St. John's Pre-School
GoodTakes funded hoursBirth to 8+Open for decades
A pre-school in Newbury for from 2 years up to school age, open sessions in term time, often mornings. They take the funded hours. They do not publish prices, so ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in November 2022. Open since 1992, with 24 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
Funded hours
Free (subject to funding criteria) and paid for childcare from 15-30 hours per week for 2, 3, 4 and 5 year olds.
What childcare usually costs in West Berkshire
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in West Berkshire 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
RG14 7PRWhat 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, 30 November 2022 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children are happy and excited as they enter the pre-school. They proudly choose their 'person peg' to self-register and confidently ask visitors to do the same.
Children feel secure and a real sense of belonging. They share caring and nurturing relationships with their key person. For example, children giggle and beam with pride as they share cuddles with their 'special someone'. Children's personal, social and emotional development is strong.
Staff have high expectations for children's behaviour. They gently remind children to take turns with toys. Children are beginning to understand how their behaviour impacts others. For example, they kindly share their play dough with friends who ask for more. Children are beginning to learn right from wrong.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- support staff to swiftly implement more successful strategies to support children's speech and language development n strengthen the sequence of the curriculum to help staff deliver activities more effectively from children's starting points.
- 30 November 2022Good
- 26 April 2017Good
- 23 March 2015Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for St. John's Pre-School
- 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.
Pre-schools within a couple of miles
This one is first. Tick it and one or two others to see them side by side.