Dots 'N' Spots Day Nursery

A baby space capped at 12, a Lending Library that takes books home with families, and a site spread across four buildings give Dots 'N' Spots Day Nursery a recognisable character. This not-for-profit setting reinvests its fees in the nursery. Its appeal rests on practical details: separate spaces for different stages, outdoor play adapted for younger children, and communication that follows the child's day beyond collection.

At its December 2021 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good overall. That is a dated judgement, rather than a description of today's practice. The setting has 116 places in total and sits on the Skelton Primary School site in Skelton-in-Cleveland.

Fixed bookings run across the year, while the flexi arrangement is term-time only; full days and morning or afternoon half days give families different ways to use the nursery. The distinction between those booking arrangements matters as much as the daily opening window.

Rooms and Ages

The Baby Room accommodates up to 12 babies, starting from six weeks, with movement to the next stage depending on individual needs. Natural objects in its Heuristic Play area and a changing sensory tray support early exploration; cots, sleep mats, separate dining and changing spaces, and access to a level outdoor area give care routines their own places. This is useful detail for parents weighing the youngest children's surroundings, rather than simply the nursery's total size.

In the Tweenie Room, children practise early language, movement and making choices through sensory activities, imaginative play and mark-making, with outdoor opportunities for balancing, climbing and exploring sand or water. The room bridges babyhood and toddlerhood. Its purpose is gradual independence, with routines and encouragement adjusted to the child rather than a sudden change in expectations.

The Toddler Room combines creative and construction activities with role play and quiet spaces, while access to the larger outdoor area adds room for running, riding and balancing. Preschool children move towards literacy, number work and self-care in the Pre-School Room, where a home corner, construction resources, dough activities and an interactive whiteboard support different kinds of play. These are concrete ways to practise listening, coordination and making decisions before school.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the common framework: children develop language, physical skills, relationships and early understanding through play and everyday routines. Here, observations of children's interests and development inform the next activities, with learning shared through ParentZone. The curriculum page explains how observation, family communication and preparation for school fit together.

Play follows children's interests, with messy materials, creative work and quieter storytelling all part of the offer. In the baby space, the sensory tray changes weekly, giving exploration a changing set of materials. Preschool provision includes dough and other malleable materials for hand control, alongside accessible sand and water play. The practical value is variety within familiar routines: children can repeat an experience while trying a new texture, tool or idea.

The Lending Library lets families borrow books for reading at home. That creates a simple connection between nursery and family life, rather than leaving stories within the setting. It also gives parents a shared activity to return to with their child, with books available to take beyond the nursery day.

In December 2021, toddlers explored counting and shapes through objects around them, while preschool children practised directional language during a penguin dance. Children also helped choose activities and resources. These examples show the learning experiences at that time: number, language and decision-making were worked into play rather than confined to a separate lesson.

Outdoor and Community Life

The youngest children's outdoor space is shared by babies and tweenies, with rubber surfacing, low-level play trays, tunnels and equipment suited to their stage. Non-walking babies can explore at ground level. Older children have more room for active play, and outdoor activities continue across the seasons, making weather-appropriate clothing part of the routine.

The four-building layout separates the baby and tweenie accommodation, dining space, older nursery rooms and club provision. Electronic access, intercoms and high fencing are part of the site's physical arrangements. Families therefore have more than a single playroom to consider when thinking about their child's daily surroundings.

Relationships and Communication

Settling starts around two weeks before the agreed start date, with free visits lasting up to an hour. Families complete an All About Me form covering routines, dietary requirements and other important information, and children meet their key worker. The baby team aims to follow home routines where possible, so feeding and sleep are considered alongside play from the beginning.

ParentZone carries updates about sleep, nappy changes, meals, activities and developmental milestones. A conversation with the key worker at collection adds a personal account to those app entries. For parents of babies, that combination helps connect practical care information with what their child has been doing; for older children, it brings learning and achievements into the same conversation.

The Baby Room team includes a room leader, nursery nurses and an apprentice. In December 2021, staff recognised when babies needed rest and adjusted their care accordingly. That observation belongs to that period; the current arrangements give families a separate set of practical details about routines, sleeping equipment and communication.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

Individual support plans and collaboration with families and outside professionals are part of the nursery's SEND arrangements. At the December 2021 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and assessed support for children with additional needs positively, including strong progress from their starting points. In December 2021, picture-based communication helped some children express preferences, and staff followed recommendations from other professionals when supporting them.

The language improvement point from December 2021 deserves attention alongside those strengths: quieter children were not consistently drawn into group conversations. Singing and stories were established experiences, but participation in discussion needed more even support. For a child who takes time to speak in a group, the important distinction is between having language activities and being helped to join them.

Cooks prepare meals in the nursery kitchen. The mealtime brochure includes three weekly menus. The nursery's dietary arrangements include individual placemats identifying allergies or other food requirements, giving staff a visible reminder at meals and snacks.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Skelton Primary School, Station Lane, Skelton-in-Cleveland, Saltburn-by-the-Sea, TS12 2LR. Opening hours are 7.30am to 6pm, Monday to Friday. Full-day bookings use that window; half days run from 7.30am to 12.30pm or from 1pm to 6pm.

Fixed bookings secure the same days each week across the year. Their terms require a week's notice to change the pattern and four weeks to cancel the place. The flexi option is term-time only, operates on a first-come basis and does not guarantee days; weekly flexi bookings are no longer offered; it requires a week's notice for changes or cancellation, with cancellations still chargeable after the rota is completed.

The nursery also provides care before or after sessions at Skelton Primary School Nursery. For school-age children, Breakfast Club, Afterschool Club and Holiday Club extend the service beyond the nursery years. Sharing the school site does not guarantee a Reception place: families still apply through the local authority admissions process.

Bank holidays and Good Friday are closures. On Christmas Eve, the setting closes at 1pm and reopens in the New Year. General enquiries can be made by telephone or through the contact form.

Funding and Paid Extras

Government-funded childcare is offered for eligible children, with 15 and 30 hours of support described in the funding information. Eligibility depends on family circumstances. Private bookings and additional care outside funded hours are also offered, so funded entitlement and the total attendance bill need to be considered separately.

For funded attendance, breakfast and snacks are free, while lunch and tea carry separate charges; families may send packed alternatives for those meals. Trips or special activities can cost extra, with advance notification and an option to decline. Before- or after-school-nursery care outside funded hours is charged separately.

Parents supply nappies and sun cream; wipes and nappy cream are provided by the nursery. Families can bring their preferred wipes or creams for sensitive skin. A registration charge is added to the first month's invoice, and current prices come in the nursery's written quotation; the fees page sets out the booking and additional-charge structure.

• The youngest room. The Baby Room has a maximum of 12 babies and includes sleeping, eating and changing spaces. On a tour, discuss how those spaces and the home-routine arrangement would work for your baby; visits are arranged through the nursery, which asks families to avoid 11am to 1pm.
• Quiet participation. In December 2021, encouraging quieter children into group discussion was the improvement point. Ask how practitioners now help a hesitant child contribute, especially when choosing between individual play and group activities.
• Fixed or flexi. Fixed days and term-time flexi bookings have different guarantees and cancellation terms. Compare the pattern you need with the notice rules, including the charge for flexi cancellations once the rota is complete.
• Dietary requirements. Individual allergy placemats are part of the mealtime arrangements, and packed lunch or tea is an alternative to charged meals during funded attendance. Confirm current allergy practice and how your child's dietary plan will work across both nursery food and food from home.

Dots 'N' Spots suits families seeking either regular full days or morning and afternoon half days, with term-time flexi care offering a different booking arrangement. The capped baby space, adapted outdoor provision, Lending Library and detailed ParentZone updates give parents useful reasons to look closely at this setting.

The December 2021 Good judgement provides a dated quality reference, while the quieter-child participation point remains a sensible subject for discussion. The clearest practical decision is whether fixed days or the less certain flexi arrangement fits family life, alongside the separate meal charges on funded attendance.