Open all year round
Open 7.30am - 6.30pm
Fully funded places
Free December offer
Our quiet residential location in Dartington, just a short drive from the A38, offers families in the Dartington community and nearby Ivybridge, Ashburton, and Buckfastleigh a home-from-home environment for their young ones to blossom.
The qualified team at our Ofsted-rated ‘Good’ hdc Dartington Nursery welcomes visitors to tour our facilities and see the vast amount of outdoor space at our fingertips where children experience their first steps into early years education first-hand.
With child development at the heart of everything we do, we offer a stimulating and nurturing natural environment where children can explore their curiosity and build independence. We encourage outdoor learning whenever possible and aim to pass on a love of the outdoors, teaching them how to care for their world and environment.
Children can experience planting, growing, harvesting, and food-to-plate so they know where their food comes from. Using resources from our outdoor area, children can welcome guests to their bug hotel.
We can often be found frequenting the local park in Dartington or even on a bus ride adventure to Totnes Library.
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View Ofsted report
The Brighter Learning Approach (BLA) is unique to The Old Station Nursery group and is our advanced approach to the Early Years Foundation Stage curriculum and core pedagogy. It differs from traditional nursery teaching methods by providing real-life opportunities to enhance children’s natural curiosity, with emphasis on hands-on experiences, child-led learning, and whole development.
The six core areas promote active engagement and critical thinking whilst encouraging exploration, creativity, and collaboration. Each child learns at their own pace and is challenged and extended at appropriate times.
The best place to see the BLA in action is via our local nursery Facebook page, where each post explains which part of the curriculum the children are working on. Our parents also receive updates on the Parent App too.
Championing children's holistic health and laying the foundations for a happy, healthy and successful life.
Helping the future generation of global citizens to understand the world they live in and to believe they can make a difference.
Enabling early experiences in Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics (STEAM). Nurturing our next generation of investigators, inventors and innovators.
Enticing children to develop a life-long love of books and reading through engaging and interactive storytelling experiences. Building strong literacy skills while sparking imagination and creativity.
Engaging children in meaningful mathematical learning. Developing knowledge, building skills and exploring concepts, through purposeful play and plenty of practice.
Developing confident communicators by engaging in quality conversations with children every day, in a language rich and communication friendly environment.
Free-flow activities at our Dartington nursery offer indoor and outdoor learning with natural resources. Whatever the weather, children can put on their wellies, enjoy the fresh air and discover and explore the plants, flowers, bugs and vegetables at their fingertips.
We hold a variety of themed activities and clubs as part of our Brighter Learning Approach, our bespoke programme to enhance the Early Years Statutory Framework.
At Dartington nursery Budding Artists are encouraged to explore their creativity through activities such as painting, drawing, and crafts. With a host of resources available, children are encouraged to experiment with colours and textures, and create imaginative masterpieces that showcase their unique talents.
Budding musicians can explore different instruments at our Dartmouth nursery, as well as enjoying rhythmic games, and participating in interactive sing-along sessions. They’ll discover the joy of creating melodies, understanding beats, and expressing themselves through music. Each activity is carefully crafted to inspire a love for music and develop their auditory skills in a fun and engaging environment.
Our children love nothing more than when the team calls time for meal preparation or works with the children to produce a teatime dessert or baking morning. The children learn so much in these activities including measuring, counting skills and following instructions.
From seedlings to fully developed fruit and vegetables, our children thoroughly enjoy learning what our food and plants need to thrive and survive, gaining a lifelong understanding of respecting their environment.
Mathematics is introduced when transplanting carrots by measuring the distance between plants and the depth they need to dig and sowing wildflower seeds encourages chatter about their benefits to insects and pollination.
There is always an opportunity for learning at our Dartington nursery, with a visit to the local park allowing our team to teach the children about road safety.
On arrival, our gross motor skills take over to play football, running, jumping, ball catching, and participating in parachute games.
Continuing our natural and outdoor ethos at HDC Dartington Nursery, children can experience the miracle of metamorphosis with a butterfly farm and tadpoles, eagerly awaiting each stage of the process.
When children develop a new interest, our team supports their learning. When the ‘hot’ topic of volcanoes arose, children were encouraged to build their own. By mixing bicarbonate of soda, food colouring, and vinegar, they could create a volcano scene and watch it erupt.
Our nursery group is passionate about the link between home and nursery; the nursery experience is as much about the parent as it is for the child.
hdc Dartington Nursery commits to verbally updating you about your child’s day at pick-up time and via digital updates on the parent App.
We are here at any time should you wish to call us or want to discuss any area of your child’s care. We aim to look after our parents as well as our children so you can carry on with your day, work and career with a sense of peace.
First and foremost, you and we need to know that your child is safe. Before we can deliver the excellent curriculum that makes our nurseries so special, robust policies and procedures are followed to meet the exacting standards of Ofsted, building and fire regulations, food safety standards and staff DBS background checks and references.
Our staff are trained in numerous areas and we offer further training opportunities for staff who have an interest in a particular area. For example, some of our nurseries have attained Millie’s Mark, an accreditation gained by having 100% of staff on site trained in paediatric first aid.
Our cook prepares nutritious hot meals on-site at HDC Dartington Nursery, taking into consideration the dietary preferences and food intolerances of the children in our care.
Our love of gardening enables us to discuss the importance of healthy eating and nutrition during the early stages of childhood. We use the produce we have grown in our garden in our meals so that children can enjoy the fruits of their labour.
Every child has a nursery key person who knows them best and who will be the child and parent’s main contact. Your key person at our nursery will update you about your child’s day and is there to answer your questions.
When your child moves to the next age group room, we hold several settling sessions with a new nursery key person. We encourage our parents to view the new room too, and we will work with you to discuss the new routines, just like we did when you first started nursery.
It is wonderful to nurture and see our children graduate to primary school. Part of the unique offering of hdc Dartington Nursery is our focus on the next stage of your child’s learning journey.
We prepare the children through school activities, teacher meet and greets and graduation ceremonies. Our commitment is to support our parents too by providing child learning journey updates, parents evenings or one-to-ones and home link learning kits to enhance the link between nursery and home.
All our nurseries follow the Brighter Learning Approach, our bespoke version of the Early Years Statutory Framework. Within this, each nursery chooses extra clubs, activities, and enhancements suitable for their space.
hdc Dartington Nursery enjoys multiple clubs, including Budding Gardeners, Budding Movers, Budding Scientists, and cooking clubs. We also hold open days where parents and carers are encouraged to come along and meet other parents to build their own personal friendships and networks ahead of primary school.
hdc Dartington Nursery commits to providing a simple fee structure so you can manage your nursery costs.
At this nursery, we provide private and government-funded sessions for eligible parents. Contact us for the nursery fee that is correct for your individual circumstances.
Our Orchard room for babies ages 0 – 18 months places emphasis on discovering senses, textures, colours and smells. This room is carefully structured to allow for quiet spaces made for sleeping and relaxation, as well as suitable areas with equipment to encourage messy play.
With a strong emphasis on developing relationships, trust and reassurance from key carers, babies have space to move around and discover the outside with the room leading onto a private decking area overlooking the garden.
Before transitioning to a new room, key carers prepare a full assessment and transition document to support colleagues’ understanding of children’s individual needs and preferences.
Following settling-in sessions increasing in time over a period of weeks, children learn to express themselves in our Meadow room.
A large variety of resources and natural objects encourage your child’s curiosity and children begin to discover a love for the natural world and an active lifestyle.
Our Forest room children at hdc Dartington Nursery enjoy cosy spaces where they can develop a love of reading and imagination in the role-play areas—speech and language skills really grow here.
Children experience a mix of child-led and adult-led activities, encouraging a holistic approach to learning whilst developing their knowledge of food and the environment. Promoting a healthy lifestyle at our Dartington nursery is incredibly important to us. That’s why we encourage as much outdoor time as possible.
Children begin the journey of school readiness in our Treetops room. Daily activities are more structured and specially designed to encourage independence, with our team focusing on supporting families and children in the transition.
Through new experiences of planting, harvesting and cooking, children listen to instructions, form friendships and develop emotional intelligence.
We’re excited to extend our ‘Free December’ offer to new families who register and start at our nursery by the 30th of September 2024. If you secure your child’s place before the 30th of September 2024, you’ll enjoy December 2024 free of charge—a perfect holiday gift for your family. Don’t miss out on this limited-time opportunity. View terms and conditions.
“We are one big family at hdc Dartington Nursery; the team and I nurture and care for the children as if they were our own. We get to know the children and their families inside and out, providing activities around their likes and interests. Our exciting outdoor environment makes early years education fun and changes with the seasons."
Melissa Jordan, Nursery Manager at hdc Dartington Nursery
Please note that this is not a confirmation of your tour. One of our nursery team will endeavour to get back to you ASAP to confirm your date and time. Thank you.
If you are looking to arrange a tour within the next 48 hours, we recommend calling the nursery directly.