacher - Early Years Lead Educator
With Qualified Teacher Status I love the variation and reward that working with young children brings.
Kaitlin
Level 3 Early Years Educator
I have a huge amount of devotion, care, and understanding for the children, as well as how to encourage and develop their skills as individuals and achieve school readiness!
Ava
Early Years Practitioner
Following college I worked in a care home for people with dementia, and I am now looking forward to furthering my education with a Level 3 Apprenticeship in early years education.
Paulina
Early Years Practitioner
Originally from Lithuania I am currently workings towards a Level 3 in Early Years.
Shannon
Early Years Practitioner
I recently graduated from the University of Brighton and am incredibly excited to continue studying and completing my Early Years Educator training as part of my apprenticeship.
Skye
Early Years Practitioner
I have just enrolled in my apprenticeship, studying towards my level 3 qualification to be an Early Years Educator. I have a little nephew and my caring for him really elevated my drive to begin my new, exciting journey!
Izzy
Nursery Support Practitioner
I am currently studying for an Early Childhood Education degree at the University of Brighton. I am really enjoying working at Hassocks Day Nursery alongside my degree course.
Anita
QTS Early Years Teacher
I love supporting all children and their families with every small step of learning. I am really enjoying working in early years education again having previously worked as an Assistant Headteacher and a childminder.
Alison
QTS Early Years Teacher
I am a qualified primary teacher and spent 27 years teaching reception classes. I am passionate about early years and love working at Hassocks Day Nursery in a part-time capacity.
Katie
Admissions and Administrator
As a Level 3 Early Years Educator I've worked in a number of nursery settings. I currently provide admissions and administration support for Hassocks Day Nursery.
Carly
Marketing and and Admissions
With a degree and 20 years experience in Marketing I provide admissions and marketing support for Hassocks Day Nursery.
Debbie
Care and Education and Business Director (Nursery Owner) EYTS, BA Hons, PGCE
I am an active nursery owner who enjoys supporting the management teams to ensure that the nursery reaches its full potential. My aim is to create nurturing environments that resemble home, where children can thrive.
George
Human Resources (Nursery Owner) PGDip
I enjoy using my therapeutic understanding to ensure we maintain a positive and supportive work environment for our team and work closely with our leaders to ensure our staff are well cared for and enjoying their days with us.
Early Years Free Entitlement
From 9 months old
15 Hours Free Childcare
The 15-hour funding is offered at Hassocks Day Nursery and Preschool. The government promote 15 free hours based on term-time-only attendance over 38 weeks a year. This is a total of 570 hours per year. We are open 51 weeks a year, so your funding is stretched over those 51 weeks, giving you 11 hours a week free.
9 months old+
Available now, book your place now and check your eligibility online.
From 24 months old+
Available now, book your place now and check your eligibility online.
30 Hours Free Childcare
The 30-hour funding is offered at Hassocks Day Nursery and Preschool. The government promote 30 free hours based on term-time-only attendance over 38 weeks a year. This is a total of 1140 hours per year. We are open 51 weeks a year, so your funding is stretched over those 51 weeks, giving you 22 hours a week free.
9 months to 3 years old
Available from 1st September 2025, book now, eligibility can be checked later, when available.
3-Year-olds
Available now, book your place now and check your eligibility online.
Example Fees and Discounts
We get how tough it can be to juggle work and parenting. But don’t worry, we’ve got your back! To make your life easier, we offer a range of session times that are flexible and convenient. So you can take care of your work commitments and still have plenty of time to spend with your loved ones. We’ve got you covered! Here are some examples of how you can use our varied session options.
Sessions
We charge a simple hourly rate for those without funding. Our peripatetic classes are included within this fee; you just pay for lunch and/ or tea. These fees are for weekly schedules without any funding applied. If you would like to do a mixture of funded and nonfunded sessions, please revert to our funded fee schedule. You can choose morning, afternoon, or longer day sessions. Minimum session lengths apply.
Morning or afternoon sessions must be a minimum of 4 hours. The morning session should finish by 1 p.m, and the afternoon session should start after 1 p.m.
You can set session times to suit your needs, the minimum session length is 8 hours.
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Additional Hours outside of our usual session times or Sessions can be booked during registration or on an ad hoc basis. Subject to availability and restrictions.
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Between 8 am and 6 pm.
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£10 per hour
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You can choose to pay an optional weekly enrichment fee to cover peripatetic classes, occasional trips, lunch and tea.
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EYFE hours are free
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Subject to availability. We also reserve the right to request that funded hours only be used on certain days where availability allows, for example, we may request that at least 5 hours of funding must be used on a Friday. Those days may vary from term to term as availability fluctuates.
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Please contact us for more information and about current availability.
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We offer attendance either all year round for 51 weeks or term time only for 42 weeks a year.
Our meals for all year round attendance without funding are
£2.50 for Tea (Discounted from £3.50 for TTO)
£3.50 for Lunch
Children attending over our lunchtime and teatime will pay for the meals.
Your meal fee can cover your meal and tea costs during your funded hours, but you may choose to supply your own meals following our strict food from home policy.
A typical day at our nursery
Our Early Years Educators follow daily routines designed to help your child feel secure and confident, all while engaging in new and varied fun and educational activities daily.
When arriving parents and children are greeted by our educators, who welcome and assist in each child’s transition into the setting. Play holds significant value in our mornings as children interact with educators whilst also participating in free play before the morning snack. Engaging in free play supports the development of various skills and plays a crucial role in fostering holistic growth. Our educators dedicate specific time blocks to free play throughout the day and help children to independently explore self-driven play.
A nutritious breakfast is provided before 8:30 am to kick start the day!
We promote free play and dedicate time throughout the day to self driven play and learning.
After time is spent fostering relationships and engaging in free play, we come together for a nutritious morning snack to fuel us for the day ahead. A fresh fruit snack is provided, offering older children the opportunity to take part in preparing their own chosen item by chopping and peeling. Children gather during snack time, accompanied by their key person, allowing the group to share thoughts and reflect on the morning activities so far.
Following snack, some much needed fresh air is required. Children support each other to put their shoes on, put their coat on and get ready for a visit to the garden! Children engage in pre planned group activities and free play opportunities which have been carefully prepared by the educators.
Later in the morning, our focus transitions to shared learning and exploration. Children partake in group learning sessions that contribute to their sense of belonging, covering educational themes like wildlife, nutrition, and sustainability. Children are then encouraged to engage in a variety of captivating, interest-driven activities aimed at enhancing individual development. These activities, thoughtfully curated by our experienced educators, encompass creative arts, storytelling, music, movement, science, mathematics, and an array of enriching experiences.
We emphasise the significance of respectful mealtimes as a fundamental component of our routine. Our communal meals follow a family-style approach, fostering connections between educators and children who share thoughts and ideas. Mealtimes also serve as an environment for older children to practice self-sufficiency skills. Children are gently encouraged to independently serve and feed themselves, with educators offering guidance when needed.
Following lunch, children engage in a period of rest. After an engaging and active morning, this rest time provides crucial opportunities for physical rejuvenation and emotional relaxation. While older children typically rest after their meal, the timing of rest for younger children and babies is tailored to meet their individual needs. Rest may include a nap or some meditation time, depending on the children's individual routines.
After waking up from their nap or completing their rest, children are greeted with engaging new activities to spark their curiosity. The afternoon serves as a gradual transition back into the realms of learning and play.
Educators introduce fresh educational tasks that typically build upon the morning’s lessons, fostering a sense of learning continuity. Before delving into child-directed play, there’s an allotted period for a shared afternoon snack, usually consisting of vegetables, such as green beans and hummus, and a rice cake or similar.
During child-driven play sessions, children receive guidance in navigating their social and physical surroundings, enabling them to explore and construct their understanding of the world while interacting with peers.
As the day nears its conclusion, children are presented with the chance to engage in structured or spontaneous activities. We aim to optimise every moment, so the late afternoon is also brimming with music, dance, storytelling, outdoor adventures, and various other pursuits.
For those remaining after 5:15 pm, a communal tea is held. This period is dedicated to nurturing emotional awareness and resilience as we collectively reflect on our shared experiences of the day.
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Join Our Team
We’re looking for ambitious people to join our dedicated Early Years team.
At Hassocks Day Nursery and Preschool, we are a close-knit team of friendly and driven individuals who share the common vision to make a difference in the lives of babies, young children, and their families through the delivery of nurturing care and quality education.
What our parents think...
The genuine passion and dedication of the team shine through in everything they do. As parents, it’s a huge relief knowing our son is in such capable hands, and we couldn’t ask for a better place to kickstart his early education journey. We wholeheartedly recommend Hassocks Nursery to any parent looking for a safe, enriching, and joyful environment for their little one!
We are absolutely thrilled with the care and attention our son receives at Hassocks Nursery. From day one, the staff have been warm, welcoming, and truly invested in our child’s growth and well-being. The nurturing environment fosters creativity, curiosity, and confidence, and we have seen incredible progress. What stands out most is how the staff tailor their approach to meet each child’s unique needs, ensuring they feel supported and valued.
Get in Touch
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