Pennies Day Nursery, Mark Cross

A large garden gives Pennies Day Nursery, Mark Cross its clearest character: space for outdoor exploration alongside nursery care, preschool provision and a kids’ club. The village setting serves families around Crowborough and Tunbridge Wells. For parents who value room to move, the garden is a substantial part of the appeal.

Children can start from three months old. At its 7 August 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good, with strengths in language development and learning shaped around children’s interests. That is a dated judgement, but the examples behind it give parents something more useful than a grade alone.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage sets the requirements for children’s learning, development and care, bringing play, communication and growing independence into the nursery day. In August 2023, staff planned activities around individual interests and used specific short-term learning goals. Parents took part in setting those goals, connecting what happened at nursery with what mattered for their child.

Practical exploration supplied some memorable examples in August 2023. Older children worked with large foam blocks to make furniture for teddy bears, applying ideas about weight, dimensions and shape. Small paint containers allowed children to pour colours and experiment with mixing them. These activities gave children opportunities to experiment with construction and colour mixing.

Outdoor and Community Life

The large garden provides the physical space for this outdoor emphasis. In August 2023, younger children used wall bars and carefully arranged furniture to practise pulling themselves upright, while older children dug, climbed and ran. Very young children also filled watering cans themselves and tended plants and trees. Outdoor play combined movement with manageable responsibilities.

There were limits to the learning offer in August 2023. During some group activities, the positioning of adults and children made it harder for everyone to participate fully. Experiences introducing children to other people’s lives, locally and further afield, also needed greater depth. Those points matter alongside the appealing practical examples: participation and breadth are part of the experience too.

Relationships supplied continuity in August 2023. Babies formed attachments to their key person, while older children developed shared pretend games and friendships. Staff exchanged information about children’s changing needs, giving the adults caring for a child a common understanding rather than leaving knowledge with just one practitioner.

At the August 2023 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective, SEND care and learning well coordinated through individual plans developed with families and professionals, and communication with parents effective. For a family needing additional support, the concrete mechanism is the individual plan and cooperation between the people involved in the child’s care.

In August 2023, staff helped children build independence in toileting and personal care, and families received support to continue learning at home. Food was cooked at the nursery, with menus taking account of individual dietary needs. These observations describe care at that time and give useful subjects for a conversation about how a child’s own routine would fit.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Brandywell, Mark Cross, Crowborough, TN6 3PJ. Opening hours are 7.30am to 6.30pm, Monday to Friday. The nursery operates across the year, closing for bank holidays and a week at Christmas. That opening window is useful for work planning; the Christmas closure also needs a place in the family calendar.

Enquiries can be made by telephone on 01892 852187 or by email to markcross@pennies.co.uk. Preschool provision includes preparation for starting at local schools. The kids’ club has bus transport to and from local schools, a separate service from preschool preparation.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered, with funding policies for children over two and over three. In August 2023, the nursery received early-education funding for children aged two, three and four. Current prices come in the nursery’s written quotation, so the cost decision belongs alongside the attendance arrangement a family chooses.

• Participation in group activities. In August 2023, some activities needed better organisation so every child could join in fully. On a visit, ask how adults arrange group sessions and support children who are quieter or less confident.
• Learning beyond familiar experiences. The August 2023 improvement points included broadening children’s understanding of other people’s lives. Ask for current examples of how this enters preschool play and discussion.
• The working-day fit. The nursery opens until 6.30pm and closes for a week at Christmas. Establish the booking pattern and collection arrangements for your family, including how funded hours, meals and consumables would be treated in the quotation.

Pennies Mark Cross suits families who value a village nursery with a large garden, practical play and preschool preparation, with a kids’ club also on site. Its August 2023 learning examples show children experimenting, cooperating and taking on small responsibilities. In August 2023, group participation and understanding the wider world needed further work. Outdoor space is the strongest current attraction; the visit should make the day-to-day arrangements concrete.