Lydstep Nursery School in Southville, Bristol

Reviews

1. Paul Ridley ★☆☆☆☆

   In Feb '24 we booked a place for our son from April '25, after reading so many stories about huge demand and long waiting lists, and hoped that closer to the time we'd be able to bring it forward to our preferred month of Jan '25 when we both needed to return to work. We paid nearly £600 to secure this place. When they made it clear in October '24 that they couldn't accommodate our son earlier than April, we had to look elsewhere and managed to secure somewhere. We gave them 5 months' notice, surely plenty given the huge demand for nursery spaces. Voicemail messages and emails were ignored, but I eventually got hold of the Director on his mobile. He promised a partial refund if they could fill the spot. More messages and emails were ignored, but I then received proof that they had no spaces available from April. Great news, they'd filled the spot we vacated 5 months before. Said Director continues to ignore me or consider repaying any of the £584 we paid. Disingenuous, not for us.

   1 year ago
2. Paulina Marciniak ★☆☆☆☆

   Very poor service and no communication whatsoever. I’ve been told one week before my child’s start day that he won’t be starting due to lack of staff (7th of April). Last week finally I’ve been advised by someone from accounts that refund is going to hit my account on Tuesday/Wednesday - it didn’t happened of course. Since then I can’t get a hold of anyone. This is unacceptable. I am very disappointed as the nursery was recommended to me by another parent.

   1 year ago
3. Sandra Pérez ★☆☆☆☆

   I paid the deposit (£500) to take my son to Lydstep Nursery. As I was abroad and I didn't want to lose the spot for my son, I made the mistake of paying the deposit before going to visit the nursery. When I came back to Bristol, I tried to arrange a visit through phone and e-mail, but I received no response. I tried also going in person, and someone took my phone number but never called to offer me a visit. After several weeks of no communication, I decided not to take my son to this nursery. However, they won't refund me the deposit. I had to make a complaint and send many emails to explain that due to the lack of communication and also moving to a new house which it wasn't planned and we gave them 6 months notice, I didn't want my son to go to this nursery. In the end, they just offered me half of the deposit back so I lost £250. None of the other nurseries I have been in contact with take such a high amount of money as a deposit. Keep in mind that they won't refund it if you have to change your plans. As I said, communication with this nursery has been horrible and stressful, so avoid this nursery if you can take your kid somewhere where the deposit isn't that high and where communication with the place where you are leaving your son is good!!

   1 year ago

1. Bethany Graham ★☆☆☆☆

   Unfair Policies and Poor Communication We paid £342 upfront to secure a nursery spot but had to cancel after moving out of the area. Despite giving two months’ notice and suggesting another family to take our place, the nursery refused to refund any of the fee. I am extremely disappointed and disheartened by the lack of communication from the nursery to not even acknowledge our unfortunate situation. We received no service from them, so keeping the full £342 feels outrageously excessive, unfair and completely unreasonable. They were absolutely lovely when they wanted our money, but when it came to providing some empathy or goodwill - it sadly fell on deaf ears. Not the kind of business you want to deal with, especially when you are trusting them to take care of your little ones.

   1 year ago
2. Jimmy Swales ★☆☆☆☆

   Unethical and Exploitative Practices. Beware Before Registering. Our experience with this nursery has been deeply disappointing and feels highly exploitative. We paid an upfront fee of £342 to secure a spot for our child, but due to unforeseen circumstances, we had to move out of the area. Despite giving two months’ notice of our cancellation and even offering a replacement family with a baby the same age to take the spot, the nursery flat-out refused to refund the initial fee. This is an excessive and unfair policy, especially considering no services were ever received. While a reasonable admin fee might be understandable, retaining the entire amount is punitive and unjustifiable—particularly in a city like Bristol where demand for nursery spots is so high that our vacancy would easily have been filled. To make matters worse, our attempts to communicate our situation and request a refund were met with silence. This lack of empathy and refusal to engage is disheartening, especially when families like ours are already struggling with financial difficulties. This hefty penalty feels like a deliberate strategy to profit from families while doing little to earn it. For anyone considering registering here, be aware of the financial risk you’re taking. We hope this review serves as a warning to other parents and as a wake-up call for the nursery to re-evaluate their unethical practices.

   1 year ago

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