Crosby Nursery

A woodland garden, a bike track and a grassy hill give Crosby Nursery an outdoor character that goes well beyond a patch of playground. At Laughinstock House in Low Crosby, the emphasis is on children exploring, moving and becoming more independent, with outdoor play continuing whatever the weather. For families who value time outside, the garden is a substantial part of the offer.

Crosby caters for children from birth to five and has capacity for 57 children in total. At its 15 December 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good overall, with Good judgements across education, behaviour, personal development and leadership. That dated assessment sits alongside a current offer built around age-related playrooms, individual planning and a key person for each child.

Opening hours are 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, across 51 weeks of the year. Several session starting and finishing times allow families to consider different attendance arrangements.

Rooms and Ages

Five playrooms provide environments organised around children's ages. The learning spaces contain resources arranged into different areas, so children can explore and choose activities while practitioners also plan experiences for them. The balance matters: a child's interests can shape the day rather than every activity following the same adult timetable.

Outside, the youngest children have a soft floor play area for ages 0 to 2. Elsewhere, a mud kitchen, growing patch and outdoor music area offer different reasons to spend time in the garden. The bike track and hill add opportunities for movement, while the woodland garden gives children another setting for exploration.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the framework for children's learning and care, including communication, physical development and relationships. At Crosby, activities combine practitioner direction with children's own choices, with room to follow individual interests. This is the everyday foundation of the curriculum rather than an additional branded programme.

For preschool children, planned activities introduce literacy, mathematics, expressive arts and understanding the world. Their key person plans for them individually. Practical independence receives equal attention: children help prepare snack and lunch tables, use self-contained toilets, brush their teeth after meals and put on their own coats. School preparation therefore includes managing ordinary tasks as well as learning new knowledge.

In December 2022, younger children exercised their fingers and arms through dough disco sessions, while Makaton signing accompanied songs. Babies joined in familiar phrases from books, and older children explored letters through Christmas-card writing. These examples connect language and movement with activities children can take part in, rather than treating learning as a separate lesson.

Outdoor and Community Life

Outdoor play continues in wet weather, with wellies and rainproof suits used for puddle play. Sunny days bring attention to hats and sun cream. The emphasis is on making the outdoors part of the day, with children developing physical skills, playing team games and learning to judge risks.

In December 2022, children picked orchard apples and used them to make pies for families at special events. That linked growing food with preparing and sharing it. A book swap cabinet also allowed babies to take books home, connecting nursery reading with family life. Both are useful examples of learning extending beyond the activity itself.

Relationships and Communication

Settling begins with sessions before a child starts, including time with their key person. This practitioner becomes the main contact for the family, observes the child's play, plans suitable resources and shares information with colleagues involved in their care. Parents therefore have a clear person to approach, while the child's needs remain part of the wider team's work.

Home/nursery diaries support the exchange of learning information, alongside email, newsletters and regular parent meetings. Families are encouraged to share knowledge about their child, and collection from the child's room creates an opportunity to discuss the day with staff. Communication has several routes rather than depending on a single meeting format.

In December 2022, personalised induction plans supported children's first steps into nursery, and staff used familiar stories and comforting contact when children struggled with their emotions. Children also helped one another at snack time, including pouring milk and dealing with spills. These are concrete examples of care and independence developing together.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the December 2022 inspection, Ofsted judged safeguarding effective, describing staff who understood protective procedures, responded to illness and supervised children around the garden's hill and climbing equipment. That is a finding about practice at the time of the visit.

There were also two clear areas requiring attention in December 2022. Younger children sometimes received too little thinking time after questions, and staff did not consistently extend their developing speech; supervision and coaching for staff also needed to become more frequent and focused. Both matter because everyday conversations and support for practitioners shape the quality of children's experiences.

A chef prepares food fresh on the premises, with a non-processed diet introducing foods from different countries and cultures. Crosby is working towards its smile4life award, an oral-health programme covering healthy food and drink, tooth brushing, healthy lifestyles and dental visits.

Sessions and Attendance

Crosby Nursery's address is Laughinstock House, Low Crosby, Carlisle, CA6 4QP. It opens Monday to Friday from 8am until 6pm, for 51 weeks each year. Enquiries can be made by telephone or email.

Session starts are 8am, 8.45am and 1pm; finishing options are 1pm, 3.30pm, 5pm and 6pm. These are separate starting and finishing choices, rather than a single fixed day for every family. Morning and afternoon snacks are served at 10am and 2pm, with lunch at noon and tea at 4pm, making the food timetable relevant to the attendance arrangement chosen.

Getting There

A large car park sits within the grounds. For families travelling by car, that is a practical feature alongside the nursery's village setting.

Funding and Paid Extras

Crosby offers funded early education, including the 15-hour entitlement for three- and four-year-olds, 30 hours for working families who meet the criteria, and funding for eligible two-year-olds. The three- and four-year-old entitlement begins in the school term after a child's third birthday; funded care for eligible two-year-olds starts in the term after their second birthday. Eligibility conditions still apply.

Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation. Attendance choices and funded entitlement should be considered together when weighing the arrangement against a family's working week.

• Language and staff support. In December 2022, younger children's conversations were not consistently extended, and staff supervision needed greater frequency and purpose. During a visit, ask how practitioners now give children thinking time and how coaching supports that work.
• Choosing session endpoints. Starts at 8am, 8.45am or 1pm sit alongside several finishing options and a set food timetable. Discuss which combination fits your routine and how meals, consumables and any additional charges are treated within the written quotation, including for funded hours.
• An outdoor day. Puddle play, the woodland garden and the grassy hill are part of Crosby's offer. Use a visit to explore how outdoor time works for your child's age and what clothing they will need.

Crosby's strongest appeal is the connection between its generous outdoor spaces and practical independence indoors. A growing patch, mud kitchen and woodland garden give children several ways to explore, while preschool routines include setting tables, managing coats and brushing teeth. The key-person arrangement gives families a clear contact alongside those daily experiences.

It suits families looking for earlier starts or afternoon attendance, with several finishing choices, and those who want outdoor play to remain part of the day throughout the weather. The Good judgement from December 2022 provides a dated quality reference, but the language and staff-coaching findings deserve direct attention when deciding whether Crosby fits your child.