Northern Pre-School
Good★ 4.8 on GoogleBirth to 8+Open for decades
A day nursery in Fareham for children from birth to 8+, open 08:00 to 15:30, 5 days a week. They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in January 2025. Open since 1992, with 52 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 Hampshire
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Hampshire 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
PO16 8DGWhat 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, 22 January 2025 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children arrive excited to begin their day at this pre-school. They are warmly welcomed by attentive and nurturing staff who know children's unique personalities extremely well. Children quickly scan the room and self-select from a variety of activities and play experiences that staff thoughtfully plan. Children benefit from the ambitious and bespoke curriculum that leaders and staff provide. They carefully plan stimulating activities to build on what children already know and can do, as well as skilfully entwining children's immediate curiosities. This means children sustain interest in their explorations and build resilience even when things challenge them.
Staff proactively address any areas of children's learning that requires additional focus to support their ongoing development swiftly, such as developing their smallmuscle skills. They provide an abundance of activities for children to practise small hand movements and increase their dexterities and coordination. For example, children delight as they squish and squash play dough. Staff continually consider how they can enhance learning. They add garlic presses and hand-operated pasta makers for children to use. In turn, children show high levels of concentration as they carefully rotate the pasta maker handle and pass their play dough through it.
Children are motivated and curious in their own learning. This sets children up for future success.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- enhance the curriculum to teach children about online safety and how to keep themselves safe when accessing the internet n strengthen even further the information shared with parents, in particular children's precise next steps in learning and how these can be supported further at home.
- 22 January 2025Good Safeguarding: Yes
- 11 March 2024Needs improvement
- 25 April 2018Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 2 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Northern Pre-School
- 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.