Tops Babbacombe
Good★ 4.6 on GoogleBirth to 8+Long established
A day nursery in Torquay for children from birth to 8+, open 06:00 to 20:00, 5 days a week. They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in September 2024. Open since 2018, with 50 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 Torbay
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Torbay 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
TQ1 3SRWhat 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.
- 19 December 2025 — Concern: actions taken what Ofsted published
Ofsted inspector, 3 September 2024 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children feel safe and content. They arrive with big smiles. Children put their arms out to staff for a cuddle. They happily wave goodbye to their parents and eagerly join their friends to play. Staff are kind and attentive to children's needs. They support children to learn the routines of the day. For example, staff show new children where to hang up their coats and bags. Children develop a sense of belonging to the setting and settle in quickly.
There is a well-designed curriculum in place. Since the last inspection, leaders have improved staff understanding and the implementation of the curriculum. Following training from leaders, staff focus on children's interests to plan their learning experiences and next steps of development. Staff gather information from parents on what interests their children. They work collaboratively together. Subsequently, staff notice children are more motivated to engage and display higher levels of curiosity during their play.
Parents comment that their children learn good manners and are confident in managing their self-care skills. For example, parents observe that their children know how to wash their hands at home. Parents state their children are better equipped to share and make friends since attending the setting.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- support staff to engage in more back-and-forth conversation with babies and toddlers to promote their early communication and language skills further n develop pre-school-age children's thinking and speaking skills further to give them more time to process their thoughts and respond to questions.
- 3 September 2024Good
- 7 December 2023Needs improvement
- 19 October 2021Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 2 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Tops Babbacombe
- 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.