A NEW nursery opening in Darlington will be the first in the area to provide overnight care.

Upperthorpe Nursery on Woodland Road has been approved by Ofsted to provide care for around 98 children aged from three months to 11-years-old and will be open seven days a week.

In addition to offering pre-school care and education, Upperthorpe also has provision for overnight care and after-school clubs and Saturday activities.

It has also received approval from Darlington Council to provide 15 hours of free childcare for eligible two-year-olds and 15 hours of free early years education for two to four-year-olds.

Owner Vanessa Lovejoy, who already owns Kiddies Corner in Abbey Road, said: “Flexible childcare that suits the requirements of parents is becoming more important with people working less traditional hours than ever before.

“We have designed the services at Upperthorpe to help shift workers and other parents that need childcare at times to suit them.”

The nursery will offer a ten percent discount to NHS staff and will cater for children with Halal requirements

An open day is being held on Saturday (January 24) between 10am and 3pm where parents and children can visit the nursery and enjoy snacks, refreshments and entertainment including donkey rides.