Childsplay Day Nursery
GoodTakes funded hours★ 5.0 on GoogleBirth to 8+Open for decades
A day nursery in Colchester for babies from a few weeks old up to school age, open 07:00 to 18:00, 5 days a week. £93.00 a day for 0 TO FIVE YEAR OLDS, and they take the funded hours. Rated Good by Ofsted in September 2023. Open since 1999, with 70 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
52 weeks a year, minimum 2 days a week, price list dated 1 st October 2026.
| Age | Full day | Session | Hourly | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 TO FIVE YEAR OLDSbirth to 5y | £65.10Short Day £93.00 | £46.50Morning, 5 hrs | – | |
| Over 3’s3y to 5y | – | £46.50Afternoon (over 3’s only), 5 hrs | – | |
| All ages | – | – | £9.30Extra hours |
Extras
Charged on top of the session rate.
- £2.50 a day Tea
- £4.50 a day Lunch
- £20.00 per 15 minutes Emergency cover from 6.00pm
Where this came from
The outlined line is the one the price was taken from.
Funded hours
Government Funding up to 30 hours a week for children aged 9 months to 4 years.
Worth knowing. We are open 52 weeks of the year so funding is stretched, giving you up to 22 funded hours per week towards your childcare costs. Any hours above this, will be charged at our hourly rate.
What childcare usually costs in Essex
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Essex 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
CO1 1XFWhat 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, 13 September 2023 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children learn well. They benefit from a broad curriculum which captures their interest. Babies and children develop the skills and knowledge they need to move confidently through the rooms in the nursery and on to school. Children benefit from many different outings and real-life experiences. For example, they go on outings to the local supermarket to have a go at operating a self-service checkout.
This helps to widen their understanding of the uses of everyday technology.
Children learn well from the positive example set by the cheerful and nurturing staff. They learn to talk about and express their different emotions and consider the needs of others. Babies show that they feel safe and secure when approaching visitors, while older children confidently start conversations about topics that interest them. Children's behaviour is consistently good. From a young age, they show that they understand and follow the boundaries and rules. For example, during activities in the woodland area, older children remind each other how to carry tools safely and toddlers know to wait their turn before jumping down the steps.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: - review the curriculum for early mathematics to build on what children already know and can do and further enhance their mathematical knowledge.
- 13 September 2023Good
- 26 June 2018Good
- 26 July 2017Needs improvement
Rated Good or Outstanding at 2 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Childsplay Day Nursery
- 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.
- Is £93.00 a day still the rate? 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.