Kerrie's Cherubs Childcare

In December 2022, pretend train tickets, ice experiments and songs chosen by babies gave Kerrie's Cherubs Childcare a recognisable character. In December 2022, children explored ideas through play, with staff helping them tackle problems and build their vocabulary. These concrete experiences are more revealing than a list of activities.

Ofsted rated the nursery Good at its December 2022 inspection. Based on Croft Road in Blyth, it accepts children from birth to 60 months.

In December 2022, children made tickets for the polar express and talked enthusiastically about their imagined journey. Elsewhere, cracking ice with tools became an exercise in persistence: children considered how to melt it, then watched hot water change it. The garden also supplied a practical lesson in recognising slippery surfaces.

The early years foundation stage brings learning, development and care together: play supports communication, exploration and relationships. In December 2022, staff reinforced vocabulary with two-year-olds, while older children practised requesting equipment and sharing resources. Books were another emphasis.

There were weaknesses alongside these experiences. In December 2022, babies and toddlers did not consistently receive suitable resources for making marks and beginning to write. Staff also sometimes reminded children to handle equipment carefully without explaining precisely what to do. Clearer explanations would help children understand the reason behind a rule.

At the December 2022 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and judged that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities received strong support and made better than good progress. The support coordinator worked with other professionals, and funding helped provide support for individual children.

In December 2022, babies turned to their key person for affection and enjoyed selecting objects from a song bag for staff to sing about. This connected a familiar relationship with an activity the baby could help direct. Staff exchanged detailed learning information with parents, who shared achievements from home, linking children's experiences across both settings.

Healthy eating needed greater consistency. In December 2022, advice about balanced packed lunches was not always reinforced during meals, when some children ate several sugary treats. Management checks also missed some smaller weaknesses in staff practice, including the early-writing resources described above.

The address is 45 Croft Road, Blyth, NE24 2EL. Opening hours are 7.30am to 6pm from Monday to Thursday, and 7.30am to 5.30pm on Friday; the nursery operates across the year.

In December 2022, it received early-education funding for two-, three- and four-year-old children. This is a dated account of participation, rather than a statement of today's funding arrangements.

• Early writing and staff guidance. December 2022 highlighted unsuitable mark-making resources for younger children and explanations of rules that needed more detail. During a visit, look for accessible drawing materials and examples of how staff explain safe equipment use.
• Packed lunches. Healthy-eating advice was applied inconsistently at meals in December 2022. Families providing lunch will want a clear understanding of how food choices are handled.
• Attendance pattern. Friday closes earlier than the other weekdays. What booking pattern would fit your working week?

Kerrie's Cherubs will suit families seeking care for babies through to children aged 60 months, with weekday opening across the year. Its December 2022 picture combines affectionate relationships, practical exploration and communication with parents. The balance includes specific improvements around early writing, staff monitoring, explanations of rules and healthy eating. Those are useful subjects for a visit, rather than reasons to overlook the strengths of that dated assessment.