Independant Nursery in Ipswich
Welcome to Our Modern Nursery (Ages 2–4)
Discover Why Little Jo’s Is the Right Choice for Your Family
With 15 or 30 hours of funded Early Years childcare, fresh meals, wrap-around care and more, Little Jo’s is a nurturing environment where bright futures begin.
Flexible Care
We offer flexible, all-day care for children aged
2–4, from 8am to 6pm, year-round (50 weeks).
Early Years Funding
Explore Your Funding Options with Confidence.
Our dedicated team is here to guide you every step of the way. We proudly offer 15 or 30 funded Early Years hours to support your family’s needs.
Sleep & Sensory
Your child’s needs and routines will be seamlessly continued at Little Jo’s. With dedicated spaces and caring staff, we create a nurturing environment where every child feels safe, supported and inspired to learn and grow.
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65 Acre Playground
Little Jo’s benefits from being nestled within our stunning 65-acre woodland, which children explore weekly, gaining a deep connection with nature.
Performance Sport
We ensure continuity and progression,
with consistent high-calibre coaching, access to facilities and professional-level
support at all stages from 2-19 years. This helps students feel empowered and supported, regardless of their age or skill level.
NURSERY SCHOOL
Bright Futures Begin at Little Jo’s
Our friendly experienced staff build strong bonds with each child, helping them grow in confidence through play-based learning, from music and dance to art and sport.
We’ve recently added a new sensory and sleep room so your child’s needs and routines will be seamlessly continued at Little Jo’s
Discover why Little Jo’s is the right choice for your family!
Water, sand and mud
Curriculum might sound like a strangely grown-up word to use in connection with very young children, but although the learning in our nursery is play-based and child-led, it is purposeful. Every activity is thoughtfully designed to inspire curiosity, independence, and a love of learning.
At Little Jo’s, the world is our classroom. Set within the stunning 65-acre grounds of St Joseph’s College, children benefit from regular outdoor learning and nature-based exploration. Whether they’re hunting for bugs, building dens, or simply enjoying fresh air, these experiences nurture confidence, resilience and a deep connection with the natural world.
Physical development is also at the heart of our curriculum. From their earliest steps, children enjoy specialist sport sessions led by professional coaches. Through active play and early exposure to structured sport, we help children build coordination, strength, and a lifelong love of movement.
As with every other area in the Nursery, sport is guided by fun. Very small children are developing rapidly and vary in the degree of coordination they can muster. But with heaps of energy and enthusiasm, they tend to come on in leaps and bounds.
Play in itself builds physical dexterity, and we add weekly PE multi-sports sessions in the school hall with specialist sports staff. Come the summer, we have a delightful Nursery Sports Day with a mix of (short) races and engaging physical challenges.
Freedom to make their marks in their own way, is the guiding principle of Nursery art. Free painting and drawing allow children the opportunity to express themselves and try to capture the world as they know it. With a little help, they move on to collage, creating little masterpieces of cutting and sticking. Junk modelling is very popular too.
Session by session our Nursery children grow in confidence as they print successfully, use scissors carefully and place one object upon another. Just think of those Easter cards and Christmas presents that will be coming home.
We believe in taking part; in everybody having a go. The performing arts bring joy into the lives of participants and audiences alike. Our specialist music and dance teachers know just how to get those rhythms beating and toes leaping. Come to our annual Nursery Nativity play and you’ll see how far and fast our youngest performers have come on.
Dressing up isn’t just for the public stage either. Our cheerful Nursery is equipped with a shop, a kitchen and a market stall just ready to be brought to life through the children’s imaginations and our dressing-up box is wonderfully deep.
With two nursery gardens to play in, plus a small vegetable patch and a fully equipped mud kitchen – soil soup, anyone? Children are given every incentive to get out in the fresh air to have fun with their friends.
Welly walks take our bold explorers further into the spacious green of St Joseph’s campus – as far as the Gruffalo Wood, away beyond the Senior sports pitches. Found materials such as leaves, twigs and feathers are treasures to be worked into pictures and potions.
WHO WE ARE
Meet the Nursery School team
Mrs Laura Barker
Mrs Susana Uru
Senior Nursery Assistant
I have over 10 years of Early Years experience, working in settings in Suffolk. I have a particular interest in gardening and enjoy sharing this passion with the children at St Joseph’s Nursery.
Mrs Iolanda Martins
Nursery Assistant
I have over 10 years of Early Years experience, working in schools in Suffolk. I have a love for drawing, reading and writing and enjoy sharing these passions with the children in St Joseph’s Nursery.
FAQs
Here you’ll find answers to some of the most commonly asked questions about Little Jo’s Nursery.
Still have a question? Get in touch with our admissions team, we’re always happy to help.
What is different about your Nursery provision?
Little Jo’s Nursery offers wraparound care from 8am to 6pm, year-round (50 weeks), with fresh meals cooked daily. Set within 65 acres of playgrounds, woodlands, and excellent sports facilities, we provide a vibrant, nurturing environment where children thrive. Early Years funding (15 or 30 hours) is also available. We’re confident our nursery is a truly unique place to grow and learn.
My child is still in nappies. Will this be a problem?
We cater for children from two years old and are equipped with nappy changing facilities, ready to do the necessary.
An 8.00 am start helps me as a working parent but my son/daughter won’t eat breakfast so early. Can you help?
Families are very welcome to send their child’s breakfast to school with them. A showdown over breakfast at home is quite unnecessary when a leisurely breakfast at Nursery is an option.
Which meals are served during the day?
Children are provided with simple morning and afternoon snacks. A full hot lunch is brought across from the College kitchen to provide an appetising and wholesome meal in the middle of the day. Then there’s Nursery tea at 4.00 pm.
How do you ensure that children of different age groups can safely and comfortably play together in the playground?
The beauty of being connected to St Joseph’s Prep School is that the children have access to great facilities and teachers. They’re part of the Prep School community. However, the Nursery has its own space with designated areas, such as its own adjacent playground.
Will my child need to wear a uniform?
The only extras needed for St Jo’s Nursery are wellies, waterproofs and a sense of adventure for our mud kitchen and 65-acre grounds. Little St Jo’s red sweatshirts are available to buy – but these are optional.
Prep School
Looking for an independent Prep school that’s all about creating the very best chances for your child’s success?
Explore Prep
Open Days
Discover St Joseph’s College, an independent school with a reputation for outstanding pastoral care. Join us for one of our open days to experience our community firsthand.
Book a visit
Why St Jo’s?
We believe in the exceptional spirit of St Joseph’s College and the benefits our ethos brings. You will too when you get to know us.
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