Opened in April 2019, this play centre is, as is to be expected, clean and shiny with up to date, new equipment. There are a few areas – the main play frame with the usual slides, tubes etc; a baby area with small sensory room complete with light installations; a toddler area with age appropriate equipment and a sports court. There’s also a piano floor mat which was a firm favourite with the Mini Mumblers.
I loved the toddler area – it was really secure and entirely safe for my one year old whilst having enough equipment for my three year old to get stuck into. The equipment is great and, with the centre being new, its all in excellent condition – loads of soft animals to ride on, balls to throw and soft blocks to roll around with. We went on a Wednesday afternoon and it was fairly quiet so a lot less stressful than soft play can sometimes be! We didn’t eat there but I had a nosey at the menu which looked fairly balanced – from sausages and chips to sandwiches and jacket potatoes for the kids, alongside an adult menu which was a little limited – sandwiches or pasta, but more than enough for a quick snack in between goes on the drop slide.
Just Kidding runs a number of free classes during the week which I think is a great idea. They’re not listed on the website yet as they seem to be a bit changeable at the moment, probably whilst they figure out what works best – but if you keep an eye on their Facebook page they usually update it with with whats coming up.
JUST KIDDING AT A GLANCE…
Cost (as at June 2019)
Under 6 months FREE
6 months – 18 months £2.75
Highlights
Clean, new equipment
Toddler area entirely age appropriate without being boring
Regular free classes
Parking
Just Kidding is situated on an industrial estate with parking dotted around – we found a space easily
We visited Planet Play on a wet day during the school holidays which in hindsight was a ridiculous thing to do. The place was heaving and we only just managed to grab the last empty table to set up camp.
Despite the crowds, our morning at Planet Play was remarkably stress free – again, pretty unusual for a soft play outing! Perhaps its because you can see all of the play structures from the seating area in the middle, or because even the big structure was largely toddler friendly (due mainly to the lack of sheer drops!) Whatever the reason, I didn’t leave feeling 15 years older than when I arrived. The dedicated baby area is great, with ample soft blocks and a sizeable ball pool. The toddler area is small-ish but there’s a pretty cool floor piano which is a nice addition and toddlers can safely use the bigger structure.
Whilst the bigger structure lacks the sheer drops that make many of its kind prohibitive to those without any sense of danger (my toddler), it was still ‘grown up’ enough to satisfy the most energetic and harshest of judges – my 4 year old nephew. It’s all dimly lit to give it a sense of being in space which is pretty cool and has all the usual suspects – wavy slide, nets, punch bags etc, as well as a trampoline. There’s also a sports court if the kids fancy a kick about. Some of the equipment – the the ball shower and ball blowing machine – wasn’t working on this visit, which was a shame, but that didn’t bother the mini’s for long.
There’s a counter serving snacks such as fruit toast and sandwiches as well as more hearty meals such as burger, chips and peas. There’s a separate adults menu which includes the likes of breakfast bloomers, pasta and salads. The food’s good and the coffees we had were coffee shop standard.
PLANET PLAY AT A GLANCE…
Cost (as at June 2019)
Under 1’s – free
1-3 – £4.50
3 years + £5.50
Highlights
The layout minimises soft play stress
Large structure is toddler friendly
Parking
Parking is ok – primarily along a wall outside – we’ve always got a space
We visited Fun4All on a wet Wednesday afternoon during the school holidays. Yes, it did seem like a good idea at the time….
We had promised the bigger kids with us some trampolining and, arriving just before one of the hourly time slots was about to begin, headed straight over to the Bounce studio – much to the horror of my toddler who was distraught at being dragged past all the soft play fun. On entering the Bounce studio we were informed that toddler mumbler couldn’t join in the bouncing since the minimum age was 3. Cue more distraught flinging around. However, the supervisor had a word with the owner and she was allowed to join in on the proviso I joined her…..So we changed into our trampolining socks and off we bounced (NOTE – you will need to buy special socks to use the trampolines but once purchased they are yours to keep and can be use every time you visit).
Without meaning to state the obvious, the trampolines are REALLY bouncy (!!) and I get why under 3’s aren’t really allowed – some of the older kids are like Tigger and can cover some pretty good ground when they get going. However, the session was fairly quiet and the older kids were really careful around my toddler. Needless to say, she LOVED it and I have to admit, so did I! I was told I wasn’t really allowed to bounce and was there in a ‘supervisory’ role but I couldn’t help bouncing and bopping around the trampolines. The older mini mumblers had a great time and by the end had mastered some pretty impressive moves. An hour flew by and before long it was time to bounce off to check out the soft play. Cue third toddler meltdown when I tried to drag her away.
As an aside to those flying solo with a toddler and baby – theres a flight of stairs up to the Bounce area so you can’t take a buggy up even if there was room to park it (which there isn’t) – so you cant leave the little one whilst you ‘supervise’ the toddler on the trampolines.
The soft play room is pretty big and, to be honest, appears a little tired in places. There are plenty of tables and a cafe selling fare such as nachos, pizza, spring rolls as well as sandwiches for the kids. What I like about Fun4All is that the baby and toddler areas are completely separate to the area for the older ones. They’re at opposite ends of the room and its refreshing not to spend my time prying my toddler away from structures suitable for 10 year olds who floor her as they tear past . The baby section has lots of age appropriate toys including a jumperoo, activity table, ride ons and sensory toys as well as the usual bricks, balls etc. The toddler area is next to the baby section and is pretty much what you’d expect with the usual nets, slides etc. There’s plenty to entertain my toddler which means I can sit in the baby section and keep an eye on them both. The older kids area is bigger and features a climbing wall, wavy slide and aerial gliders. There’s a small enclosed area for sports.
The addition of the Bounce area means you can make a morning or afternoon of it by combining an hours bouncing with some soft play and it got a big thumbs up from the committee of mini mumbler judges. If you go on a weekday out of term time its usually pretty quiet thereby minimising stress levels! Various Mum groups use Fun4All as their meeting place (eg East Cheshire NCT and Macclesfield Babywearers) which means you can meet other local mums whilst the little ones enjoy some soft play (often at a discounted rate).
FUN4ALL AT A GLANCE…
Cost (as at June 2019)
Off Peak sessions – weekdays 10:00 – 15:00
Parent & Toddler Time (entry and play for 1 child & 1 adult) – £4.00
Peak time – weekdays 15:00 – 18:00, weekends and school holidays
Under 6mths – no charge
6-12 months – £1.00
1-2yrs – £4.00
3yrs – 5yrs – £6.00
6yrs and over £7.00
Adults – £1.00
Highlights
Bounce area
Various groups use Fun4All as a meeting place, including the lovely Friends of East Cheshire NCT group which meets there on Wednesday mornings. The group is a great opportunity to meet other mums and go to soft play for just £1 – fab for families with multiple kids.
Parking
Plenty of parking outside venue and in overflow
Head Over Heels is a very large soft play venue – over twice the size of the average soft play venue. It’s often fairly quiet on a weekday during term time so you’ll get chance to try out the great facilities which include sports court, bungee trampolines, dedicated baby sensory room, electric car track, disco room, pretend and imaginary play mini village, dressing up area and mini cinema. Be warned however – it can get extremely busy at the weekend and during school holidays – on a few occasions we haven’t been able to get a parking space in the car parks.
The popularity is, however, testament to the great facilities listed above – the most extensive of any soft play venue I’ve visited – the lovely cafe (which is head and shoulders above most soft play cafes), the cleanliness and the additional entertainment from the onsite mascots who periodically put on shows for the little ones which my Mini Mumblers love. There are also regular free activities put on for the kids including singing, dancing and arts and crafts.
HEAD OVER HEELS AT A GLANCE…
Cost (as at June 2019)
Off Peak
0-5 months FREE
6-11 Months. £3.25
1 year and over (must be under 1.55m) Discounted entry and unlimited play time just one price for the full day. Complimentary Little Stars toddler activities from 9.30am including Wakey Shaky 10am, sing along with Eva the Diva at 11am. arts & crafts 12-1pm, Groovy Tots 1.30pm. £5.45
Non players £1.85
On Peak
0-5 months. FREE
6-11 Months. £3.25
1-2 years. £6.25
3 years and over (must be under 1.55m). £7.70
Non players. £2.10
Highlights
Excellent facilities and equipment
Large, clean venue
Parking
Parking outside venue and in overflow round the corner (but is sometimes full)
Crazy Club is a medium sized soft play inside the Super Bowl. It has 3 distinct areas – the main play frame with all the usual bits and bobs – wavy slides, drop slide, tunnels etc….the toddler area with age appropriate equipment…and a baby area with foam shapes, ball pool and building blocks. The equipment is pretty basic but it’s reasonably priced so is a staple outing of ours and we’re yet to go at a time when it’s been particularly busy. The main frame is too big for my littlest one to navigate by himself but the baby and toddler sections keep him busy and on weekdays during term time we’ve often had the place to ourselves meaning I can comfortably let the older one run around on it whilst also keeping an eye on the littlest one.
There’s a counter serving the usual food you’d expect – chicken nuggets, sausages, fish and chips etc, alongside jacket potatoes and baguettes. Crazy Club does pretty decent meal deals and there are also periodic arts and craft sessions the little ones can take part in.
CRAZY CLUB AT A GLANCE…
Cost (as at June 2019)
Under 1’s – Free
1-12 – £2.99
Adult – Free
Under 1’s – Free
1-3 – £3.50
4 + – £4.75
Adult – Free
Highlights
Often quiet
Reasonably priced and does good deals
Parking
Plenty of parking in the car park (remember to enter your reg into the Parking Eye machine inside)
