Cromer Pre-School

Two large halls, smaller play rooms and gardens give Cromer Pre-School a character built around movement and exploration. Based at the United Reformed Church on Cromer Avenue in Low Fell, Gateshead, it combines preschool play with younger-child rooms and wraparound provision. The current age range for this setting is 24 to 60 months, with 65 places in total.

At its 26 October 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated the provision Good, found safeguarding effective and judged that individual support plans and work with families and professionals helped children with SEND make good progress. There were also improvements to make: interactions during babies’ meals and the way staff supported the youngest children’s independence needed greater consistency.

Communication with families has several practical routes. A key person coordinates each child’s progress records, while consultation opportunities and contributions from home help connect nursery learning with family life. Morning, afternoon and longer-day bookings provide different ways to use the setting.

Rooms and Ages

Panda Cubs and Pandas make up the younger-child provision: the Panda Cubs description begins at six months, with a move into Pandas from 18 months onwards. Their shared activities include painting, playdough and exploring water or mud, so children can experiment with textures and practise handling materials rather than relying on adult demonstrations. A mud kitchen brings that exploration outdoors. Families considering this provision should read the age-scope point below alongside the setting’s current age range.

Teddies is the preschool room. Here, play constructions can remain in place so children can return to an idea and develop it over time, rather than having to restart each session. Outside, gardening, making dens and pretend play give children practical reasons to plan, cooperate and try again when an idea needs changing.

Grizzlies serves wraparound and holiday care. After-school activities include making things, games and help with homework, with a quieter reading space for children who need to unwind. Holiday provision also includes cooking and outdoor activities. This gives school-aged children a different rhythm from the preschool day.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage links learning with children’s development and care: here, play, conversation, movement and adult-led activities contribute to that work. Children can choose activities indoors or outside through a free-flow arrangement, alongside experiences led by practitioners. Individual play and group activities both have a place, allowing children to pursue an interest and also practise taking part with others.

Communication has concrete additions. Makaton sign language is introduced to children, with symbols and signs around the setting supporting communication. Listening activities in the Department for Education’s Phonics programme help children make connections between sounds before linking them with letters. These sit alongside books, songs and stories rather than making early literacy solely a pencil-and-paper exercise.

Mathematical ideas are woven into activities, including counting and exploring shape or measurement. Art, music and pretend play give children ways to express ideas through materials and movement. The practical emphasis is on using skills in play, with activities planned around what children can already do.

In October 2023, older children made shakers using small materials and practised cutting paper, giving their fingers purposeful work ahead of writing. Staff developed conversations by introducing vocabulary and leaving children time to respond. Yoga also featured for older children, combining movement with opportunities to practise balance and coordination.

Relationships and Communication

A key person is each family’s main contact and maintains regular progress records. The Home/Setting contact book gives parents another route to contribute experiences from home, while an annual written report brings together the child’s development. A Learning Journey uses photographs and observations to document progress. Together, these make communication more than a brief account of what a child ate or played with.

The nursery recommends at least two settling-in visits, spread over two weeks where possible, with the option to extend if needed. Parents can stay initially until they and their child feel comfortable. At the end of a session, a key person or another practitioner explains how the day has gone, giving families a direct account during that transition.

Parent Consultation Weeks take place in autumn and spring, and Stay and Play sessions run once a term. Families can also arrange an appointment with their key person. These offer different levels of involvement: a discussion about progress, a chance to see activities in practice, or a conversation prompted by something happening at home.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

The management structure includes a SENCO role. In October 2023, staff worked together on individual plans, incorporating targets from other professionals and information from families. This is a concrete support mechanism rather than a general promise that every child will need the same approach.

The October 2023 observations also showed where daily care needed attention. Babies using high chairs did not consistently have adults seated at their level and engaging fully with them during feeding. Younger children were sometimes carried between activities, losing opportunities to practise moving independently. Both points matter because routines are part of learning, not simply intervals between planned activities.

The setting has controlled door entry and uses a CCTV doorbell to check visitors’ identity before admitting them. Its illness policy requires children who have experienced sickness or diarrhoea to be symptom-free for at least 48 hours before returning. That gives parents a clear attendance rule to build into contingency arrangements.

Sessions and Attendance

Opening hours are 7.30am to 6pm on weekdays, with closures for bank holidays and the period between Christmas and New Year. The attendance menu reaches beyond a single full-day booking.

Morning choices run from 7.30am to either 11.30am or noon, or from 8.30am to either 11.30am or noon. The noon-finishing options include lunch. Day sessions finish at 3pm, starting at either 7.30am or 8.30am; full-day versions of those starts continue until 6pm. Parents can therefore choose an earlier start independently of whether they need care into the evening.

Afternoon sessions begin at 11.30am with lunch, or at noon, and finish at either 3pm or 6pm. For school-aged children, Breakfast Club starts at 7.30am and runs to school drop-off; After School Club begins at school pick-up and ends at 6pm. The holiday offer includes full-day care with flexible collection and drop-off arrangements.

Getting There

The address is United Reformed Church, Cromer Avenue, Low Fell, Gateshead, NE9 6UJ. Enquiries and tour arrangements can be made by telephone or email, and a place request can also be submitted through the online booking form; an application form follows confirmation.

Funding and Paid Extras

Eligible families can use 15 or 30 funded hours, with additional paid sessions offered alongside them. Current prices come in the nursery’s written quotation, and the session options and pricing page sets out the attendance menu and associated charges.

Food has two routes: parents can send a named packed lunch, or choose separately charged snacks and a hot lunch prepared by the onsite chef. These consumable charges are optional and also cover materials and resources; families supply nappies, pull-ups and wipes for children who need them.

Bookings and monthly invoices are managed through Blossom Educational. Invoices are issued in advance, with payment due within seven days. That makes the billing timetable another practical consideration alongside session length.

• Age scope. The current age range is 24 to 60 months, while Panda Cubs is described as starting at six months and Pandas from 18 months. Which provision and room would apply to your child?
• Outdoor layout. Descriptions differ between two and three outdoor areas, although both include gardens and the same indoor arrangement. During a tour, ask which outdoor space your child’s room uses and how free-flow access works.
• Care during routines. In October 2023, babies’ feeding interactions and opportunities for younger children to move independently needed more consistent practice. Ask how staff now support those routines, especially when children change activities or sit in high chairs.
• Food choices. Packed lunches sit alongside optional chef-prepared food and consumable charges. Agree the food and materials arrangements for your chosen sessions, including funded attendance, before accepting a quotation.

Cromer suits families seeking morning or afternoon sessions as well as those needing day sessions or care until 6pm. Its useful strengths are tangible: play that can continue over time in Teddies, sensory exploration in the Panda rooms, Makaton-supported communication and several ways for parents to contribute to learning records.

The Good judgement from October 2023 provides a positive inspection position, alongside specific concerns about the youngest children’s routines. The choice rests on matching the age provision and daily timetable to your child, with particular attention to how independence and personal interaction are supported throughout the day.