URN 2849145 · Inspected 2026-08-27 · Published 2026-10-15 · Inspector: Michelle Latchford
Kids Planet Patterdale Lodge Unique reference number (URN): 2849145 Address: 101 Market Street, Newton-le-willows, WA12 9DD Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registered with Ofsted: 30/06/2025 Registers: EYR, CCR, VCR Registered person: Kids Planet Day Nurseries Limited Inspection report: 27 August 2026 Exceptional Strong standard Expected standard Needs attention Urgent improvement Safeguarding standards met The safeguarding standards are met. This means that leaders and/or those responsible for governance and oversight fulfil their specific responsibilities and have established an open culture in which safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and concerns are actively identified, acted upon and managed. As a result, children are made safer and feel safe. How we evaluate safeguarding When we inspect settings for safeguarding, they can have the following outcomes: Met: The setting has an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not met: The setting has not created an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not all legal requirements are met. Strong standard Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard Children learn about their emotions through play. A recently refurbished sensory room provides an incredibly serene and calm space for children to relax. Having opportunities to be still in this tranquil atmosphere helps children to become attuned to how they feel and promotes emotional maturity. Staff understand that healthy children thrive, and they foster children's physical wellbeing through all aspects of their practice. To illustrate, fresh fruit is available in a 'smoothie station' located in the reception area of the nursery. Children choose fruit and take recipes home to make nutritious treats with family members. This successfully creates children's positive attitude towards healthy eating from a very early age. Staff incorporate rigorous exercise into their daily curriculum and children enjoy fresh air in all weathers. Support for children's physical health is exemplary. Children show that they feel safe, demonstrated through their high levels of confidence and impressive self-esteem. Staff rigorously check the environment for possible hazards throughout the day. Children's personal welfare and safety is given the upmost priority. Leadership and governance Strong standard Leaders have an extremely clear vision for the setting. Their ambition, aspiration and drive are exemplary. They know exactly where they excel and have an acutely targeted plan in place to make worthwhile improvements. Staff share this remarkable aspiration, and, collectively, the whole team strives towards excellence. A strong leadership team promotes sustained quality and continual improvements to benefit all children and families. There are still some areas of practice that will benefit from further improvement. However, leaders have already identified these gaps and taken immediate action. The rigour of self-evaluation and urgency of improvement is remarkable. Subsequently, the leadership and governance is worthy of high praise. Partnerships with parents are superb. Leaders and staff alike understand that parents are children's primary carers and foster a truly collaborative approach to children's care and learning. Toothbrushes and weaning guidance are provided in 'home learning bags' to support parents with key development milestones. Parents welcome this practical help and provide high accolades for the first-rate support they receive. There is a culture of continual professional development within this nursery. Leaders ensure that staff access highly-targeted and useful training. This helps staff to continually improve their knowledge and skills in the most impactful way. Staff report that they find this supportive professional development incredibly motivating, and, in turn, work very hard because they feel valued and happy. Expected standard Achievement Expected standard All children generally progress well across all areas of learning, and, when the time comes, they are prepared for the next stage in their learning. Children communicate with increasing confidence. They ask questions as they play, extending their vocabulary and knowledge of sentence structure. Children kick footballs at targets, increasing their large movement and physical coordination. They make marks with paintbrushes, refining their early writing skills. Children are presented with plenty of opportunities to enjoy and explore books. From the youngest babies, right through to the eldest children, everyone enjoys stories and books. This is a great foundation for their future literacy progression. Children learn about nature and the world around them in practical and hands-on ways. They wear suitable coats and enthusiastically play in the rain. They learn about different weather systems, including precipitation and evaporation, during this exciting and fun experience. Children use chalks outside. They solve problems and develop their critical thinking skills, as they predict whose marks will wash away in the heavy rain first. Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard Staff make learning fun, and children enjoy their time spent here. Children show a positive attitude towards their learning because they are curious and eager to join in. Behaviour throughout the nursery is typically calm and children are composed. They follow instructions the first time and are helpful when asked to complete tasks. Staff use visual timetables for some children and verbal instructions for others. This means all children understand what is expected of them, and, in turn, they are cooperative and behave well. Attendance is a shared responsibility between staff and leaders. Staff diligently record children's attendance daily and if children are unexpectedly absent, they alert leaders, who follow this up with parents. Attendance is high because there is a collective understanding of the value and importance of punctuality and regular attendance. Children share positive and reassuring relationships with staff, who are gentle and nurturing in their interactions. Babies sometimes become unsettled when there are changes to routines throughout the day. Staff do not intervene quickly enough during these times to enable children to continue their daily routines without some emotional interruption. Curriculum and teaching Expected standard The curriculum is thoughtfully sequenced. Children's learning is based on a secure foundation of prior knowledge. The youngest children learn basic skills before moving on to increased complexity and challenge in their programme of learning. There are subtle adaptations, in the environment and teaching, to meet children's different ages and stages of learning. Generally, staff are great role models for children. They play alongside children, and their participation helps to guide and extend children's learning. To illustrate, staff show children how to roll dough using their hands and different tools. Children copy staff to complete this task, showing that staff interactions impact positively on outcomes for children. Staff role model language to extend children's emerging communication skills. For instance, when playing with dough, they introduce new descriptive words to extend children's developing vocabulary. Typically, staff involvement and participation in children's play extends children's learning. Staff observe children and are aware of any gaps in their knowledge and skills. They subsequently plan activities that are generally well focused to narrow these gaps. Typically, staff plan interesting activities with clear learning intentions. However, sometimes, staff lose sight of this clear focus, and teaching becomes too complicated as they move from one task to another in quick succession. This confuses children because they do not know where to focus their attention, and their learning lacks depth. Inclusion Expected standard Leaders strive to ensure that all children receive equal opportunities and narrow gaps for those who are most disadvantaged. Leaders and staff understand the challenges faced by families who access the setting. Some children are in receipt of additional funding, and leaders work closely with parents and key workers to decide how to spend this money. This careful and considered approach to funding means that the most disadvantaged children are provided with every opportunity to succeed in their learning journey. Leaders provide a food bank in the reception area of the nursery for all families to access if needed. This illustrates their commitment to equality and inclusion. Typically, children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) benefit from appropriate support to overcome any barriers to their learning. Generally, staff implement bespoke care plans for children with SEND, to ensure that the care and learning provided are tailored to children's specific needs. This individualised approach illustrates the drive for an inclusive service that meets everyone's different needs. Staff value the input and expertise from a range of wider professionals. They make swift referrals to external specialists when needed, to ensure children receive the support they need in a timely way. All children are supported to thrive because their needs are understood and met. Compulsory Childcare Register requirements This setting has met the requirements of the compulsory part of the Childcare Register. How we check if a provider meets the requirements of the Compulsory Childcare Register When we check if settings meet the Compulsory Childcare Register requirements, they can have the following outcomes: Met Not met Voluntary Childcare Register requirements This setting has met the requirements of the voluntary part of Childcare Register. How we check if a provider meets the requirements of the Voluntary Childcare Register When we check if settings meet the Voluntary Childcare Register requirements, they can have the following outcomes: Met Not met What it's like to be a child at this setting Children benefit from positive relationships with kind and caring staff, and this helps them to feel safe and fosters their sense of belonging. They confidently wave goodbye to their parents and carers. Children settle quickly when they arrive because they benefit from genuine affection by friendly and familiar staff. Children move around the setting with confidence, demonstrating a sense of security. Older children begin to develop friendships with peers and enjoy spending time with familiar adults. Everyone throughout the nursery, children and staff alike, are happy, content and settled. Inspector: Michelle Latchford About this setting All children, including the very youngest, are helped and encouraged to become independent. Younger children, with support, confidently serve themselves at mealtimes. Older children take care of their toys and belongings with pride. Staff step back and provide each and every child scope to 'have-a-go' and complete tasks for themselves. Staff are patient and do not step in prematurely. This approach successfully teaches children how to be resilient. Children show incredible levels of self belief and thrive in their independence. Regular trips and outings extend children's learning experiences. To illustrate, children have 'pen pals' at a nearby nursery and enjoy writing to and visiting new friends through this scheme. This extends children's awareness of the wider world around them and extends their social skills. Visits are planned with clear learning intent and contribute to children's enjoyment in their learning. Children benefit from plenty of fun and interesting activities, ranging from messy creative tasks, rhythm and movement games to quiet story sessions. There is something to satisfy everyone's unique preferences. Children are encouraged to follow their interests and choose where they would like to play, which successfully sparks their curiosity and motivates them. This is a stimulating, nurturing and fun setting, where children enjoy to spend time. Next steps Leaders should help staff to improve transition times for babies to maintain high levels of emotional security at all times. Leaders should ensure staff do not deviate from clear activity planning, so their teaching is precisely focused on rapidly narrowing gaps in children's learning. About this inspection The inspector spoke with staff, children, the special educational needs coordinator and leaders during the inspection. We carried out this inspection under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of provision that is registered on the Early Years Register. The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children's learning, development and care, known as the early years foundation stage. Unique reference number (URN): 2849145 Address: 101 Market Street Newton-le-willows WA12 9DD Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registration date: 30/06/2025 Registered person: Kids Planet Day Nurseries Limited Register(s): EYR, CCR, VCR Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:30 - 18:00 Local authority: St Helens Facts and figures used on inspection This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection. This data is from 27 August 2026 Children numbers Age range of children at the time of inspection 0 to 4 Total number of places 70 Our grades explained Exceptional Practice is exceptional: of the highest standard nationally. Other settings can learn from it. Strong standard The setting reaches a strong standard. Leaders are working above the standard expected of them. Expected standard The setting is fulfilling the expected standard of education and/or care. This means they are following the standard set out in statutory and non ‑ statutory legislation and the professional standards expected of them. Needs attention The expected standards are not met but leaders are likely able to make the necessary improvements. Urgent improvement The setting needs to make urgent improvements to provide the expected standard of education and/or care. The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) inspects services providing education and skills for children and learners of all ages, and inspects and regulates services that care for children and young people. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk. You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. 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