Little Pals Childrens Centre Nursery
GoodBirth to 8+Open for decades
A day nursery in Clacton-On-Sea for children from birth to 8+, open 07:45 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 They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask.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 February 2024. Open since 2009, with 75 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 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
CO16 8BEWhat 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.
- 7 October 2024 — Concern: actions taken what Ofsted published
Ofsted inspector, 28 February 2024 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children enjoy their nursery experiences. They enter excitedly, chatting to their parents about what they are going to do at nursery and who they are going to see.
Children are greeted by friendly staff, who welcome them and help them to begin their nursery day in a positive way. Staff take time to speak to parents at drop off and collection times to ensure that they build and maintain a productive, two-way flow of information sharing. Children quickly settle into their nursery day, seeking out their friendship groups and engaging in fun, freely chosen play and learning.
Children understand the nursery rules and follow the staff's instructions well. They are kind and caring towards each other. Babies receive warm, affectionate care from the staff, who know them well and speak confidently about their individual needs and personalities. Staff praise babies when they show kindness to each other, for example, by passing other children their dummy or drinking cup. Older children guide much of their own play and learning as they confidently move between the indoor and outdoor environments. Children are able to take some risks in their play, helping them to gain a better understanding of what is safe, especially in the well-equipped gardens.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- strengthen arrangements for staff to learn from each other to create a consistently strong team and make certain that the curriculum intent and implementation are firmly embedded across the nursery n develop further the arrangements to focus the support for children's understanding of mathematics so that they benefit from increased opportunities to progress more rapidly in this area of their learning.
- 28 February 2024Good
- 8 June 2022Good
- 22 July 2019Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Little Pals Childrens Centre 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.