Little Step Day Care
GoodTakes funded hours★ 5.0 on GoogleBirth to 5Long established
A day nursery in Bedford for children from birth to 5, open 08:00 to 18:00, 5 days a week. £80.00 a day for over 2's, and they take the funded hours. Rated Good by Ofsted in July 2022. Open since 2015, with 48 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
| Age | Full day | Session | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 2'sbirth to 2y | £85.008am-6pm | £51.00AM (8am-1pm) or PM (1pm-6pm), 5 hrs | |
| Over 2's2y to 5y | £80.008am-6pm | £51.00AM (8am-1pm) or PM (1pm-6pm), 5 hrs |
Extras
Charged on top of the session rate.
- £0.70 to £1.00 a session Consumables Package (Nappies, Wipes, Cream)includes Nappies, Wipes, Cream
- £1.35 to £4.50 a session Food Package
- £3.00 Hot lunch donationif you would like your child to enjoy a hot meal at lunch time
Where this came from
The outlined line is the one the price was taken from.
Funded hours
Government Funded Hours.
Worth knowing. All funded sessions are term time only and can be taken in 5 or 10-hour blocks, spread throughout the week depending on availability. They must be used on the same days each week; ad hoc sessions cannot be offered.
What childcare usually costs in Bedford
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Bedford 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
MK41 0JYWhat 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.
- 9 December 2024 — Concern: actions taken what Ofsted published
Ofsted inspector, 28 July 2022 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children are very settled in the nursery. The atmosphere is calm and relaxed as they happily apply themselves to activities and learning. They build warm and close relationships with staff who guide them in how to behave and make friendships.
Children follow routines and instructions, which helps them to manage transitions between outdoor and indoor play with ease. They make good friendships with their peers and happily share resources, including books.
Children engage in learning opportunities that are focused on supporting their communication and language. This is to help close any gaps in learning due to the
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- focus the performance management of staff by guiding them to develop consistently high-quality interactions with children that inspire them and encourage their critical thinking skills n use more consistent opportunities to enhance children's counting and number skills, in addition to learning other age-appropriate mathematical skills.
- 28 July 2022Good
- 31 August 2016Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 2 of the last 2 graded inspections.
Still missing for Little Step Day Care
- 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.
- Is £80.00 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.
- 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.