Tops Day Nursery - Lakeside
Good★ 4.5 on GoogleBirth to 8+Long established
A day nursery in Portsmouth 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 They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask.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 December 2022. Open since 2012, with 93 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 Portsmouth
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Portsmouth 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
PO6 3ENWhat 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.
- 28 January 2025 — Concern: actions taken what Ofsted published
- 22 November 2022 — Concern: actions taken what Ofsted published
Ofsted inspector, 6 December 2022 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children play positively in this respectful and caring nursery. They receive support from the kind and friendly staff who know them well. Children have close bonds with staff, who understand and respond quickly to their needs, making them feel safe and secure to learn. Children are given equal consideration, and the team uses children's individual interests to build on their play and learning.
Children are treated with high respect. Staff communicate effectively with them and offer encouragement to complete self-care tasks. They give children the opportunity to wipe their noses and pour their water independently. Children are given time and encouragement to keep trying and persevere with tasks. For example, they are given time to put on their own socks and encouraged to keep trying when it can be 'tricky'. Staff are great role models and children behave well.
Children respond positively to staff and are eager to play alongside familiar adults and friends. They excitedly learn how to count when collecting objects. They build bridges with bricks and solve problems, as they fix them when they fall. Children enjoy the sensory opportunities available to experiment with measuring water and scooping sand and testing volumes in containers. They enjoy joining in with familiar songs and rhymes and sit together to enjoy healthy snacks and lunch.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- support staff to consistently engage children in their learning, particularly those with English as an additional language - develop staff's skills to recognise opportunities to further challenge and extend ideas in learning.
- 6 December 2022Good
- 10 October 2018Good
- 27 October 2017Needs improvement
Rated Good or Outstanding at 2 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Tops Day Nursery - Lakeside
- 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.