Pear Tree Nursery
GoodBirth to 8+Open for decades
A day nursery in Carlisle 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 They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask.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 September 2023. Open since 2007, with 41 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 Cumberland
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Cumberland 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
CA6 5UGWhat 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, 19 September 2023 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children are cared for by an exceptionally warm, welcoming and nurturing staff team. Staff's gentle and sensitive interactions with children, coupled with an ambitious curriculum, greatly promote children's confidence, independence and positive attitudes to learning. Strong settling-in procedures and staff's attentiveness to children's care needs result in children who are happy, well-settled and secure. A
well-embedded curriculum intent throughout the nursery means all staff work towards a common goal for children. Children begin to learn and practise skills for school from a very young age. For example, children in the baby room wipe their faces, place their cups away and thoroughly enjoy using their large muscles to carry their chairs to the table. These impressive skills are then developed and broadened as they move through the nursery.
Staff are excellent role models. They sit with children to eat their own lunch, which helps to embed the expected behaviours at this time. As a result, children sit patiently at the dinner table, happily engaging in conversation with their peers while they wait to give their preference for their meal. They display excellent manners and follow the routine with precision.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- strengthen the performance management of staff to provide more in-depth evaluations of staff practice and the implementation of the curriculum.
- 19 September 2023Good
- 27 February 2018Good
- 15 September 2014Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Pear Tree Nursery
- 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.