The First Stop Preschool
GoodTakes funded hoursBirth to 8+Open for decades
A pre-school in Felixstowe 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 They do not publish prices, so ask.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 January 2023. Open since 1986, with 25 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
What childcare usually costs in Suffolk
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Suffolk 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
IP11 0STWhat 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, 31 January 2023 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children arrive eagerly at the pre-school and wave goodbye to their parents at the gate. They confidently hang up their belongings and show pride when finding their name card to put on the registration board. Children enjoy using the name cards to vote for their preferred activity, and the attentive staff help them to begin to understand democracy. Children enjoy the responsibility of counting their friends'
votes, and the skilled staff challenge them to identify which activity has 'more' or
Leaders and staff prioritise partnership working with families and other professionals. The pre-school offers an effective settling-in process alongside parents, which is used to gather information on their children's needs and experiences. This helps to ensure that all children feel happy, safe and secure when joining the pre-school and that staff know the children well.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- support staff to apply high expectations of children's behaviour consistently, to provide children with an understanding of how their behaviour can have an impact on others - develop children's understanding of the benefits that a healthy diet and a range of choices can have on their own health and well-being.
- 31 January 2023Good
- 28 June 2017Good
- 9 May 2014Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for The First Stop Preschool
- 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.