Kids Planet Gateshead

Kids Planet Gateshead
Unique reference number (URN): 2833208
Address: Kids Planet Day Nursery, The Den, Westfield Terrace, Gateshead, NE8 4LD
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registered with Ofsted: 10/02/2025
Registers: EYR
Registered person: Kids Planet Day Nurseries Limited
Inspection report: 24 March 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.

Expected standard
Achievement Expected standard
Children develop confidence in their social skills and physical development and generally
achieve well across the curriculum. Babies have opportunities to develop physically. They
develop muscle strength, balance and coordination as they practise standing, reaching and
throwing. Children learn new words as they engage in a water play activity, such as 'splash'
and 'squeeze'. Children's language and communication skills are developed during regular
singing and story sessions, and they engage well in these activities.
Children develop early mathematical skills throughout the day, such as when singing
number songs and rhymes, comparing the different sizes and shapes of leaves, and
counting how many holes are in the leaves. Adapted activities for children with special
educational needs and/or disabilities ensure all children are included. For example, when
preparing fruit salad for their snack, all children complete tasks suited to their current
abilities, which helps them develop their confidence and attain a sense of achievement.
Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard
Leaders and staff generally support children's behaviour and attitudes to learning
appropriately. Children are settled, happy and familiar with the daily routines. They behave
well, play cooperatively and develop positive relationships with their peers and staff. This
supports children's emotional wellbeing and sense of belonging. Children take part in a
range of experiences, including physical activities and outings, which help to promote their
development and engagement. Staff have appropriate expectations for children's behaviour
and learning. During group activities, staff gently remind children to share and take turns,
which also promotes their social skills.
Overall, children's behaviour and attitudes to learning are positive. However, daily routines
are not always implemented consistently and, at times, transitions, particularly around
mealtimes, are not well organised. In addition, the structure of the day is not consistently
maintained. Although the afternoon sessions are planned to mirror the structure of the
morning sessions, there is some variation in the quality of afternoon sessions. While this
does not significantly impact children's overall engagement, it means that high-quality
practice is not yet fully embedded across the whole day.
Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard
Leaders and staff ensure a nurturing environment that supports children to build positive
relationships and form secure attachments with the adults caring for them. Staff know
children's abilities and interests and use these to create engaging learning opportunities.
Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) seek cuddles and
reassurance from staff when they first arrive. Staff's caring approach ensures that children
feel secure and helps children to settle.

Parents report very positively about the care and education their children receive, including
for children with SEND. Leaders are committed to implementing strategies to support
children's learning and wellbeing. Personal care routines, such as toileting and potty
training, are supported by each child's key person. This ensures a more consistent approach
for each child.
Staff sit with children at lunch and snack times to ensure their safety and support routines.
However, because of the positioning of chairs in the baby section, eating times are not
always as sociable as they could be. That said, leaders are already reviewing aspects of the
learning environment to better support children's communication, language and social
development.
Curriculum and teaching Expected standard
Leaders and staff generally deliver a suitable curriculum and provide appropriate teaching
that reflects children's interests and supports their development. They use an 'in-the-
moment' approach and typically identify what children need to learn next. However, this is
not yet consistently embedded across all staff. Leaders do not always focus sufficiently on
monitoring staff's practice and coaching staff to improve teaching.
Children are engaged and interested in their learning. They listen attentively to stories and
begin to recall key information. Children explore the world around them, for example
learning about the life cycle of a butterfly and using new vocabulary. They develop their
creativity through activities such as painting and modelling, and they begin to build early
mathematical understanding through counting and problem-solving in their play.
Overall, the curriculum and teaching are generally effective, although inconsistencies
remain. For example, the level of support that children receive during learning experiences
is not always finely matched to their abilities. Leaders recognise the need to strengthen staff
practice and review aspects of the environment, including noise levels, to better support
children's communication and language and social development.
Older children show a keen interest in stories and some children can recite the order of
stories skilfully. Staff also extend learning through linked activities. For example, after
enjoying a story about a hungry caterpillar, children make their own caterpillars from play
dough and enjoy using some natural resources in this area.
Inclusion Expected standard
Leaders and staff generally support children with special educational needs and/or
disabilities (SEND) appropriately. They work with parents and other professionals to identify
children's needs and put suitable strategies in place. For example, staff use visual
timetables and prompts to help children understand daily routines and transitions. This helps
children to know what is happening now and what will happen next.
Staff focus on helping children to build secure relationships with familiar adults through
positive interactions. Children are supported to spend time with both their key person and
other staff. This helps children to develop confidence and supports continuity in their care.
As a result, children begin to settle and engage more readily in activities. Leaders and staff

share information with parents so that learning can be supported at home. This provides a
continuous approach to children's experiences.
The layout of the environment is an open-plan setting. Although recognised, leaders have
not yet considered ways to enhance the learning environment to further reduce noise levels
across the setting. That said, children listen and engage well. Overall, support for children
with SEND is generally effective, although it is not yet fully consistent. Leaders recognise
this and are taking steps to strengthen practice further, including reviewing aspects of the
learning environment to better support children's communication and language
development.
Leadership and governance Expected standard
Leaders are very passionate about their role and are committed to supporting children and
families. They support parents experiencing challenges and offer advice beyond childcare
matters, such as helping with housing applications. There are effective systems in place to
support staff's welfare and wellbeing. Leaders are very 'hands on' in their approach.
However, this sometimes hampers the effectiveness of leaders' evaluation of staff's practice
and areas for development.
Staff have a positive attitude towards continuous professional development and access
relevant training that enhances their knowledge and skills. Regular staff meetings and
professional discussions help staff reflect on children's progress and plan next steps for
learning. Staff speak positively about the support they receive from leaders, including the
setting's designated leads for safeguarding and children with special educational needs
and/or disabilities (SEND).
Leaders work effectively with external professionals to meet the needs of children with
SEND. They also work closely with parents to agree on individual education plans for
children. Parents are offered advice and ideas about how they can support their children's
learning at home. Books are available for children to take home, extending their learning
and development away from the setting. Leaders understand the importance of smooth
transitions and help prepare children for moving on to school.
What it's like to be a child at this setting
Children arrive happy and are warmly greeted by staff. Children's non-attendance at the
setting is appropriately monitored by staff and discussed with parents. Children are aware of

familiar routines, such as starting the day with a 'wake up, shake up' session, which they
enjoy. Children demonstrate they feel safe, secure and confident. Children with special
educational needs and/or disabilities, or children new to the setting, are given extra support
and cuddles to help them settle.
Children engage well in a varied range of planned play opportunities that support their
learning and development, both indoors and outdoors. They engage enthusiastically in
different activities around the same topic, such as learning about the life cycle of a butterfly.
Staff ensure that topics help children to learn about their local community. For example, they
make a shopping list for fruit salad and visit a local shop to buy the items.
Children learn well about personal safety. They are very familiar with, and can discuss, how
to keep themselves safe on outings, including safe ways to cross the road. Staff skilfully
include different areas of learning across topics. For example, children's literacy and
mathematical skills are promoted when they prepare a shopping list and talk about how
much items cost. They learn about the different ways that items can be paid for. This
promotes their knowledge and understanding of the world, including technology.
Children enjoy access to 2 separate outdoor play areas. They have opportunities to choose
where to play, including indoors or outdoors. They use their imagination well when making
food for caterpillars in the mud kitchen. Children's language and communication and their
thinking skills are also promoted when they talk about what they are doing and making.
Next steps
Leaders should carefully consider the environment and timetable when planning
children's learning and activities, for example, to more effectively support children's
communication and language skills at busier and noisier times.
Leaders should build on strategies to evaluate staff practice more effectively, including the
level of support that staff provide to children.
About this inspection
The inspector spoke with leaders, the special educational needs coordinator, staff, parents
and children 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.
A quality assurance visit by an additional inspector was carried out at this inspection.

Inspectors:
Elaine McDonnell
Emma Allison
About this setting
Unique reference number (URN): 2833208
Address:
Kids Planet Day Nursery
The Den, Westfield Terrace
Gateshead
NE8 4LD
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registration date: 10/02/2025
Registered person: Kids Planet Day Nurseries Limited
Register(s): EYR
Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:30 - 18:00
Local authority: Gateshead
Facts and figures used on inspection
This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection.
This data is from 24 March 2026
Children numbers
Age range of children at the time of inspection
0 to 4
Total number of places
35

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.
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