Pathways Day Nursery
GoodTakes funded hoursBirth to 8+Open for decades
A day nursery in Plymouth for from 1 year 6 months up to school age, open 08:00 to 17:00, 5 days a week. They take the funded hours. They do not publish prices, so ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in November 2023. Open since 1991, with 16 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
Funded hours
15 hours standard 12 hours stretched or 30 hours standard 24 hours stretched.
Worth knowing. Free entitlement offered at no additional charges. Additional hours available on top of funding charged at hourly rate. Voluntary consumable fee £1 per week.
What childcare usually costs in Plymouth
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Plymouth 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
PL3 4QEWhat 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, 29 November 2023 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children enter the nursery excitedly, and friendly staff greet them warmly. Staff encourage children to be independent in hanging up their coats and placing their lunch boxes in the designated area. Children and staff have formed highly positive relationships. Children feel safe in the presence of nurturing staff.
Staff implement a good range of educational programmes for children in their curriculum. Staff read stories and encourage children to talk about how characters might be feeling. Afterwards, children take it in turns to look in a small mirror and then choose an emotion picture card that relates to how they feel. Staff encourage children to talk about why they feel happy, sad or angry. This helps to support children's understanding of emotions in a safe environment.
Children behave well. Staff help children to look out for one another and encourage teamwork. For instance, when children climb on gym equipment in the outdoor area, other children stand near their peers saying, 'I've got you.' During group activities, children work together to build a train track, calmly negotiating where each piece will go. Staff use positive affirmations consistently with children to help build their confidence and willingness to try new activities.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- plan and adapt adult-led activities around children's individual learning needs to enhance their development further and to ensure they remain fully focused n tailor home learning more precisely around each child to provide a consistent two-way approach to learning.
- 29 November 2023Good
- 9 April 2018Good
- 14 July 2014Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Pathways Day Nursery
- What it costs
- 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.
- Do you have a place for a child of my age now? 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.