Cornerstone Day Nursery
GoodTakes funded hours★ 4.6 on GoogleBirth to 8+Open for decades
A day nursery in Basingstoke for children from birth to 8+, open 07:30 to 18:00, 5 days a week. They take the funded hours. They do not publish prices, so ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in March 2022. Open since 2004, with 150 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
Funded hours
15 hours funding from the term after 9 months; 15 hours from the term after 3 years; working families may be entitled to a further 15 hours.
Worth knowing. Consumables charge of £1.80 per half day & £2.50 per full day for funded hours only, not applicable if topping up by 5 hours or more per week or for children under 3 years.
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
RG24 9PUWhat 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.
- 11 April 2025 — Concern: actions taken what Ofsted published
Ofsted inspector, 2 March 2022 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children have a lot of fun in the nursery. They play cooperatively and explore a good range of activities which interest them and help them learn. For instance, babies are encouraged by staff to explore paint and baskets of toys which have different textures. This helps them to strengthen the muscles in their arms and develop warm relationships with staff. Toddlers sing songs and delight as they select pictures from a bag to accompany each song. They learn to take turns and the noises animals make. Older toddlers have fun exploring a range of natural resources, such as bark and lavender. This helps them to learn about volume and sharing as they scoop and pour their chosen materials together. Pre-school children have good opportunities to develop their imaginary play. For example, they dress up in their realistic home corner and look after their 'babies'. All children feel safe and confident to explore their surroundings.
Children develop positive relationships with each other. They learn the 'golden rules' at the nursery from a young age, such as using kind hands and listening ears. Staff ensure that children are appropriately challenged to develop their independence skills. For example, children in each age group have targets such as using cutlery to eat, drinking from a cup and learning to use the toilet. They play cooperatively and explore a challenging learning environment which links to children's interests and the skills that they need to learn to progress in their development.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- review the organisation of group times to keep interruptions to a minimum so that children fully benefit from the planned learning intentions n develop further strategies which enable children to self-soothe and develop their communication skills to the highest levels.
- 2 March 2022Good
- 18 February 2020Needs improvement
- 11 September 2012Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 2 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Cornerstone Day Nursery
- What it costs
- Youngest age taken
- 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.
- 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.