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Little Bells Pre-school and Nursery

Ofsted: Expected standard·Parish Church Hall, Withycombe Village Road, Exmouth, EX8 3AE · Devon
Number of places
35 places
Age range
1–4 yrs
Last inspected
Jul 2026
Local authority
Devon

About this early years setting

Little Bells Pre-school and Nursery, located in Exmouth, Devon, offers childcare for children from 0 to 5 years old. The nursery is open Monday to Friday from 7:30 am to 6:00 pm, 50 weeks a year, closing for two weeks over Christmas and all Bank Holidays.

They provide both full-day and sessional care, ensuring flexibility for families. The dedicated team at Little Bells focuses on creating a safe, fun, and stimulating environment where children can thrive, learn, and grow.

They pride themselves on fostering strong relationships with parents, ensuring open communication and collaboration in each child's developmental journey. The pre-school and nursery aim to prepare children for their transition to school by offering a broad and balanced curriculum, encouraging independence, social skills, and a love for learning through play-based activities and exploration.

Our ethos

Little Bells is dedicated to providing high-quality childcare within a safe, fun, and stimulating environment. The team encourages children to be confident, independent individuals, supporting them in making decisions and developing social skills. They strive to create an atmosphere where children can learn, grow, and flourish, preparing them for their next steps into school life.

What it's like

Children arrive eager and ready to begin their day, confidently following familiar routines and settling quickly into play. Staff provide consistent reassurance through well-established routines and trusting relationships, fostering a positive sense of belonging. Children receive reassurance and cuddles from highly responsive staff and benefit greatly from bespoke settling-in processes that meet their individual needs, including those with additional needs.

Play-based learningFlexible sessionsLong opening hours

Pricing & funding

Little Bells charges daily and sessional rates, with prices varying by age group (0-2 years, 2-3 years, and 3-5 years). Full day, morning, and afternoon sessions are available, along with extra hourly rates. A non-refundable registration fee and a refundable deposit are also required.

Funding accepted

15 hours — universal (3–4 yrs)30 hours — working parents (3–4 yrs)Tax-Free Childcare

Good to know

  • A deposit of £100 is required to secure a place, which is refundable upon one month's written notice of leaving, provided all fees are paid in full.
  • Fees are invoiced monthly in advance.
  • A 10% discount is offered for the oldest sibling when two or more children attend.
  • Fees are payable for all booked sessions, including when children are absent due to sickness or holidays, and on Bank Holidays.
  • Nappies, wipes, sun cream, formula milk, and all meals are included in the fees.
  • A 10% discount is applied to early finishes before 5:00 pm for children in the 0-2 and 2-3 age groups.

Key facts

Opening hours

Monday to Friday, 7:30 am - 6:00 pm, 50 weeks a year

Session types

Full Day, Morning Session, Afternoon Session

Age range

0-5 years

Registered with Ofsted

2024

Ofsted Inspection — new report card

Expected standard

Last inspected Jul 2026

Headline: Expected standard

Grade summary

Exceptional
—
Strong standard
—
Expected standard
Needs attention
—
Urgent improvement
—

Each dot represents one of the six inspection categories. Headline is the average of the six grades, rounded up.

Category grades

AchievementExpected standard
Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routinesExpected standard
Children's welfare and wellbeingExpected standard
Curriculum and teachingExpected standard
InclusionExpected standard
Leadership and governanceExpected standard
Age range
1 to 4
Registers
Early Years Register, Compulsory Childcare Register, Voluntary Childcare Register
Ofsted Inspection

Ofsted report for Little Bells Pre-school and Nursery

Last inspected 21 July 2026

What it's like to attend

Children arrive eager and ready to begin their day, confidently following familiar routines and settling quickly into play. Staff provide consistent reassurance through well-established routines and trusting relationships, fostering a positive sense of belonging. Children receive reassurance and cuddles from highly responsive staff and benefit greatly from bespoke settling-in processes that meet their individual needs, including those with additional needs.

Inspector highlights

  • Children at all stages of development make steady progress from their starting points and access a wide range of learning experiences across all areas of the early years foundation stage.
  • Leaders and staff have established a welcoming and supportive environment where regular attendance is promoted and effective settling-in processes are in place.
  • Children enjoy their time at the setting, playing happily across mixed-age groups both indoors and outdoors, benefiting from nurturing care and secure attachments.
  • The effective key-person system enables staff to observe, assess, and monitor children's learning developments closely, quickly identifying and responding to any emerging concerns.
  • Leaders and staff focus on children's speech and language development, using tools like Makaton training to support children in understanding communication.
  • Leaders have a clear and well-articulated vision for the setting, with a strong, shared commitment to its strategic direction and continuous improvement.
  • Leaders and staff form effective partnerships with parents, communicating clearly and consistently, with parents appreciating the warm relationships and detailed information.
  • The safeguarding standards are met, with an open culture in which safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and concerns are actively identified, acted upon, and managed.

Areas to develop

  • 1Leaders should develop the curriculum even further to provide consistency in activities to meet children's age and stage of development.
  • 2Leaders should provide staff training to enable consistency in the delivery of the curriculum.

Inclusion & environment

How they support every child

SEND provision

Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are typically supported one-to-one, to maintain their engagement in activities. Staff are highly attuned to children's needs, particularly those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. They develop plans, with targeted support, and deliver interventions that are specific to children's individual needs.

Outdoor space

Outdoors, children are active and engaged in their play. They confidently and safely negotiate space, turn taking and cooperating with their peers. Pre-school children explore the mud kitchen freely, confidently following their own interests and engaging in child-led play that supports their creativity. Babies develop their physical skills as they pull themselves up on the water tray, showing clear joy as they experience the sensory play alongside a supportive adult.

Inspection history

Most recent inspection

21 July 2026

Expected standard

Only one graded inspection on record — a trend chart will appear here once a second graded report is published.

View full Ofsted report

Frequently asked about Little Bells Pre-school and Nursery

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