Bluebell Playgroup And After School Club
GoodBirth to 8+Long established
A pre-school in Linslade for children from birth to 8+, open 08:00 to 18:00, 5 days a week. They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in June 2023. Open since 2016, with 28 places.
What you might pay
This setting does not publish its fees, and no national dataset holds them. This is what childcare costs across the council, as a starting point for the call.
What childcare usually costs in Central Bedfordshire
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Central Bedfordshire 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
LU7 2UAWhat 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, 12 June 2023 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children excitedly separate from parents and carers at the main door. They know to hang their bags on their photo-labelled pegs and move into the main room.
Children quickly become engaged in activities. They find their friends and enjoy playing and creating games together. For example, children play at the doll's house. They take trips around the playgroup together in the 'dolly cars', laughing as they move around the other cars on the track.
All children play well together, regardless of age. Staff successfully help older children to understand how they need to adapt play to support younger children.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- gather even more information from parents to help identify children's starting points when they first join the playgroup n strengthen feedback gathering from local feeder schools to support the playgroup to embed a purposeful curriculum.
- 12 June 2023Good
- 27 November 2017Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 2 of the last 2 graded inspections.
Still missing for Bluebell Playgroup And After School Club
- What it costs
- Funded hours
- Youngest age taken
- 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
None of this is in any national dataset and this setting has not published it, which is exactly why it is worth asking.
- What does it cost, all in? What is on top: meals, nappies, late pick-up, and what happens if you are late.
- Can I use my funded hours here? Whether they stretch them over the year, and the minimum days you have to book.
- Is there a place for my child's age? 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.
Pre-schools within a couple of miles
This one is first. Tick it and one or two others to see them side by side.