Smart Start Nurseries & Preschool

An inbuilt soft play frame, an indoor sand pit and a room for messy creativity give Smart Start Nurseries & Preschool a clear physical character. This Underwood Lane setting in Crewe combines space for movement with painting, making and early learning, rather than relying solely on table activities. It serves children aged two to four and has 26 places in total.

At its July 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good and judged its safeguarding arrangements effective. The practical proposition is equally clear: a term-time preschool following Cheshire East school terms, with funded morning, afternoon and daytime attendance patterns.

For families with older children at school, that shared calendar can simplify the nursery year. For children, the combination of indoor physical play and outdoor access means movement has a place alongside stories, early number and creative work.

Rooms and Ages

Toddlers, for ages two to three, combines stories and songs with messy activities and first attempts at making marks, while developing everyday independence, personal care and toilet learning. Preschool, for ages three to four, brings together early number, phonics and outdoor activity, adding a school readiness programme during the summer term to prepare children for their next stage.

The physical spaces give those activities substance. Children can practise balance and climbing on the inbuilt soft play frame, explore the indoor sand pit and use the messy room for dough, printing, painting and making things from recycled materials. These are different ways to use hands and bodies, with room for creative choices as well as physical challenges.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage provides the framework for children's learning, development and care: here, songs, stories, play and practical activities bring that learning into the day. The routine alternates activities led by adults with opportunities for children to choose their play, rather than making the whole day one continuous group task.

A welcome circle includes singing and planning; outdoor activity follows, with stories and handwashing before lunch. Quiet activities sit alongside lunch, and the afternoon brings further adult-led learning, free play and soft play. That sequence gives families a concrete picture of how active experiences and quieter moments fit together.

In July 2024, children practised counting through songs, explored sea creatures and learnt dance routines. Staff introduced vocabulary through conversation and listened closely to children's contributions. These examples show learning attached to subjects children were interested in, rather than number and language treated only as separate exercises.

Outdoor and Community Life

Outdoor access extends the physical offer beyond the soft play frame. Children play outside in different weather conditions, so coats and wellies belong in their nursery kit.

In July 2024, outdoor activities included football and circle games, while younger children tackled a course involving jumping and balance. Children also met farm animals and explored animal lifecycles and care for wildlife. Those experiences connected physical challenges with opportunities to learn about living things.

Settling sessions take place before a child's start date, giving families an introduction to nursery life before regular attendance begins. Daily communication through a parent app is included, so the relationship with home continues beyond those first sessions.

At the July 2024 inspection, Ofsted found that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities received good support through access to learning and work with external professionals, but asked for stronger staff supervision to improve interactions and more teaching about healthy food choices. These are useful distinctions: the positive judgement does not remove the two specific areas requiring attention.

In July 2024, staff spent time learning about children and their families during settling. Comfortable areas offered somewhere to pause, and stories helped children explore feelings. For children learning English alongside another language, staff used bilingual books and familiar words from home languages, connecting nursery learning with children's existing language experience.

Independence also had practical expression in July 2024: younger children helped clear away toys and washed their hands before food, while older children managed coats and helped set the lunch table. These small tasks made preparation for school part of everyday care, rather than something confined to a separate activity.

Children bring lunch and snacks from home, allowing families to organise their food for the nursery day. Parents also supply nappies, wipes and sun cream; children using nappies need their own labelled supplies, and sunny-day kit includes a hat.

Sessions and Attendance

The nursery is at Unit 3, 1 Underwood Lane, Crewe, CW1 3JX. It operates for 38 weeks each year, following Cheshire East school terms, with opening hours of 8am to 4pm Monday to Thursday and 8am to 3pm on Friday. That is a term-time calendar, with a shorter opening window at the end of the week.

The 15 hours funding session has two stated options: 9am to noon or noon to 1pm. The 30 hours funding session runs from 9am to 3pm. Additional hours can be purchased separately, giving families a paid extension beyond their agreed funded attendance.

Enquiries go through the nursery's contact form, with a response within one working day. The form allows families to specify Underwood Lane, the child's age and their preferred attendance or start date, keeping the enquiry tied to this setting.

Funding and Paid Extras

Underwood Lane offers 15 and 30 hour funded childcare and funding for eligible two-year-olds, delivered during term time. Funded hours carry no top-up charge here; meals and snacks come from home, as do nappies, wipes and sun cream. Those supplies remain part of the family's preparation even where the childcare hours are funded.

Activities, resources, outings, app updates and settling sessions are included. There is no registration charge, and fees for additional hours are invoiced monthly in advance. Payment can be made through standing order, childcare vouchers or Tax-Free Childcare; current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

Ending or reducing a place requires one month's written notice. Fees are reviewed each September, with families given at least a month's notice of a change. The fees and funding terms set out the charging structure.

• The afternoon funding pattern. The stated afternoon option for 15-hour funding is noon to 1pm. At a show round, clarify how that session works within your child's agreed weekly attendance.
• Teaching interactions and food learning. The July 2024 improvement points concerned staff supervision and children's understanding of healthy food choices. Ask how staff now receive feedback and how food learning fits a nursery where lunches come from home.
• A school-term calendar. Attendance follows Cheshire East terms for 38 weeks, and Friday opening ends at 3pm. Families need that pattern to work alongside their own childcare commitments.

Smart Start suits families seeking term-time preschool with either shorter morning or afternoon attendance, or a funded 9am to 3pm day. Its clearest strengths for choosing between settings are concrete: indoor soft play, sand, messy creativity and outdoor access, with parents supplying food and personal-care consumables.

The July 2024 Good judgement gives a useful quality reference, while the improvement points provide specific subjects for a visit. For families comfortable with the term-time calendar and home-packed food, Underwood Lane offers a clear combination of physical play, early learning and funded attendance without top-up charges.