Full-day nursery in Harrowgate Hill, Darlington
The Play Hut
347 North Road, Darlington, DL1 3BL · Getting there
Is it good?
Read the Ofsted reportOfsted inspection, before November 2025
Good
- Quality of educationGood
- Behaviour and attitudesGood
- Personal developmentGood
- Leadership and managementGood
- SafeguardingEffective
What does this mean?
This grade is from before November 2025, when Ofsted replaced single grades with report cards. The nursery's next inspection will give a report card, with a separate grade for each area instead of one overall grade.
Official records
- Ofsted registrationRegistered since November 1998Reference 301135Ofsted · checked 30 June 2026
- Inspections on record1 inspectionlatest 22 February 2022Ofsted · checked 30 June 2026
- Registered places69 placesthe most children it may care for at onceOfsted · checked 30 June 2026
- Food hygiene rating5 (Very good)inspected 18 June 2026Food Standards Agency · checked 13 November 2026
Fees
Fees, hours and ages: not published yet
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Estimate a monthly cost with the council area's typical day rate
Hours and ages
Opening hours and ages: not published yet.
Getting there
347 North Road, Darlington, DL1 3BL · More nurseries in DL1
Stations
- North Road20 min walk · 0.8 miles
Buses
13 bus stops within 400 m, including Lowson Street, Thompson Street and Vaughan Street.
Parks and playgrounds
- Bensham Park6 min walk
- North Park7 min walk
- Drinkfield Marsh Nature Reserve10 min walk
- Playground6 min walk
- Playground8 min walk
NaPTAN, Department for Transport, checked 13 November 2026 · © OpenStreetMap contributors, checked 13 November 2026. Walking times are rough, from straight-line distance.
Places and next steps
Spaces: not published yet. Nurseries often fill months ahead, so ask early.
In Darlington there are about 3.8 children under 5 for every registered nursery place. Places are how many children nurseries may care for, not free spaces, so this is a guide to demand. Source: ONS Census 2021.
What parents say
Reviews on Toddly
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Write a reviewAbout The Play Hut
The Play Hut is a full-day nursery at 347 North Road, Darlington, DL1 3BL, in Harrowgate Hill, Darlington. It is registered for 69 children. Ofsted rated it Good at its inspection in February 2022, before report cards replaced single grades in November 2025. It has a Google rating of 5.0 from 5 reviews (October 2026).
Compare nurseries nearby
| Nursery | Ofsted | Full day from | Hours | Ages | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Play HutThis nursery | Good | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | This nursery |
| Lowson Street Pre-SchoolSessional pre-school | Good | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | under 0.1 miles |
| Kids Planet DarlingtonFull-day nursery | Not yet inspected | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | 1.0 miles |
| Darlington College Childcare CentreFull-day nursery | Good | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | 1.2 miles |
| Big Kids Little Kids Nursery and out of School ClubFull-day nursery | Good | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | 1.2 miles |
| Secret Garden Day NurseryFull-day nursery | Good | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | 1.3 miles |
| Pierremont Pre-SchoolFull-day nursery | Good | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | 1.4 miles |
A dash means the nursery hasn't published it yet. Distances are in a straight line.
Nearby areas
Schools nearby
- Harrowgate Hill Primary School Primaryages 3–11has a nursery classOfsted: Report cardinspected February 2026 under 0.1 miles
- St Bede's Catholic Primary School Primaryages 3–11has a nursery classOfsted: Quality of education: Good; Behaviour and attitudes: Good; Personal development: Good; Leadership and management: Goodinspected December 2024 0.4 miles
- Northwood Primary School Primaryages 2–11has a nursery classOfsted: School remains Goodinspected March 2024 0.5 miles
- Gurney Pease Academy Primaryages 2–11has a nursery classOfsted: Report cardinspected February 2026 0.9 miles
- Springfield Academy Primaryages 3–11has a nursery classOfsted: Report cardinspected April 2026 0.9 miles
- Beaumont Hill Academy ages 2–19has a nursery classOfsted: School remains Goodinspected May 2024 0.9 miles
- Corporation Road Community Primary School Primaryages 2–11has a nursery classOfsted: Goodinspected September 2023 1.1 miles
- Whinfield Primary School Primaryages 5–11Ofsted: School remains Goodinspected March 2022 1.1 miles
Straight-line distances. Places depend on each school's admissions rules. From the Department for Education and Ofsted.
Questions parents ask
Got a question? Ask and get an answer straight away.
What is The Play Hut's Ofsted rating?
Ofsted rated The Play Hut Good at its inspection on 22 February 2022, before report cards replaced single grades in November 2025.
How many children can The Play Hut take?
The Play Hut is registered with Ofsted for up to 69 children at any one time.
What is the nearest station to The Play Hut?
North Road is the nearest station we know of, 0.8 miles away in a straight line.
How do I contact The Play Hut?
You can call 01325 362526.
Tools for parents in Darlington
- Childcare cost calculatorMonthly cost with funded hours
- Funded hours checkerWhich schemes you qualify for
- Funded hours start dateWhen your child's hours begin
- Tax-Free Childcare calculatorThe 20% top-up on your bill
- Visit checklist for this nurseryPrintable questions, pre-filled
- Cost of nursery in DarlingtonFees by age in Darlington
About this information
- Registration and inspections: Ofsted · 30 June 2026
- Rating and review themes: Google · 31 October 2026
- Schools: DfE Get Information about Schools · 4 November 2026
- Contains Ofsted data licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Contains Department for Education data licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Contains Ofsted data licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Contains National Statistics data © Crown copyright and database right; contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right.
- Contains Department for Transport NaPTAN data licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
- © OpenStreetMap contributors
- Food hygiene rating from the Food Standards Agency, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Source: Office for National Statistics, Census 2021, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Read reviews on Google
Last checked 31 October 2026 · Ofsted URN 301135 · Plain-text version · Report a mistake
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