First Steps Day Nursery
GoodTakes funded hoursBirth to 8+Open for decades
A day nursery in Skipton 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 They do not publish prices, so ask.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 July 2025. Open since 2008, with 68 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
Funded hours
Free Flexible 15 hours per week childcare for children aged 2 -5.
What childcare usually costs in North Yorkshire
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in North Yorkshire 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
BD23 1TEWhat 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.
- 12 October 2022 — Concern: actions taken what Ofsted published
Ofsted inspector, 24 July 2025 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
The experienced and longstanding staff team create a warm and nurturing environment, where children feel safe and confident. Staff are responsive and sensitive to children's emotional needs, offering children cuddles when needed for comfort and reassurance. New children settle quickly and form strong bonds with staff. Staff know children well and tailor the curriculum to their individual needs.
They work effectively as a team, planning purposeful next steps that build on each child's starting points. Staff collaborate with professionals, such as speech and language therapists, to implement support plans. They share children's next steps in learning with parents and carers via an online app, which also allows parents to share the milestones their children achieve at home. This collaborative approach helps all children make good progress.
Children explore their environment with enthusiasm and curiosity. Babies immerse themselves in sensory play. They crawl through the floor-level sand tray, using their whole bodies to experience its texture. Children are absorbed as they stretch and jump to pop bubbles cascading from the bubble machine. Children show kindness and celebrate each other's achievements. They beam with pride when staff cheer and clap them and their friends, such as when they complete trickier tasks like jigsaw puzzles. This creates an inclusive atmosphere, where everyone feels valued.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- support children to understand the importance of good hygiene procedures more consistently across the setting n aid children's communication and language development further, such as by reducing background noise n provide more opportunities for children to develop their independence and selfcare skills.
- 24 July 2025Good Safeguarding: Yes
- 2 October 2019Good
- 15 April 2014Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for First Steps Day Nursery
- What it costs
- 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
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.