Kids Planet Southfield

Stories, conversations about fog and preschool yoga give Kids Planet Southfield a recognisable educational character. At its 4 December 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Outstanding, praised its ambitious curriculum and found safeguarding effective. The strongest impression is of learning built into ordinary exchanges: talking through play, joining in songs and practising independence at lunch.

This Cramlington nursery has capacity for 60 children, with an accepted age range of 2 to 60 months. In December 2024, younger children's rooms had low-level sinks for easier handwashing, and a garden tepee had been added to accommodate preschool children as the nursery expanded.

Full-day, morning and afternoon bookings offer different ways to use the nursery. The practical distinction between opening hours and booked sessions matters here, as does the separate charge structure for days using funded childcare.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage sets the requirements for children's learning, development and care: everyday play and interaction support learning alongside physical and emotional development. Southfield's December 2024 practice made that concrete through books, songs, conversation and activities shaped around children's changing interests.

In December 2024, parents contributed information about what interested their children, and staff revised their planning as those interests developed. That gives a useful example of responsive teaching: a child's enthusiasm can influence what happens next, rather than simply fitting into a fixed sequence of activities.

Language ran through the day. In December 2024, staff described children's play, revisited vocabulary and encouraged older children to extend their speech into sentences; preschool children discussed fog, while babies responded to singing with movements and some words. The activities differed by stage. The common thread was conversation.

Books also connected nursery and home. During December 2024, families were encouraged to share a story with their child each day that month, while children could explore books independently or alongside staff. This was a specific home-reading challenge, rather than a reason to assume the same campaign runs every year.

Outdoor and Community Life

Physical changes supported everyday independence. In December 2024, additional doors made outdoor areas easier to reach from some rooms, and younger children's rooms had low-level sinks for handwashing. The garden also contained a tepee intended to accommodate preschool children as the nursery expanded. These details matter because access and usable equipment can influence how much children do for themselves.

Preschool yoga added another kind of physical learning in December 2024. Children practised poses and explored the connection between movement and their heartbeat. It linked an active experience with a simple discussion about their bodies, rather than treating exercise as an isolated break from learning.

The current group-wide outdoor approach at Southfield includes exploring wildlife, vegetable growing and active play. These give children different reasons to spend time outside: observing, tending and moving.

Relationships and Communication

In December 2024, staff knew children and their families well and responded promptly when children needed comfort. Adults positioned themselves at children's level, listened to their ideas and used questions that invited more than a short answer. These are concrete relationship practices that help explain the inspection picture of children participating confidently.

Independence was approached through everyday tasks. In December 2024, toddlers were trying to serve lunch and pour drinks, while adults used calm guidance to help children play cooperatively. For parents, the useful detail is the combination of opportunities to try things and adults remaining involved.

Communication extended beyond collection-time conversations. In December 2024, families received daily information, could view observations and development updates through an online app, and had opportunities to join activities during stay-and-play sessions or discuss their child at parent evenings. Southfield now includes the group-wide Famly app in its fee package, providing updates about children's days.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the December 2024 inspection, Ofsted found that staff and management understood individual development needs and worked with parents and other agencies on individual learning plans for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, monitoring progress and adapting learning accordingly. The useful mechanism is that partnership around a particular child, rather than a broad promise that every need can be accommodated in the same way.

Freshly prepared meals and snacks form part of the group-wide offer at Southfield, with dietary needs catered for. They are included in private fees, while days using early years funding carry separate meal charges.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is 1 Sandersons Terrace, Cramlington, Northumberland, NE23 6XD. Southfield opens Monday to Friday, from 7am to 6pm, across 52 weeks of the year; it closes on bank holidays.

Booked sessions have their own boundaries. Full Day runs from 7.30am to 6pm, Morning from 7.30am to 12.30pm, and Afternoon from 12.30pm to 6pm. A Full Time pattern uses the same 7.30am to 6pm window. Early Bird covers 7am to 7.30am, and ad hoc hourly childcare is also offered. This gives families a choice between a whole day and shorter morning or afternoon attendance, with early care separately identified.

Families can contact the nursery by telephone on 0191 250 2221 or email southfield@kidsplanetdaynurseries.co.uk. A tour can be booked through Southfield's enquiry route.

Funding and Paid Extras

Southfield offers funded childcare alongside privately paid care. The charging distinction is important: private fees include meals and snacks, plus nappies, formula milk, wipes and sun cream; meals, consumables and activities are charged separately on days when early years funding is applied.

The funded-day charges have different bands according to the hours involved. Families comparing a morning, afternoon or full-day booking therefore need the complete charge structure for their chosen pattern, rather than treating the funded childcare element as the whole bill. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

• Morning or afternoon attendance. These sessions have different finishing times, with Morning ending at 12.30pm and Afternoon at 6pm. Use a tour to discuss how your chosen pattern fits your child's meals, rest and activity rhythm.
• The earlier start. Full Day begins at 7.30am, while Early Bird covers the preceding 7am to 7.30am period. Families needing that earlier start should include it when comparing booking costs.
• Funded-day extras. Meal, consumable and activity charges apply on days using early years funding. Request a written quotation for the exact attendance pattern you are considering so those categories are clear alongside any private hours.

Southfield suits families considering either full-day care or shorter morning and afternoon sessions, with separately identified early care for those needing a 7am start. Its strongest educational evidence comes from December 2024: conversation-rich play, an emphasis on books and practical opportunities for children to become more independent.

The December 2024 observations of low-level sinks and improved outdoor access give that account substance; the garden tepee was intended to accommodate preschool children as the nursery expanded. For the family decision, match the session boundaries to your routine and assess the full funded-day charge structure alongside the childcare itself.