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Monday 7:45am - 5pm Tuesday 7:45am - 5pm Wednesday 7:45am - 5pm Thursday 7:45am - 5pm

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Coles Childminding

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Preston
Coles Childminding

Hello, I am a Childminder and I live in Newton, Lancashire. I love what I do daily and love that every day is different and funny. My name is Nicole Holden.

I love outdoor play and forest schools and believe that every child should be outdoors learning naturally. I have 3 children of my own, they are aged 16, 15 and 12 years of age. I have an NNEB and an NVQ level 3 in childcare learning and development. I am currently working towards my level 3 in forest schools. I have my paediatric first aid and also my outdoor first aid certificate.I have my food hygiene certificate and also nominated officers for safe guarding. I have been working within the EYFS for over 10 years and when I had my children I made the decision to become a childminder. I love my job and I love the fact that every day is different. We love the outdoors and we learn so much exploring the environment and the natural resources. Me and my fellow childminder have a plot of land that we are so lucky to use. Every Tuesday we hold a forest school session and the children get so much out of it.

07/10/2026

A spooky day in Holly-wood!

We’ve had a busy, spooky-themed day today!
We started our morning with our Room on the Broom tuff tray, and it was a real hit!
There was lots of learning happening through play — scooping, pinching, filling, exploring more and less, reading (and then a little more reading! ), and lots of imaginative play.
After a quick stop for lunch, we extended our learning with some bubble painting and had great fun painting and gluing our very own cauldrons!

We talked about colours, watched the bubbles, mixed colours together and, of course, there was plenty of popping those bubbles!

All while having our very own Room on the Broom moment…
✨ “Iggety ziggety zaggety zoom!” ✨

A day full of sensory exploration, fine motor skills, language, early maths, creativity and, most importantly, lots of fun! ❤️

And then this evening brought a very special moment…
I had the absolute pleasure of investing one of my bigger people who has been with me from day one.
It was such a privilege and an honour to share their Cub Promise together and watch them take this next little step in their journey.
And, of course, we had to give them the biggest, loudest B.R.A.V.O!

From tiny explorers to growing, confident big people — these are the moments that make what I do so incredibly special.

06/10/2026

Blackpool Zoo day!
What a brilliant day exploring Blackpool Zoo!
The dinosaurs and volcanoes were a firm favourite — especially when the volcano erupted! 🌋
We saw monkeys, tigers, lions and the cutest lion cubs.
The lioness came right up to the window, which was absolutely amazing! We also spotted giraffes, orangutans and their babies, penguins, camels and sea lions.
And the weather? 🤣 A little drizzle for most of the day, but there’s no such thing as wet weather when you’re having fun — and it certainly doesn’t bother these guys!
Back home for a chilled afternoon of role play and reading.
Perfect end to a lovely day! ❤️

05/10/2026

Monday is here!
With a few of my little ones off enjoying their hollibobs, it was just these two little adventurers today — and what a busy day we’ve had! 🥰

We started our morning at Ribby Hall swimming, and these two little people were absolutely fearless!
Jumping in, dunking under the water, crawling, sliding, splashing and generally keeping me very much on my toes! 😂
They had the BEST time and were so proud of themselves.
Afterwards, they enjoyed a little snack while I got dry and dressed, then we headed off to soft play for more climbing, crawling and exploring.
After lunch, we headed outside to the park where we had lots of fun practising and strengthening our physical development, balance, coordination and gross motor skills.
Then it was back for a well-earned snooze for one little one 😴 before finishing our day with some lovely autumn painting.
The little people used their fine motor skills to create their own autumnal pictures — lots of concentration, creativity and messy fingers!
A very busy Monday, packed full of fun, learning, fresh air and lots of opportunities to build confidence and independence. ❤️

A quick dash to see one of my older ones being invested in to squirrels 🐿️ ❤️❤️

02/10/2026

Monday started with Little Lambs and Holly-wood Forest Schools
We had lots of fun, learning to share and, of course, enjoying our favourite song time

Over to Holly-wood next, we got creative with conkers, painting with them by rolling them around inside cereal boxes! A brilliant way to explore colours while developing those fine and gross motor skills.

Tuesday we headed to AppleCast Farm, where we had a lovely time feeding the animals. Especially the donkeys 🤫 🤣
Then it was time for some physical development at the park.
Wednesday was an adventure at Mini Magees, where the little ones explored the soft play and I had a lovely treat — someone else cooking lunch for me and my little people! (It’s the small things) no washing up either - winner - winner 🤣

Wednesday night was Ridgeway Farm with the Cubs 🐻. The children tackled the maze and had such a brilliant time! Definitely recommend giving it a go. Take a look at their page for all the details about their Pumpkin Festival — it looks like so much fun!

https://ridgewayfarmblackpool.co.uk/book-tickets/

And Thursday we ended our week back at Holly-wood Forest School , making the most of another lovely day outdoors with a pumpkin themed tuff tray, going off Wednesdays decorations in mini magees with Halloween everywhere!
The ping pong eyeballs where a particular interest from one of the little people ❤️❤️

24/09/2026

Why a mixed-age setting works so beautifully…

One of the things I absolutely love about my childminding journey is watching the relationships grow between the older and younger children. ❤️

The older ones are such amazing role models. They nurture, care for and love the little ones, and naturally model wonderful behaviour for them to watch, copy and learn from. The younger ones absolutely idolise them! 🥰

Our breakfast and after-school times can, admittedly, get a little chaotic 😂, but seeing the little ones’ faces light up when the older children arrive makes it all worthwhile. The smiles, laughter and excitement are just gorgeous to see. ❤️

Today we headed out in search of conkers and were very lucky to find quite a lot - lots had already been nibbled on by the local wildlife 🤪
We then picked up the dogs and headed to Holly-wood, where Shell had created the most wonderful autumn-themed tuff tray, filled with conkers and autumn-inspired play.
The children used their fine motor skills and pincer grasp to thread pipe cleaners and create their very own conker snakes.
Such a simple activity, but packed full of learning, concentration and creativity!

And, of course, we were very lucky to have the sunshine on our side too. ☀️

23/09/2026

🐾🌿 No Hump Day here! 🌿🐾

We headed off to Beacon Fell today for a wonderful outdoor adventure!

There was so much to discover along the way. We spotted lots of wooden sculptures, including a 🐍 snake, 🦉 owl, 🐸 frog and 🪰 dragonfly, and of course we had to check in on the pond too!

The children did an amazing job walking over the uneven terrain, showing great balance, coordination and determination as we made our way all the way to the summit.

At the owl sculpture, we settled down and enjoyed reading The Gruffalo together — such a lovely way to bring a familiar story into our outdoor adventure. 📖🦉

We also spent some very patient time waiting for the bank voles to make an appearance… and when they did, they were SUPER speedy!
We spotted them lots of times and enjoyed watching their movements.
There were plenty of birds around too, and we talked about their different sizes and colours.

One of the highlights was watching the warden filling up the bird feeders. The little people sat so patiently and were completely fascinated watching what was happening. 👀🐦
A fantastic day full of nature, wildlife, physical development, language, curiosity and lots of fresh air! 🌳💚

22/09/2026

🌿🦖 Wholesome Tuesday in the Woods! 🦖🌿

What a lovely, busy day we’ve had! We spent our morning exploring the woods and getting stuck into some fantastic dinosaur-themed activities. 🥚🦕🔨

I created a dinosaur tuff tray with dinosaur eggs and used hammers to carefully investigate them. We discovered baby dinosaurs inside and had a close look at the marks and patterns imprinted on the inside of the eggs. 🔍🦖

Nature gave us plenty more to explore too! We found a huge caterpillar, lots of wriggly worms 🪱, and collected conkers. We then used gutters to roll and slide the conkers down into our tuff tray — lots of fun experimenting with speed, direction and movement!

Our day also included some much-needed sleep time, play time and tea time — a lovely balance of learning, exploring, rest and fun.

✨ Areas of Learning Covered:
• 🌱 Understanding the World – exploring nature, insects, worms and seasonal changes
• 🔢 Mathematics – exploring size, quantity, speed, direction and problem-solving
• 🗣️ Communication & Language – talking about dinosaurs, nature and what we discovered
• 🎨 Expressive Arts & Design – imaginative dinosaur play and sensory exploration
• 💪 Physical Development – using hammers, collecting natural objects and manipulating resources
• ❤️ Personal, Social & Emotional Development – confidence, independence, curiosity and enjoying shared experiences

A wholesome day full of wonder, discovery, messy hands and lots of little adventures! 🌿🦕🤎

21/09/2026

Monday is here!

After a busy weekend, we headed off to Little Lambs for some free play, snack time and singing — and singing is definitely a favourite part of their morning! 🥰

Then we headed out on a conker hunt 🌰🍂.
We looked at big and small conkers, spiky and smooth shells, white and brown colours, and counted how many conkers we could find in each shell. So much learning happening without them even realising!

Once we got back, it was time to get creative! We used our palmar and pincer grasps and fine motor skills to drill holes into our conkers, thread pipe cleaners through and glue on googly eyes to make our very own conker snakes!
They absolutely loved making them — and I think I enjoyed it just as much! 😂

We also got the paints out. We explored colour mixing, mark making and gross motor movements, experimenting with our brushes and creating our own masterpieces.

Then came the innocent request…
“Can you wash the paint brushes?” 🫣😂
Let's just say… the paint brushes weren't the only things that got washed! 🙈 Full outfit changes all round! 😂

✨ EYFS learning:
Today we supported Physical Development through fine motor activities, threading and painting, while our conker hunt encouraged Mathematics through counting, comparing size and exploring patterns. We also developed Understanding the World by exploring nature and different textures, alongside Expressive Arts and Design through colour mixing, mark making and creating our conker snakes.

A busy, messy and very happy Monday! ❤️

17/09/2026

Wow, what a week!

Playgroup followed by a trip to the zoo

Then Holly-wood for a themed tuff tray, free play, exploring, taking risks and enjoying the freedom of being outdoors

Back to Holly-wood again for me to be in my happy place and slow down a little. More outdoor exploring, another themed tuff tray and a bit of science thrown in too!

And to end the week, a trip to Worden Park to play on the park and feed the ducks

A full week of adventures, exploring, learning, taking risks, getting outdoors and making memories. ❤️
The evenings are definitely getting darker earlier now, and those darker mornings are on their way… 😳🌙 But I’m trying to embrace the cosy season, even if I’m not quite ready to say goodbye to the lighter days yet! 🍂☕️✨

10/09/2026

This morning we had a front-row seat as the tractor came along to cut the hedges! Of course, we all grabbed a chair and gathered around the windows to watch. 👀🚜
The little people were fascinated watching the big machine at work — hedge trimming has officially started everywhere since September 1st! 😉❤️
Then it was off to Hollywood for another harvest-themed tuff tray 🌾🍂. We repeated our harvest play from before because, as we know, repetition in the early years is key. It gives children the opportunity to revisit ideas, build confidence, develop their understanding and discover something new each time. ❤️
And then came our blackberry tie-dye experiment! 🫐🤎 We used blackberries and calico material, and it actually worked brilliantly! The little people absolutely loved bashing, squeezing and squishing the berries to release all those gorgeous natural juices. 🙌
There was so much sensory exploration happening — using our hands, experimenting with cause and effect, exploring colour and texture, and watching our materials transform right before our eyes.
Messy play with the best outcomes! 🥰❤️

On to prep cub camp ready for my weekend ahead ⛺️🥾🔥

Address

Preston
PR4

Opening Hours

Monday	7:45am - 5pm
Tuesday	7:45am - 5pm
Wednesday	7:45am - 5pm
Thursday	7:45am - 5pm

Telephone

07885989847

Website

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