The Paddocks Nursery & Pre-School
GoodBirth to 8+Long established
A day nursery in Taunton for children from birth to 8+, open 08:00 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 They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask.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 June 2024. Open since 2014, 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 Somerset
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Somerset 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
TA4 2BFWhat 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, 19 June 2024 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Staff implement the ambitious curriculum well. They provide a safe, secure, and stimulating environment, where children feel confident to investigate the good range of resources and become independent learners. For example, babies are fascinated as staff demonstrate dropping a shell into a pot and listening to the noise it makes. They then copy, developing their hand-eye coordination, listening and social skills. Toddlers use trial and error to open different locks and older children set up guttering to transport water from one tray to another. Planned activities are often based around children's fascinations, such as dinosaurs, and last as long as the children's interest. This means that children remain excited to learn.
Staff welcome children with an enthusiastic smile and conversation, so children immediately engage with them and are happy to part from their parents and carers. Their excitement to be at the setting is evident. Children are pleased to see their friends and have excellent relationships with each other and the staff. Children are happy and confident in their play and staff delight in their achievements. This underpins children's highly positive attitude to learning and eagerness to keep trying at new skills. Even late in the day they remain motivated and having fun.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- support staff in consistently helping older children to understand about cause and effect, to extend their knowledge and understanding of the world further.
- 19 June 2024Good
- 12 September 2019Good
- 11 February 2016Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for The Paddocks Nursery & Pre-School
- 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.