Hopscotch Preschool
GoodTakes funded hours★ 4.3 on GoogleBirth to 8+Long established
A pre-school in Ferndown for babies from 3 months up to school age, open 08:00 to 18:00, 5 days a week. £63.00 a day, and they take the funded hours. Rated Good by Ofsted in March 2023. Open since 2014, with 68 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
50 weeks a year, price list dated April 2026.
| Age | Full day | Session | Hourly | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| All ages | £63.00Preschool day* £90.00Day | £28.50PM, 3 hrs £38.00AM, 4 hrs | £10.00short notice adhoc |
Extras
Charged on top of the session rate.
- £9.50 a session Breakfast clubincludes breakfast included
- £9.50 an hour Additional hour
Where this came from
The outlined line is the one the price was taken from.
Funded hours
2 year old funding, 15 hours and 30 hours for 3 and 4 year olds; new 30 hours government funding for 9 month to 2 year olds starting September 2025.
Worth knowing. 2 and 3 year old funding can only be used between 9am and 4pm. Funding can be Term Time only or stretched across holidays. Hopscotch never charge top up fees or additional extras.
What childcare usually costs in Dorset
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Dorset 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
BH22 8XHWhat 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, 6 March 2023 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children are extremely happy and settled. Babies enjoy a nurturing environment in which they form loving attachments with staff. Children of all ages benefit from safe and secure play areas in which they choose and lead their own play freely.
They form close and trusting relationships with the dedicated staff who take care to get to know their individual needs and routines to meet these consistently.
Staff's management of children's behaviour is exemplary. They provide clear expectations, very good example and manage issues consistently and calmly. Staff provide resources to support children's individual challenges, such as introducing picture prompts to help them manage time and change. Children behave very well and develop good social skills.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- provide time for children to respond to questions to support their thinking and communication even further n improve staff practice further to help children learn how to manage all aspects of their personal hygiene consistently well.
- 6 March 2023Good
- 20 November 2019Good
- 30 June 2016Outstanding
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Hopscotch Preschool
- 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 £63.00 a day 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.
- Do you have a place for a child of my age now? 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.
Pre-schools within a couple of miles
This one is first. Tick it and one or two others to see them side by side.