Greystone Nursery
GoodBirth to 5Long established
A day nursery in Carlisle for children from birth to 5, open 8am to 6pm. They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in January 2023. Open since 2013, with 35 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 Cumberland
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Cumberland 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
CA1 2HAWhat 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, 31 January 2023 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children benefit from bespoke settling-in sessions. The key-person system successfully values the needs and preferences of every child. This contributes towards the special bonds that are formed between children and staff. Children's behaviour is good. Children learn from staff that 'team work makes the dream work'. They happily work together with others to complete tasks, such as tidying up. Children are happy, settled and safe at this calm and inviting nursery. They make many independent choices during play and show confidence to ask for help.
Leaders and staff aim to ensure that 'every child gets the best possible start in life'.
They create an ambitious curriculum that ignites children's natural curiosity and imagination. Children immerse themselves in their play and learning. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) reflect on their home life experiences when pretending to make a cup of tea using real-life crockery. Children who speak English as an additional language recall their learning from a trip to a health clinic at the community centre. During play with dolls, they display their excellent knowledge of different occupations and position a stethoscope accurately to listen for a heartbeat. Children investigate the properties of water when exploring the water wall. They watch as the water flows down a funnel and through a pipe and persevere when attempting to catch this at the bottom.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- expand the use of the new communication aids and support children with SEND
to communicate more freely, to help them to make the highest rates of progress in their early language development from the very outset n strengthen the existing arrangements for staff supervision and provide more formal and frequent support and coaching to all staff that precisely focuses on helping them to extend their good teaching practice further.
- 31 January 2023Good
- 6 April 2017Good
- 30 January 2015Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Greystone 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.