Next Steps Childcare Centre
Good★ 5.0 on GoogleBirth to 8+Open for decades
A day nursery in Shepton Mallet for children from birth to 8+, open 08:00 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 They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask.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 November 2022. Open since 2003, with 46 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 Somerset
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in 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
BA4 6QLWhat 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.
- 30 September 2022 — Concern: actions taken what Ofsted published
Ofsted inspector, 28 November 2022 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Staff design the curriculum and the environment efficiently to support children's interests and to encourage new ones, such as through forest skills, cooking and yoga. All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those with English as an additional language, make good progress.
Young children engage well in group activities. They sit and listen for their name and respond with a smile or a gesture. Children make decisions about their play.
For example, staff give children time to choose which song to sing and do not rush them. Staff constantly provide narration to children's actions. This helps children build their vocabulary and be confident in their speech.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- consider the learning environment further to help maintain children's learning, particularly their listening and attention n develop further the use of appropriate strategies to manage children's behaviour more consistently.
- 28 November 2022Good
- 29 June 2022Inadequate
- 30 May 2017Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 2 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Next Steps Childcare Centre
- 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.