Mama Bear's Pre-School Whitchurch
GoodBirth to 8+Long established
A day nursery in Bristol for children from birth to 8+, open 07:30 to 19:00, 5 days a week. They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in June 2025. Open since 2017, with 29 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 Bath and North East Somerset
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Bath and North East Somerset 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
BS14 0PFWhat 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, 11 June 2025 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children enter the pre-school happily and quickly find activities that interest them, leading their own play through the well-designed curriculum. Children show curiosity about nature. They use magnifying glasses to find bugs and tick off those they find on their clipboard. Children learn to treat the bugs with respect and kindness. They hear new vocabulary and are encouraged to remember their previous learning. Children show a keenness to learn and show good concentration.
Children enjoy being physically active, and there are lots of opportunities for them to play outside. They climb confidently and jump, with both feet, on the soft-play cubes. They thoroughly enjoy a game of hide and seek, quickly negotiating rules and who will count and who will hide.
Older children engage well in group activities. They identify the day of the week and tap in time to a familiar song. The confidently count to 11, knowing this is one more than 10, and clap the corresponding number. These daily routines help children to build on their knowledge, for example as they talk about appropriate clothing and risks on a sunny day.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- give children time to respond to questions, to think and test their ideas in order to develop their critical thinking further n provide support and guidance to staff to enable consistency in managing children's more challenging behaviour.
- 11 June 2025Good Safeguarding: Yes
- 17 April 2024Good
- 13 July 2021Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Mama Bear's Pre-School Whitchurch
- 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.