How much should I expect to pay? (Sorry, first time mum!)

[Crikeyme]

We're hoping to enroll our DD (currently 20 months) at a local pre-school or nursery for a couple of half-day sessions a week - she'll be eligible for the September 2012 intake, so obviously we need to start looking now. I've got an idea of the places we'd like to look at from their Ofsted reports, but none of them list their session/day fees on their websites. I'm quite happy to phone around and find out what their fees are, but I'd like some kind of benchmark for what's acceptable and what's taking the mickey. How much do you pay for a 3-4 hour session, and what does that include?

Private day nurseries tend to me more expensive - you may want to look at community preschool as well.

My local community preschool is very cheap - £8 per 3 hour session. They take NEG grant too so once child turns 3, I will get the 15 hours free. (I am oooop north though)

That includes - drink and light snack only. Packed lunches can be taken, no hot meals available. Half days at a day nursery round here might be up to around £18 I think

Thanks, Frieda, that's really helpful. We're looking at both private and community ones, so a perspective on both is great. Wasn't sure if it was a case of 'if you have to ask, you can't afford it'!

Some are very cheap and it doesn't always mean they are awful. Although there is one near here that charges IIRC around £4.50 which sounds too cheap to me. A community preschool is volunteer/committee run, like a charity, and not making profits for an owner so they tend to be less ££ - still have to comply with EYFS etc though.

Make a few appointments and go look round a few. I am very happy with ours, DD started there at 2.9 she is at school now, DS started just after turning 2.

My DD nursery costs £39.50 a day and £26 a session for over twos.

I don't know what half day sessions get because I work FT. But DD gets breakfast, hot meals for both lunch and tea. She's also given an afternoon snack. The nursery says they can give a morning snack too but DD doesnt need it. They also provide their nappies but I think its for their own convenience. Other nurseries I've visited the parents provide all wipes and nappies. But hot meals are a standard.

Roughly where do you live? It tends to vary hugely by area.

Hi Tmesis, I'm in Watford in Herts. I'm freelance so my working hours can vary from week to week, so at the moment I'm thinking of just a couple of half-day sessions a week as they're easier to schedule my work days around. DD is currently cared for two days a week while I'm at work by my parents, but sees her older cousins a lot during this time, and I take her to toddler groups a couple of times a week, so she does get to socialise a fair bit. Committing to full days for several weeks in advance seems too big a step, and might also impair my ability to work as often as I can (which we can't really afford).

The other thing to bear in mind is what you need in a 'half day'. Private nurseries, while usually more expensive, often do a 8am-1pm type session and a 1pm-6pm one. A pre-school may only run morning or afternoon sessions, say 9:30-12:30 or 12:30-3:30.

Also, a pre-school attached to a primary school may also close for school holidays (as funding is for term-term only) but again it depends whether you need that place all through the year.

Like others have said it's worth asking around as opening times and prices vary enormously.