Thorley Pre School
GoodTakes funded hoursBirth to 5Long established
A pre-school in Bishop'S Stortford for children from birth to 5, open 09:00 to 15:00, 5 days a week. £7.50 an hour, and they take the funded hours. Rated Good by Ofsted in January 2025. Open since 2022, with 40 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
£7.50 per hour (3 and 6 hour sessions available)
One published rate. What you pay depends on the days you need and the funded hours you can claim.
Funded hours
Free funding for 2, 3&4 year olds and the 30hrs free funding for 3&4 year olds.
What childcare usually costs in Hertfordshire
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Hertfordshire 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
CM23 4ELWhat 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, 7 January 2025 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children arrive at this setting with big smiles, ready to embark on a day filled with fun activities. Children are at the heart of this setting. Leaders and staff create a stimulating and nurturing environment, very child-centred, aimed at sparking children's curiosity and interests. Staff continuously encourage children to make their own informed decisions of what they would like to access and explore next.
For example, in the garden, children choose to explore the slide, and supportive staff guide them to wait for their turn and use the apparatus safely. They are eager and enthusiastic to have a go. This helps build on children's gross motor skills, balance and coordination.
Staff are very nurturing and intuitive to children's needs. They have high expectations of children, who rise to the challenge exceptionally well. As a result, children form fond relationships with the staff, behave well and navigate their learning provision with confidence. Children understand the setting's routines and boundaries with ease, and they are independent and positive learners. For example, at snack time, children pour their own drinks and make their own healthy choices. When they finish eating, children place the empty plates on the trolley.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- support staff to adapt their interactions and teaching to a consistently high level so that children's learning is extended.
- 7 January 2025Good Safeguarding: Yes
Still missing for Thorley Pre School
- Youngest age taken
- Meals
- Nappies
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.
- 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.