Big Kids Little Kids Nursery & Out of Schools Club

An Indoor Garden and Mud Kitchen give preschool play a clear physical setting at Big Kids Little Kids Nursery & Out of Schools Club. Younger children have separate Baby Room and Toddler Room provision, with care organised around babies’ routines and toddlers’ growing independence. This is a nursery where the differences between developmental stages shape the day.

At its January 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good, found safeguarding effective and judged support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities positively. That judgement is dated. The practical offer includes children from two months old, with capacity for 104 children across the setting, rather than that number describing any individual room.

Families can choose term-time attendance or a stretched funded arrangement across the year. The distinction matters for parents fitting childcare around school terms or needing continuity beyond them.

Rooms and Ages

Baby Room care follows the individual routines shared by parents and carers. Each baby has a key worker, giving families a particular practitioner around whom to build communication. Moves to the next stage are approached gradually; continuity of care is the useful detail here, rather than a single timetable imposed on babies.

Toddler Room has a spacious layout with different areas children can choose to explore, plus accessible toilets and handwashing facilities to support toilet training. Planning takes individual children into account. Visits to the preschool room introduce the next stage before the move itself, giving children time to become familiar with a different setting.

Pre-School Room combines a large learning space with access to the Indoor Garden and Mud Kitchen, alongside an emphasis on independence and preparation for school. Those named spaces give parents concrete environments to discuss, while the room’s emphasis shifts towards children doing more for themselves.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) supplies the standards for children’s early learning and care. Here, that means development is addressed through room planning, exploration, play and attention to what each child needs next, rather than simply keeping children occupied.

In January 2022, babies practised reaching, grasping and walking, while toddler activities addressed language and playing alongside others. Story reading brought children close to staff, with familiar books encouraging them to listen and join in. These examples show how ordinary experiences can carry a learning purpose: movement for babies, communication for toddlers and listening through shared stories.

Outdoor and Community Life

In January 2022, children made frequent trips to shops and parks nearby, and had also visited a mosque and church. Harvest Festival at the church was one example of participation in community celebrations, introducing children to experiences beyond the nursery rooms. These are examples from that period, rather than a current outings timetable.

Relationships and Communication

Baby Room care follows individual routines shared by parents and carers. The key worker arrangement gives that exchange a personal point of contact, and gradual room transitions extend the same attention to changes within the nursery.

For toddlers, the key worker completes a development check at age two after settling, usually after six to eight weeks. The check provides a point at which development can be reviewed and support considered. It sits alongside individual planning and visits to the preschool room, so assessment and transition are connected to the child’s experience rather than treated as separate events.

In January 2022, staff gathered information about care and learning needs when children started. They also helped children practise sharing, turn-taking and respect for others, using praise to encourage persistence. That gives a concrete picture of the social habits being taught at the time.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

In January 2022, additional funding supported individual targets, including one-to-one help for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. The mechanism matters: support was directed towards particular children and their next steps.

School preparation also has a practical relationship-building element. New teachers are invited to meet children in the nursery before they leave, while a graduation celebration and a leavers trip mark the transition. Meeting a future teacher in familiar surroundings gives children a connection between their nursery experience and the next stage.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is 172-176 Northgate, Darlington, DL1 1QU. Opening hours are 7.45am to 5.55pm, Monday to Friday, with closures for bank holidays and Christmas. That closing time is the useful one for arranging collection.

Term-time places and an all-year stretched funded offer serve different family calendars. Parents can contact the nursery by telephone on 01325 461 999 or email at bigkidslittlekids@live.co.uk.

Holiday club serves children aged four to twelve, with activities planned around their interests, including baking and creative work. It operates in the nursery area, extending the setting’s role beyond early-years care for families with older children.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare includes a 30-hour offer from the term after a child turns nine months, subject to terms and conditions. For children from the term after their second birthday, the offer includes 15 and 30 hours; preschool funding also includes 15 and 30 hours from the term after turning three, again subject to terms and conditions. Participation in these offers does not establish an individual family’s eligibility.

Funded sessions have a separate daily voluntary consumables charge covering snacks, meals and enhanced resources. Food and those resources therefore sit outside the funded hours themselves; the voluntary status of the charge is part of the arrangement. Families should obtain their current prices in a written quotation from the nursery.

• Baby hygiene and language modelling. The January 2022 inspection called for better cleaning of babies’ equipment after it fell to the floor and more consistent pronunciation when staff modelled words. During a visit, ask how these two aspects of daily practice are managed now.
• The funded attendance calendar. Term-time places and the stretched all-year offer meet different needs. Compare the proposed attendance calendar and the daily voluntary charge for food and enhanced resources with your family’s routine.
• The move towards school. Teacher visits, a graduation celebration and a leavers trip form part of the preschool transition. Ask how these are organised for your child’s move, especially the introduction to their new teacher.

Big Kids Little Kids suits families choosing between term-time attendance and a stretched funded arrangement across the year, with separate provision for babies, toddlers and preschool children. Baby routines, toddler toilet-training facilities and the preschool Indoor Garden and Mud Kitchen give each stage a concrete identity.

The Good judgement from January 2022 provides a dated quality reference, while the improvement points make baby-equipment hygiene and language modelling useful subjects for a visit. The strongest decision value lies in matching the room arrangements and funded attendance calendar to the child and family.