Kids Planet Cleveleys

A roof garden for under-twos, beach adventures and an outdoor classroom with real tools give Kids Planet Cleveleys a clear identity. Outdoor learning shapes the offer, while the downstairs Sensory Calm Space provides a quieter setting with soft textures, gentle lighting and soothing sounds. This is a nursery where active exploration and quieter moments both have a physical place.

Ofsted rated the nursery Outstanding on 23 September 2024. The setting has capacity for 62 children, accepting ages from three months to five years, at 32 Nutter Road in Thornton-Cleveleys. Its youngest children have their own space; downstairs, children aged two to four learn in a mixed-age group.

The practical offer includes full days, mornings, afternoons and a shorter day, alongside funded childcare. The distinction between private fees and charges on funded days matters: meals and everyday care supplies are included in private fees, but meals, consumables and activities attract separate charges on days when early years funding is used.

Rooms and Ages

The under-twos space has its own roof garden, giving younger children an outdoor area attached to their part of the nursery. Indoors, rooms contain natural resources. For parents choosing baby care, that combination gives the youngest children a setting of their own rather than treating the older children's garden as the whole outdoor offer.

Downstairs, the mixed-age two-to-four group brings younger and older children together, with cooperation and learning from one another forming part of the approach. The Sensory Calm Space also supports the move from the under-twos area into this group, so the transition has a quieter physical setting as well as a change of room.

In September 2024, babies practised movement through supported tummy time and small, precise hand movements, including threading cereal hoops onto spaghetti. These were different activities for different stages of development. The common thread was giving babies time to practise, with adults encouraging them to keep trying.

Learning and Activities

The nursery follows the early years foundation stage, the framework for children's learning, development and care. In everyday terms, play, conversation, movement and practical experiences contribute to learning rather than sitting apart from it. Cleveleys adds Udeskole outdoor learning through nature exploration, tool use and opportunities to assess manageable risks in its garden.

In September 2024, adults extended children's conversations with questions about how things happened and why. Learning about caterpillars becoming butterflies introduced new vocabulary through something concrete. Babies' babbling received spoken responses too, placing early exchanges alongside the more developed conversations of older children.

Books also reached beyond a single story session that September. Children used a nursery lending library and made regular visits to the local library, borrowing with their own cards. They chose books independently and retold familiar stories. For families who value reading, the useful detail is the connection between stories shared with adults and books children could choose for themselves.

Outdoor and Community Life

The Forest Adventure Zone is the downstairs garden, used as an outdoor classroom. Den-building and bug hunts sit alongside real tools and seasonal fire-pit experiences: cooking and marshmallow toasting in summer, with stories and hot chocolate around the fire in colder seasons. Udeskole therefore has concrete content here. It is more than a name attached to garden play.

Beach adventures extend that outdoor offer beyond the nursery grounds. In September 2024, older children discussed tides and recognised conditions in which beach play would be unsafe; they also practised balancing across suspended ropes and getting into and out of hammocks. The emphasis was on understanding a challenge before tackling it, giving physical play a practical safety dimension.

Relationships and Communication

In September 2024, settling sessions were adjusted to the individual child, and children formed close relationships with their key person and other staff. Settling begins an ongoing relationship between the child and their carers. The approach centred on getting to know the child rather than expecting every family to follow an identical introduction.

Famly, the parent app used here, provides updates during the day and is included in the fee offer. It gives families a way to follow nursery life while their child is away from home. In September 2024, support also crossed into home life through recipes and ingredients shared so children could have familiar healthy meals at home.

Everyday independence was practised through ordinary tasks that September: older children laid tables and helped younger children serve themselves, while younger children worked on putting on and removing their wellies before outings. These are useful, repeatable skills. They connect nursery routines with things children also need to do at home.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At its September 2024 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and children with special educational needs and/or disabilities making exceptional progress through early help, targeted support and collaboration with professionals. In September 2024, staff used signing alongside speech throughout their interactions, and children learnt signs too. Communication support was part of shared daily life rather than reserved for an isolated activity.

The current Sensory Calm Space contains soft textures, calming sounds and gentle lights, with uses including individual support and quiet breaks. For a child who benefits from less stimulation, this is a specific space to discuss, especially during the move into the mixed-age group. Its practical value lies in the environment and how it can be used for the individual child.

In September 2024, ten childcare staff worked at the nursery; six held level-three early years qualifications and four held level-two qualifications. Less-experienced practitioners had mentors to help develop their teaching. These are dated staffing details, rather than a measure of the team caring for children today.

Sessions and Attendance

Opening hours are 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, across 52 weeks of the year, with bank holiday closures. The address is 32 Nutter Road, Thornton-Cleveleys, FY5 1BQ. Families can contact the nursery by telephone or email, and a tour can be booked.

The Full Day and Full Time patterns run from 8am to 6pm. Morning is 8am to 1pm, Afternoon is 1pm to 6pm, and Short Day is 9am to 3pm; an Adhoc Hourly Charge also forms part of the booking offer. These differences matter: a morning ends at lunchtime, while the shorter day finishes mid-afternoon, so families have more than one way to fit nursery around their routine.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare and privately paid care are both offered. Private fees include meals and snacks, plus formula, wipes, sun cream and nappies; on days using early years funding, meals and consumables are charged separately. Freshly prepared meals and snacks accommodate dietary needs.

Activities are also charged separately on funded days, with the charging category depending on the length of the funded attendance. The distinction is worth understanding before comparing a funded booking with a private one: the childcare hours and the costs attached to the day are separate parts of the arrangement. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

• Outdoor practice. Real tools, fire-pit experiences and beach adventures are part of the offer. During a tour, ask how these experiences are adapted for your child's age and how adults supervise each activity.
• Moving into the mixed-age group. Under-twos have their own space and roof garden before moving downstairs. Ask how the key person supports that change and how the Sensory Calm Space fits into your child's transition.
• Funded-day charges. Meals, consumables and activities attract separate charges when funding is applied. A written quotation should distinguish those categories from any privately paid childcare hours so the whole booking is clear.

Kids Planet Cleveleys suits families seeking outdoor learning with concrete experiences, from a youngest-child roof garden to tool use and beach adventures. The September 2024 Outstanding judgement adds weight to an offer whose appeal is already visible in its spaces and activities.

It also serves different attendance needs: full-day care, morning or afternoon sessions, and a shorter day ending mid-afternoon. For babies, the separate under-twos area is a useful point of comparison; for older children, the mixed-age group and outdoor classroom shape the choice. Families using funding should weigh the separate day charges alongside the childcare pattern they want.