First Steps Nursery
GoodBirth to 8+Open for decades
A day nursery in Sleaford for children from birth to 8+, open 07:30 to 18:00, 5 days a week. They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in October 2023. Open since 2002, with 70 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 Lincolnshire
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Lincolnshire 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
NG34 9FJWhat 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, 10 October 2023 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children show positive relationships with staff. For example, in the baby room, children sit with staff for comfort when they are tired or to listen to a story.
Children in the toddler room learn new skills that help them to develop the muscles in their hands in preparation for early writing. For instance, they are excited to copy staff when they show them how to use the palm of their hand to press down on play dough. In the pre-school room, staff help children to recognise the name of shapes they play with, such as a hexagon. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are supported well. Staff work closely with other professionals to meet their individual needs. The manager spends additional funding that some children receive to enable them to follow their interests and support their learning.
Staff encourage children to use their voices to ask for what they want from their peers. For example, when children want a pen that is near to another child, staff encourage them to ask for it themselves. Children receive gentle reminders from staff to use good manners when they are given something by their peers, encouraging them to be polite. Children are supported by staff to understand how they can keep themselves safe. For example, children learn that they must not eat berries they pick outdoors and tell staff, 'My stomach might hurt.'
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- support staff to help more mobile children in the baby room to build on their large physical skills indoors n strengthen staff's partnership with parents of children in the baby room, offering all parents ideas and suggestions about how they can continue to support their children's learning at home.
- 10 October 2023Good
- 8 March 2018Good
- 19 August 2014Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for First Steps 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.