Cathedral Playgroup
GoodBirth to 8+Open for decades
A pre-school in Lancaster for children from birth to 8+, open sessions in term time, often mornings. They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in February 2024. Open since 2011, with 32 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 Lancashire
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Lancashire 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
LA1 3BUWhat 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, 22 February 2024 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Strong leadership ensures that staff are trained, knowledgeable and skilled in caring for children and helping them make good progress. Staff know how to safeguard children and promote children's good health. Leaders and staff take time to develop relationships and work closely with parents and any other professionals that may be involved with a child. This enables them to really understand about the children in their care, their families and what life is like for them at home. Any additional funding is spent carefully to ensure that it helps meet the needs of the children and supports their progress. Children have real opportunities to learn about their community and the similarities and differences in each other. They learn that the range of countries they originate from have different languages, currency, flags, food and traditions.
Staff are skilled at helping children to settle in and to quickly learn the routines and expectations of their behaviour. Children receive lots of positive praise, and they behave well. They learn how to share, take turns and form friendships. All staff are purposefully deployed, so they can spend most of their time interacting with children and teaching them through play, planned activities and daily routine tasks.
This helps staff to get to know what children enjoy, know and can do and what they need to learn next. They use this knowledge and their effective teaching skills to deliver a challenging curriculum that prepares children well for school. Children are inquisitive and exited to have a go and learn new things.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- support parents to understand the importance of their child routinely accessing their early education entitlement and improve their attendance at pre-school.
- 22 February 2024Good
- 15 March 2018Good
- 15 July 2014Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Cathedral Playgroup
- 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.