A NURSERY business is expanding across the region with plans to open three sites each year.

Award-winning Kids 1st Nurseries plans to open centres in Durham and Hexham, Northumberland, in the next two months, creating up to 60 jobs.

The family-owned business already has nurseries in the grounds of North Tyneside General Hospital, in North Shields, and the Wansbeck Hospital, in Ashington, Northumberland.

Last month, Kids 1st launched its third site at the Quorum Business Park, in Benton Lane, Newcastle.

Area manager Allison Winship said: "We opened the first two nurseries in April 2004 and wanted to get them fully established before developing further.

"The nurseries have been hugely successful, and we are now rolling out an expansion programme across the North-East and hope to open three nurseries every year."

A nursery in the grounds of the University Hospital of North Durham, in the city's North Road, will open next month. It will provide 100 childcare places and create 30 jobs over the next 18 months.

The company's fifth nursery will open at Hexham General Hospital in July, again creating 30 jobs. Kids 1st Nurseries, which is based in Gateshead, was set up by Mark McArdle in 2003.

He said: "We have worked extremely hard with our existing nurseries to ensure that that our children enjoy a good balance between education, play and development, but equally to offer parents the reassurance that their children are receiving quality nursery care in a safe, secure and friendly environment."

All nurseries are fitted with fingerprint recognition entry systems, which scan everyone's prints before giving them access to the building.

Ms Winship said: "We have a duty of care and responsibility to ensure the children are able to enjoy their day in a safe and secure environment."

The firm's Rake Lane Nursery, in North Shields, was recently presented with the National Nursery Team of the Year award by Nursery Management Today.

The nursery was also inspected by Ofsted and put in the "outstanding" category for its care and education.

For more information about Kids 1st, visit www.kidsfirst.net or telephone 0191-461 8877.