Combe Down Nursery
Good★ 4.7 on GoogleBirth to 8+Open for decades
A day nursery in Bath for children from birth to 8+, open 07:30 to 18:30, 5 days a week. They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in November 2022. Open since 2008, with 90 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 Bath and North East Somerset
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Bath and North East Somerset 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
BA2 5HYWhat 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.
- 24 October 2022 — Concern: actions taken what Ofsted published
Ofsted inspector, 29 November 2022 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children are happy, settle well and are confident in this inclusive nursery. They are eager to get involved in the range of stimulating activities on offer. Children show good concentration and enthusiasm during activities and in their play. Staff pay attention to children's individual interests and extend these interests well. For example, staff arrange visits from the local museum staff for children with an interest in fossils. Children are fascinated as they explore a fossil. They are inquisitive and ask questions, which staff answer well to deepen children's knowledge.
Children build warm and positive bonds with staff, who get to know the children well. Individual key-person relationships are strong. Staff are good role models.
They have high expectations of children's behaviour. All children behave well and learn positive social skills during their time at the nursery. For example, from a young age they say 'please' and 'thank you' as they share resources and toys with adults and their peers.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- enhance teaching during adult-planned art and craft activities, to provide greater opportunities for children to develop their own creative ideas and interests n extend opportunities to expand children's understanding of their wider community and modern Britain, to enrich their knowledge of communities beyond their own.
- 29 November 2022Good
- 12 July 2022Inadequate
- 28 September 2016Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 2 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Combe Down Nursery
- 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.
Day nurseries within a couple of miles
This one is first. Tick it and one or two others to see them side by side.