Childcare in Ferndown
Ferndown has 6 day nurseries, 2 pre-schools, 2 school nursery classes and 3 childminders. Ofsted has inspected 11 of them and rated 10 Good or better, 3 of them Outstanding. 2 have never been inspected, which usually means recently registered. Of those that publish a price, a full day runs from £15 to £90, typically £81. Across Dorset there are 37 places per 100 children under five, better supplied than England as a whole at 32.
Places per 100 under-fives is registered capacity at nurseries, pre-schools and childminders across Dorset, divided by the children aged 0 to 4 who live there at the 2021 Census. It compares areas; it is not a count of free places today. It also leaves out the 60 school nursery classes across Dorset, because nobody publishes how many children they take.
2 settings match. Search by postcode to sort them by how far they really are.
What has changed here
Ofsted does not publish closures, so we work them out by comparing releases. Worth knowing if you are working from an old list.
- Dec 2025Closed PESSPA Wraparound Care Out-of-school day care
What people ask about childcare in Ferndown
Answered from the figures on this page, so they stay in step with it.
How much does nursery cost in Ferndown?
Of the 6 full-day rates published by settings in Ferndown, the typical price is £81 a day, ranging from £15 to £90. These are prices the settings publish themselves, not an average of quotes.
Which nurseries in Ferndown take funded hours?
7 of the 13 settings in Ferndown are recorded as taking the government funded hours. Councils do not publish a list of approved providers, so the rest are unknown rather than a no.
Are any nurseries in Ferndown rated Outstanding?
Yes. 3 of the 11 settings Ofsted has inspected in Ferndown hold an Outstanding grade.
Which nurseries in Ferndown take babies?
11 settings in Ferndown are registered to take children under two. Ofsted's register does not say whether a setting runs a baby room or has space in it, so ring before you plan around it.
Is it hard to get a nursery place in Ferndown?
Dorset has 37 registered childcare places for every 100 children under five, against 32 across England. That is registered capacity rather than free places, so it compares areas rather than telling you what is available this week.
Towns close to Ferndown
Worth widening the search to, especially if you drive to work.