The Gateway Nursery
GoodTakes funded hoursBirth to 8+Long established
A day nursery in Hereford for babies from 6 months up to school age, open 08:15 to 17:30, 5 days a week. £7.50 an hour for under 3, and they take the funded hours. Rated Good by Ofsted in March 2025. Open since 2015, with 115 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
Any hours over your entitled funded hours will be charged at £7.50.
One published rate. What you pay depends on the days you need and the funded hours you can claim.
Where this came from
The outlined line is the one the price was taken from.
Funded hours
15 hours funding for under 3s; 2-year funding; 3-4 year funding (15 hours, some eligible for 30 hours); from September 2025 all children from 9 months may be eligible for 30 funded hours.
Worth knowing. Under 3s: funded hours between 07:30-17:30, no additional charge other than food charges. Contract A: opt in to paying the daily voluntary service contribution, funded hours between 7:30am-17:30pm, can stretch over more than 38 weeks. Contract B: free place, funded sessions 09:15am-15:15pm, term time only, extracurricular activities charged at £5.00 per session.
Places, hours and the day
Who they take, when they are open, and what a day there includes.
Where it is
HR1 4GAWhat 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.
- 1 March 2022 — Concern: actions taken what Ofsted published
Ofsted inspector, 17 March 2025 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children are warmly welcomed as they arrive at nursery. They are greeted by friendly staff, who know children and their families well. As a result, children are happy and settle quickly to their chosen activity. All children are allocated key persons. Children forge close relationships with their key person and often seek them out to join in their play or for a cuddle if they feel tired or a little unsure.
Younger children's daily routines are strictly adhered to. Staff recognise when children need to sleep. They follow safer sleeping procedures as they monitor children and carry out regular checks to ensure their safety. Staff are kind and caring when carrying out nappy changing or care routines. They are respectful of children's individual needs.
Leaders and staff implement a curriculum throughout the nursery that is based on children's interests and their next steps for learning. As a result, all children make good progress. Children of all ages are engaged in their play and are eager to join in with activities. Younger children concentrate as they explore shaving foam. They carefully watch as staff show them how to paint the shaving foam onto bricks so that they will stick together when they build towers. Older children eagerly take part in a cheerleading activity. They move their bodies in different ways, including shaking pom-poms to music, and try challenging skills, such as completing a cartwheel with one-to-one support. Children's behaviour throughout the nursery is good. Staff introduce simple rules for children to follow, such as walking inside and being kind. Children learn to share and take turns as they play, and older children begin to understand how to manage their emotions.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- support staff to develop further their already good teaching, to embed consistency and help achieve the highest quality across the provision n enhance how staff plan for the outdoor provision, to help broaden the experiences available and extend children's learning outdoors.
- 17 March 2025Good Safeguarding: Yes
- 2 July 2021Good
- 6 October 2016Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for The Gateway Nursery
- 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.
- Is £7.50 an hour still the rate? 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.