Little Scholars Nursery
GoodTakes funded hours★ 5.0 on GoogleBirth to 5Long established
A day nursery in Derby for children from birth to 5, 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 They do not publish prices, so ask.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 September 2025. Open since 2017, with 31 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
Funded hours
We offer 2, 3 and 4 year old funding.
Worth knowing. The funding can be used in a number of different ways ,we offer funded only sessions and wrap around care sessions with funding taken off, We also offer stretched funding for all year round sessions.
What childcare usually costs in Derby
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Derby 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
DE23 1GQWhat 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, 1 September 2025 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children happily welcome visitors to their nursery. They invite others to join in their play and share their toys. Children display strong bonds with staff and ask for a hug when they need one. Children are kind when they speak to each other, and use their manners when staff remind them. Generally, children behave well and follow instructions staff provide. Staff know children well and skilfully support them if they become upset. Children benefit from consistent behaviour management and high expectations from staff. Children learn to keep themselves safe. For example, staff teach them why it is important not to take their toys onto the slide with them.
Older children begin to understand and recognise different emotions. Through a range of well-planned activities that staff provide, children learn how to tell others how they are feeling. Children learn to celebrate diversity. Staff teach them how to compare differences and similarities between themselves, such as the colour of their eyes and hair. Children understand the daily routine as staff sing songs with them such as the snack time song. This helps younger children know what is happening next. Children play collaboratively with their friends. They pretend to pack a suitcase to go on holiday and think about what their baby doll may need.
Staff support this role-play and ask children about their planned holiday.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- support staff to develop their questioning techniques to give children more time to think, understand and respond to questions n provide more targeted professional development support for staff so that they can all provide high quality, meaningful interactions which do not interrupt children's play.
- 1 September 2025Good Safeguarding: Yes
- 31 January 2020Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 2 of the last 2 graded inspections.
Still missing for Little Scholars Nursery
- What it costs
- 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
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.