Ladybirds Pre-School
OutstandingTakes funded hoursBirth to 8+Open for decades
A day nursery in Colchester for from 2 years up to school age, open 08:30 to 15:30, 4 days a week. £5.00 a session for all ages, and they take the funded hours. Rated Outstanding by Ofsted in December 2023. Open since 2011, with 30 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
Term time only, 38 weeks a year, price list dated 1st April 2024.
| Age | Session | |
|---|---|---|
| 2 years old2y to 3y | £18.00Morning or Afternoon | |
| 2 to 4 years2y to 4y | £19.00Ad Hoc extra sessions | |
| 3 - 4 years old3y to 4y | £17.50Morning or Afternoon | |
| All ages | £5.00Breakfast club |
Extras
Charged on top of the session rate.
- £3.00 a session Lunch time coverParents to supply healthy packed lunch and drink
What a funded hour still costs
Funded hours cover the childcare. These are charged alongside them.
- £2.00 an hour All ages, when using a funded hour
Funded hours
15 hours universal for 3-4 year olds, 15 hours for eligible 2 year olds, 30 hours extended entitlement for eligible 3-4 year olds.
Worth knowing. Funding is term time only over 38 weeks. A charge of £2:00 per hour applies when using a funded hour. Funding for 2 year olds cannot be split across providers.
What childcare usually costs in Essex
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Essex 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
CO7 8HQWhat 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 December 2023 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children are welcomed into this most inviting, child-friendly and inspiring environment. The staff team deliver an exciting and challenging curriculum and all children attending make rapid progress. This welcoming pre-school has been created by the highly professional, dedicated manager. She is passionate in her vision and commitment to provide children with the highest quality care and education. Her team of knowledgeable attentive and nurturing staff are equally motivated to ensure children flourish and make exceptional progress in their development. Therefore, children are extremely comfortable, confident and ready to learn. Children arrive at pre-school and leave their parents with ease. They demonstrate curious minds, ask lots of questions and quickly become absorbed in the activities provided.
Staff create an exciting outdoor environment. They encourage children to prepare themselves for outdoor play and children competently put their coats and boots on with enthusiasm. Children work together as they negotiate how to make obstacle courses and large structures using planks and crates. They take photos of their creations and proudly show their friends and key person. An effective key-person system is in place and children have formed trusting and secure relationships. Staff have extremely high expectations of children's behaviour, which is exemplary.
Children engage visitors to the pre-school in conversation and invite them to participate in making tea. They discuss the smells of the different tea and use words, such as' infusions' and 'straining', when describing what they are doing, as they skilfully pour the tea.
- 7 December 2023Outstanding
- 14 May 2018Good
- 30 September 2013Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Ladybirds Pre-School
- 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 £5.00 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.
- 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.
Day nurseries within a couple of miles
This one is first. Tick it and one or two others to see them side by side.