St. Nicolas Playgroup (Taplow)
Good★ 5.0 on GoogleBirth to 5Open for decades
A pre-school in Maidenhead for children from birth to 5, open 13:00 to 17:00, 3 days a week. They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in October 2023. Open since 2002, with 36 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 Buckinghamshire
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Buckinghamshire 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
SL6 0EXWhat 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, 5 October 2023 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children especially enjoy playing outside in the well-resourced and carefully planned outdoor space. Staff offer them exciting opportunities to practise their physical skills and to explore and investigate the natural world. Children delight in planting daffodil bulbs and are excited to watch them grow. They enthusiastically dig in the mud and pour water carefully as they explore the two textures. Staff thoughtfully organise resources and equipment so that children can make independent choices and decisions. Children are supported well to take reasonable risks and learn how to handle real tools, such as hammers. They delicately pick flowers using scissors. They learn how the colours of the flowers transfer onto white cloths as they bang them with the hammers. Children are in awe of the patterns they make and proudly display their creations on a line.
Staff take time to get to know children and their parents when they first join the setting. They gather relevant information and use this to plan carefully for children's individual care and learning needs. As a result, children are supported to make good progress from the outset.
Children's behaviour is good. Staff sensitively support them to share, take turns and to negotiate any minor disputes. Children play together cooperatively, and staff support them to make friends. Staff are good role models. They encourage children to be respectful and kind to each other.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- improve the organisation of group times and changeover times to take account of the needs of all children and ensure learning is always maximised fully.
- 5 October 2023Good
- 8 February 2018Good
- 22 May 2015Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for St. Nicolas Playgroup (Taplow)
- 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.
Pre-schools within a couple of miles
This one is first. Tick it and one or two others to see them side by side.