The Old Barn Day Nursery and Preschool
GoodBirth to 5Long established
A day nursery in Leicester for children from birth to 5, open 07:30 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 They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask.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 May 2024. Open since 2021, with 45 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 Leicestershire
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Leicestershire 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
LE19 3WYWhat 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, 13 May 2024 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children are supported by staff to feel emotionally secure. For example, when children attend settling-in sessions, staff spend time getting to know them, follow their interests in play and provide them with comfort and reassurance. When younger children play outdoors, they can see and interact with older children and staff over a small fence that divides the garden. This helps younger children to get to know other children and staff that will be caring for them when they move rooms.
Children have plenty of opportunities to take and manage age-appropriate risks in a safe environment to help build on their physical skills. For example, children who have just started walking are encouraged to climb steps and go down a small slide.
They receive praise from staff when they reach the bottom, helping to raise their self-esteem. Children in the pre-school room develop their core strength, balance and coordination when they hold onto a higher rope as they walk across rope at a lower level. Staff remind children to take turns to use the apparatus, one at a time, to promote their safety. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- support staff to help children understand the importance of oral hygiene n support staff to share and gather information from staff at other early years settings children also attend, to help provide consistency in their care and learning n help staff to support all parents to understand how they can continue to support their children's learning at home.
- 13 May 2024Good
- 26 May 2023Needs improvement
Rated Good or Outstanding at 1 of the last 2 graded inspections.
Still missing for The Old Barn Day Nursery and Preschool
- 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.
Day nurseries within a couple of miles
This one is first. Tick it and one or two others to see them side by side.