We have been running for over 30 years and provide an exciting and stimulating environment for our Little Deers, surrounded by our beautiful Ashdown Forest.
Our Preschool is a Committee Run Preschool. However, we do encourage all parents to get involved as much as they wish, whether on the committee or not, everyone can help and rest assured we are very welcoming and full of fun! We thrive on becoming part of your extended family, sharing knowledge and celebrating the children’s achievements with you. Being part of our very special preschool is often a long term pleasure for many of our dedicated parents and carers. CLICK HERE TO MEET OUR COMMITTEE MEMBERS >
Preschool Manager, SENCO & Designated Safeguarding Lead
Preschool Assistant
Preschool Assistant
Preschool Assistant
Preschool Chair of the Committee
Our goal is to present learning opportunities in a stimulating, diverse and fun way. Your children will be given every opportunity to safely explore the world around them, and will be nurtured in a stimulating environment that is supportive, sensitive and most importantly… FUN!
We aim to prepare all children socially and academically for Reception Class. Inclusive for all levels of learning abilities.
We get to know each child as an individual. We meet and exceed all safeguarding and Ofsted requirements.
We support the Forest School Learning Initiative. We take full advantage of the extensive and secure forest surrounding Nutley, going on nature walks to collect conkers, walks to investigate pond life and feed the sheep and horses. We’ve even explored the woodland for dinosaurs!
We have a rolling drop off period between 08:45 am and 09:15 am, and the Little Deers get all settled in for the day. Welcome time is a special hello to each child and a little cuddle with their quiet critters, handmade with love. Free play kicks off, followed by a focus activity, and of course some outdoor fun in our beautiful garden or a walk on the Ashdown Forest!
The toys on offer include construction, small world, role play, puzzles to name a few. The focus activity can be anything from baking to dancing, to creative activities or reading a story in a tent.
Snack time is held between 10:15 – 10:45am where the children are then offered milk or water, and are given the choice of several fruits, vegetables, dips and a savoury option. Lunchtime is at 12:00 – 1:00pm and they can choose a place to sit and can help a member of the staff team to give out the lunchboxes. The 1:00 pm – 3:00pm session includes free play, garden time or forest walks, and of course a little bit of quiet time and a story.
Learning through play and our environment are very important to us at Little Deers. Trips to forest are top of our list! We love to go put on our wellies and go exploring with our little back packs. The children are fantastic at spotting interesting bugs and beasties.
Part of our ethos at Little Deers is to enable the children to be creative in their learning. Playing and learning go hand in hand. Each day is packed full of everything from construction toys, arts and crafts to role play.
Music and dancing are very much part of our day. We have a wide range of instruments and often make our own which the children love.
Music Bus (see HERE for more details) runs every other Tuesday morning for 30-40 minutes at preschool. All children are invited to attend who are at preschool on Tuesday mornings, we will only ask for a voluntary contribution to the overall cost.
We have an excellent outdoor space which we use at ever opportunity along with our lovely cabin which houses plenty of toys and activity boxes. We celebrate sports day ever summer and invite all our parents and carers to come along to cheer and of course take part too! Its a fabulously fun day!
Tiny Tekkers (see HERE for more details) runs every other Thursday morning for 1 hour. All children are invited to attend who are at preschool on Thursday mornings, we will only ask for a voluntary contribution to the overall cost.
We moved to Nutley in 2015 with my son, a tiny baby at the time, mainly attracted by the local CofE school. I joined in the local baby group, Nutley Nutkins, and Sunrise Cafe, run by the church. I quickly made so many wonderful friends and settled straight into the community – a community I didn’t really know existed here!
I learnt about Nutley Preschool and couldn’t wait for my son to join! Since having my daughter now too, Nutley Preschool is a huge part of our life and helped me overcome the thought of sending my child to a nursery when I went back to work. It’s far more than just a preschool at Nutley and we and our children have made lifelong friends by being part of the Little Deers family!Mum to Max and Olivia
My daughter has been at nutley Preschool since she was 2, and we have never looked back. She loves going there and runs through the door every morning. The setting is brilliant, their garden is large and they spend a great deal of time outside playing. She also loves going on the forest walks. The Preschool try to get the children out as much as possible and with being right on the Ashdown Forest this makes for some fab outings. All the staff are brilliant and so knowledgable. They’ve recently added some extra activities such as music bus and tiny tekkers which my daughter gets so excited by. It really is a super Preschool and I can’t rate it highly enough.Mum to Poppy, age 4
Little Deers along with Nutley CofE Primary School was such a big influence in our decision to move to Nutley. We were given such a warm welcome by the staff at Little Deers when we came to look around that we knew that this was where we wanted to send our son. Our son has only been with the preschool since September 2019 and he has been loving every minute. He tells me all about his mornings, painting, train tracks, throwing leaves, playing with snow, making biscuits, bug hunting to name but a few. We’re really glad he’s there and when he has his off days the staff know just how to make him feel at home whilst we work. I feel assured and safe in the knowledge that my precious little boy is at Little Deers.Mum to James, 3
Having used a number of day nursery’s previously we were a little apprehensive about joining a Preschool. However our worries were quickly forgotten when we were welcomed by not just the Little Deers team but the wonderful community that surrounds the preschool. As new members of the village we were surprised at how we were made to feel ‘part to it’ straight away. Our son loved all the forest adventures and we saw his learning take huge leaps in such a short space of time. The transition to the primary school was seamless and meant that Noah was confident and excited to make the move without any tears. Mum to Noah, age 3
