Little Ones - Budlake
GoodTakes funded hoursBirth to 8+Open for decades
A day nursery in Exeter for children from birth to 8+, open 07:45 to 18:00, 5 days a week. They take the funded hours. They do not publish prices, so ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in August 2022. Open since 2002, with 29 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
Funded hours
Early Years funding for 3 and 4 year olds.
Worth knowing. Voluntary small consumables charge each funded day.
What childcare usually costs in Devon
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Devon 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
EX5 3JWWhat 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, 23 August 2022 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children are happy and settled in this nurturing nursery. They separate well from their parents and receive a warm welcome from the caring staff, which helps them to feel safe and secure. They enjoy using the varied range of accessible resources and getting involved in activities. For example, younger children explore the texture of oats and dried spaghetti and older children experiment freely with gloop. Staff do not place limitations on this exploration, and when children want to spread the gloop up their arms they are able to do so. Children build strong friendships. For example, a group of children decide to put on a show together and work as a team to give out tickets and decide what the show will be. Children respect others and share toys.
Staff know children well and support all of them to make good progress from their individual starting points. Staff and children interact well with one another and children are confident to seek support as required. Staff provide encouragement and praise, which builds children's sense of achievement. For example, staff praise young children for sitting at the table and using their spoon to eat their lunch. Staff value children's opinions. They ask for a show of hands so that children can decide which outdoor area they would like to use.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- provide further mentoring and coaching for staff to develop their ability to extend children's learning as much as possible during both adult-led and childinitiated activities n develop staff's ability to provide a calm learning environment at all times.
- 23 August 2022Good
- 12 December 2016Good
- 27 February 2014Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Little Ones - Budlake
- What it costs
- Youngest age taken
- 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.
- What does it cost, all in? 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.
Day nurseries within a couple of miles
This one is first. Tick it and one or two others to see them side by side.