First Steps Fountain Of Life Pre-School
GoodTakes funded hoursBirth to 5Long established
A pre-school in Thetford for children from birth to 5, open 09:00 to 15:00, 4 days a week. £19.20 a session for 2 year olds, and they take the funded hours. Rated Good by Ofsted in May 2025. Open since 2017, with 26 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
| Age | Session | |
|---|---|---|
| 2 year olds2y to 3y | £19.202 year olds | |
| 3/4 year olds3y to 4y | £17.403/4 year olds |
Before you start
One-off charges to take a place.
- £12.00 registration feeIf your child does not receive funding
Funded hours
Universal funding for 3 & 4 year olds (15 hours); Extended hours (working parent) funding for 2, 3 & 4 year olds (30 hours of which we can offer a maximum of 24 hours per week); Two year old entitlement – receiving some additional forms of government support (15 hours).
Worth knowing. We do not charge a registration fee, a fee for snacks or meals where a child only has a funded place. We charge for additional sessions over and above the funding you are entitled to at the setting rate for 2 and 3/4 year olds; We will only charge for consumables such as nappies if you have asked us to provide those items at the setting.
What childcare usually costs in Norfolk
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Norfolk 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
IP25 7BTWhat 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, 7 May 2025 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children's emotional well-being is at the forefront of this inclusive and nurturing pre-school. Parents and children benefit from bespoke settling-in processes and can enjoy stay-and-play sessions before children start. This ensures children settle in smoothly, alongside swiftly building trusting and secure relationships with the staff team. Staff provide opportunities to help children find out about a broad range of people and communities outside of their own experience. For instance, staff arrange a visit from a fire engine, where children learn about people who help us.
In addition, parents are actively involved in the pre-school, and their children benefit as they contribute their own experiences and professions during sessions with the children.
The management team and staff embed a successful curriculum that provides children with the chance to develop their social skills, build relationships and become independent. Staff use themed topics and books to bring the curriculum to life with imaginative and fun teaching. For example, children learn the importance of teamwork as they decorate an enormous blue whale together, a character from their story of the week. Staff provide meaningful praise as children independently share popular resources, such as paint and brushes. This helps reinforce their understanding of positive and respectful behaviours expected of them.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- consider ways to promote children's learning even further in the garden area, to help those who prefer to learn outdoors.
- 7 May 2025Good Safeguarding: Yes
- 4 June 2019Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 2 of the last 2 graded inspections.
Still missing for First Steps Fountain Of Life Pre-School
- 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.
- Is £19.20 a session 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.
- 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.