Alphabets Preschool
GoodTakes funded hours★ 3.8 on GoogleBirth to 5Open for decades
A day nursery in Southampton for from 2 years up to 5 year olds, open 8am to 6pm. They take the funded hours. They do not publish prices, so ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in March 2024. Open since 1990, with 26 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
Funded hours
15 hours of free government-funded childcare for eligible 2, 3, and 4-year-olds; up to 30 hours of funded childcare for eligible 3 and 4-year-olds, subject to availability.
Worth knowing. Subject to availability.
What childcare usually costs in Hampshire
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Hampshire from the Department for Education's 2025 provider survey. No national data holds what an individual nursery charges, so ring and ask.
Places, hours and the day
Who they take, when they are open, and what a day there includes.
Where it is
SO30 2ESWhat the inspector found
One grade is one visit. A run of them tells you whether it has been good for years or has only just got there.
Ofsted inspector, 25 March 2024 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children come into the nursery happy and excited to see their friends. Staff spend time getting to know the children who they care for. This helps children to build relationships and settle quickly. Staff have high expectations for all children, who are making good progress. Staff follow children's interests and plan exciting activities, such as growing vegetables and planting flowers. Staff continue this learning inside and adapt the environment to develop learning further. For instance, children's imaginations are captured by the garden centre that has been set up in the role-play area. They pretend to buy flowers to take home for their families.
Overall, children behave well. They enjoy helping staff with tasks, such as setting the table for mealtimes and tidying up. Children have a positive attitude to learning. They enjoy exploring sensory activities, such as sand and water play. Staff hide objects in the sand and encourage children to find them. Staff are skilful at keeping children engaged in their play. They recognise the importance of supporting children's language development. Staff extend children's ideas and ask a range of questions. For instance, when children are digging in the mud, staff ask children to compare the size of worms. These opportunities contribute to building children's range of vocabulary.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- support staff to consistently help children to understand the expectations for their behaviour and the impact of this on others n sharpen arrangements for monitoring staff practice, to enable more-focused support on enhancing their teaching skills further.
- 25 March 2024Good
- 15 June 2018Good
- 15 June 2015Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Alphabets Preschool
- What it costs
- Meals
- Nappies
- Waiting list
No dataset holds any of this. Two parents telling us the same thing puts it on the page for whoever looks next.
What to ask them
Some of this is above, from the setting or from parents, and it can go out of date. The rest is in no dataset anywhere. Either way it is worth ten minutes on the phone.
- What does it cost, all in? What is on top: meals, nappies, late pick-up, and what happens if you are late.
- How do you apply my funded hours? Whether they stretch them over the year, and the minimum days you have to book.
- Do you have a place for a child of my age now? Baby rooms fill first and waiting lists are common.
- Who would my child's key person be? And how long have the staff been there. No dataset holds this and it matters more than anything above.
- Can I visit at a busy time? Mid-morning on a weekday tells you far more than an empty room after hours.
Day nurseries within a couple of miles
This one is first. Tick it and one or two others to see them side by side.