First Steps Nursery

Books, messy play and learning to manage everyday tasks give First Steps Nursery at Ice House in Grimsby its clearest character. A reading corner sits alongside indoor and outdoor play space, while children have opportunities to explore materials and make choices about their activities. The emphasis is practical: stories to share, things to investigate and small steps towards independence.

At its December 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good, judged safeguarding effective and found that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities received learning support tailored to their needs and made good progress. There were also two clear development priorities: extending mathematics during children's own play and making staff practice more consistent.

This setting caters for children aged two to five and has 52 places in total. The Ice House provision is the subject of this review; the baby provision at East Marsh Children's Centre has a different address.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage provides the framework for children's learning and care, with communication, physical development and personal and social learning woven through play and daily routines. Here, that includes practising handwashing, managing coats and shoes, and learning to express ideas alongside other children. These are useful preparations for school as well as skills children can use immediately.

Birth to 5 Matters also guides learning, with preparation for Reception its stated purpose. The more tangible detail lies in the invitations to explore: dressing up, making things with craft materials and investigating natural objects such as fir cones and herbs. Crates, drain pipes and carpet tubes provide loose materials for children to arrange and experiment with. They allow children to decide what to make, rather than simply follow a finished example.

Sensory play takes place daily through baking, crafts, outdoor activities and messy play. The wet and messy play area gives this work a physical home. Music and movement add another way for children to participate, alongside creative activities and exploration outdoors.

In December 2024, books were chosen to stretch children's understanding at different stages: younger children explored texture and pictures, while older children discussed the people who write and illustrate stories. Children also used pictures to attempt their own retellings. That makes the reading corner more than a quiet place to sit; it supports conversation as well as enjoyment of books.

Outdoor and Community Life

Indoor and exterior play areas give children different spaces for activity. In December 2024, staff supported children using the slide's ladders and encouraged them to manage their coats after playing outside. Independence was practised through ordinary moments, rather than reserved for a separate lesson.

Games also carried learning. During that December visit, ball games and bingo gave children practice in waiting for a turn, while a matching game exercised memory. Children who had not practised using cutlery at lunch had another opportunity with fruit and vegetables outdoors. The useful thread is repeated practice across different parts of the day.

Mathematics was less consistent. In December 2024, adult-led group activities included counting and shape discussion, but staff did not extend mathematical ideas reliably when children chose their own play. For families, the distinction matters: a child can join a counting activity yet still need an adult to develop mathematical thinking during an activity they have initiated.

Relationships and Communication

Each child has a key worker responsible for individual attention to their development and welfare. Settling is adapted to the child and family, and tailored settling visits give children time to establish a relationship with their key person. This makes the relationship part of the introduction to nursery, rather than something left to develop after attendance begins.

Famly, the nursery's communication app, carries regular photographs, sleep updates and other information. It gives parents a way to see parts of their child's day between conversations with staff. The personal relationship and the app serve different purposes: one centres care on a familiar adult; the other keeps information moving home.

In December 2024, communication worked in both directions. Staff shared ideas for stories, self-care and children's language development, and explained how mealtime routines could be continued at home. Books were also provided for children to borrow, while sports and expressive arts experiences were arranged across different attendance days. The timing meant children attending on different days could take part.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

Individual attention is built into the key-worker arrangement, rather than treating all children as needing the same response. The nursery also uses positive encouragement, celebrating children's achievements and treating mistakes as opportunities to learn. Its activities include sensory exploration, movement and creative play, giving children different ways to engage.

Staff development remained a concern in December 2024. Managers offered training, observed practice and gave feedback, but this had not secured consistent confidence and skill across the team. The improvement priority was therefore about how reliably staff put expectations into practice, not simply whether training took place.

Sessions and Attendance

First Steps Nursery is at Ice House, Victor Street, Grimsby, DN32 7QN. Opening hours are 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, across the year, with closures for bank holidays and one week at Christmas. Those closures matter for families whose work continues during holiday periods.

The two-to-five team can be contacted on 01472 352 524, and there is an online contact form. Free parking is provided.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered for children aged two to five. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

Hot meals are freshly prepared each day, and the nursery's food policy asks families to disclose allergies or intolerances so that individual requirements can be catered for. Meals also provide time for children to eat together and talk.

• Learning through chosen play. Mathematics during children's own activities was a December 2024 improvement priority. During a visit, ask how staff now develop counting, shape and other mathematical ideas within play children choose themselves.
• Consistency between practitioners. December 2024 training and feedback had not yet produced reliably consistent staff practice. Ask for examples of how managers assess this across the team.
• Settling and dietary needs. Settling visits are tailored and every child has a key worker. Use a visit to discuss your child's response to separation and, where relevant, confirm current allergy arrangements.
• The attendance and funding quotation. Year-round opening includes bank-holiday and Christmas closures. Ask how your intended attendance would be booked and funded, including the treatment of meals and non-food consumables in the written quotation.

First Steps suits families seeking care for a two-to-five-year-old with practical independence, shared reading and exploratory play as everyday priorities. Its reading corner, loose materials and key-worker arrangement give substance to that offer, while Famly connects nursery life with home.

The December 2024 judgement provides a positive assessment, with meaningful caveats about mathematics and consistency of staff practice. Those are the most useful areas to explore when deciding whether its approach fits your child.