Full-day nursery in Great Lumley, Durham
First Steps
129 Medway, Great Lumley, Chester-le-Street, DH3 4HU · Getting there
Is it good?
Read the Ofsted reportOfsted inspection, before November 2025
Outstanding
- Quality of educationOutstanding
- Behaviour and attitudesOutstanding
- Personal developmentOutstanding
- Leadership and managementOutstanding
- SafeguardingEffective
What does this mean?
This grade is from before November 2025, when Ofsted replaced single grades with report cards. The nursery's next inspection will give a report card, with a separate grade for each area instead of one overall grade.
Official records
Fees
Fees, hours and ages: not published yet
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Estimate a monthly cost with the council area's typical day rate
Hours and ages
Opening hours and ages: not published yet.
Getting there
129 Medway, Great Lumley, Chester-le-Street, DH3 4HU · More nurseries in DH3
Buses
13 bus stops within 400 m, including Medway, Community Centre and Church.
Parks and playgrounds
- Great Lumley Millennium Green3 min walk
- Playground5 min walk
NaPTAN, Department for Transport, checked 13 November 2026 · © OpenStreetMap contributors, checked 13 November 2026. Walking times are rough, from straight-line distance.
Places and next steps
Spaces: not published yet. Nurseries often fill months ahead, so ask early.
In Durham there are about 4.6 children under 5 for every registered nursery place. Places are how many children nurseries may care for, not free spaces, so this is a guide to demand. Source: ONS Census 2021.
What parents say
Reviews on Toddly
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Write a reviewAbout First Steps
First Steps is a full-day nursery at 129 Medway, Great Lumley, Chester-le-Street, DH3 4HU, in Great Lumley, Durham. It is registered for 44 children. Ofsted rated it Outstanding at its inspection in January 2023, before report cards replaced single grades in November 2025. It has a Google rating of 5.0 from 1 review (November 2026).
Compare nurseries nearby
| Nursery | Ofsted | Full day from | Hours | Ages | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First StepsThis nursery | Outstanding | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | This nursery |
| Tiny Tinkers NurseryFull-day nursery | Good | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | 1.3 miles |
| Mains House NurseryFull-day nursery | Outstanding | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | 1.6 miles |
| Bright Star NurseryFull-day nursery | Good | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | 1.8 miles |
| Dubmire DaycareFull-day nursery | Good | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | 1.8 miles |
| Chilton Meadows NurseryFull-day nursery | Good | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | 1.9 miles |
| Adventure Valley Day NurseryFull-day nursery | Good | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | 2.2 miles |
A dash means the nursery hasn't published it yet. Distances are in a straight line.
- All nurseries in Great Lumley1
- All nurseries in Durham99
- All nurseries in DH39
- Nurseries near Chester-le-Street station
Nearby areas
Schools nearby
- Lumley Infant and Nursery School Primaryages 2–7has a nursery classOfsted: Goodinspected May 2024 0.2 miles
- Lumley Junior School Primaryages 7–11Ofsted: School remains Goodinspected April 2024 0.2 miles
- Red Rose Primary School Primaryages 3–11has a nursery classOfsted: Goodinspected November 2023 1.2 miles
- St Cuthbert's Catholic Primary School, Chester-Le-Street Primaryages 3–11has a nursery classOfsted: Goodinspected October 2023 1.4 miles
- Woodlea Primary School Primaryages 3–11has a nursery classOfsted: School remains Goodinspected May 2024 1.4 miles
- Cestria Primary School Primaryages 2–11has a nursery classOfsted: Standards maintainedinspected December 2024 1.6 miles
- Newker Primary School Primaryages 3–11has a nursery classOfsted: Quality of education: Good; Behaviour and attitudes: Good; Personal development: Good; Leadership and management: Goodinspected May 2025 1.7 miles
- Bournmoor Primary School Primaryages 3–11has a nursery classOfsted: School remains Goodinspected July 2024 1.7 miles
Straight-line distances. Places depend on each school's admissions rules. From the Department for Education and Ofsted.
Questions parents ask
Got a question? Ask and get an answer straight away.
What is First Steps's Ofsted rating?
Ofsted rated First Steps Outstanding at its inspection on 31 January 2023, before report cards replaced single grades in November 2025.
How many children can First Steps take?
First Steps is registered with Ofsted for up to 44 children at any one time.
What is the nearest station to First Steps?
Chester-le-Street is the nearest station we know of, 1.7 miles away in a straight line.
How do I contact First Steps?
You can call 0191 388 1978.
Tools for parents in Durham
- Childcare cost calculatorMonthly cost with funded hours
- Funded hours checkerWhich schemes you qualify for
- Funded hours start dateWhen your child's hours begin
- Tax-Free Childcare calculatorThe 20% top-up on your bill
- Visit checklist for this nurseryPrintable questions, pre-filled
- Cost of nursery in DurhamFees by age in Durham
About this information
- Registration and inspections: Ofsted · 30 June 2026
- Rating and review themes: Google · 4 November 2026
- Schools: DfE Get Information about Schools · 4 November 2026
- Contains Ofsted data licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Contains Department for Education data licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Contains Ofsted data licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Contains National Statistics data © Crown copyright and database right; contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right.
- Contains Department for Transport NaPTAN data licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
- © OpenStreetMap contributors
- Source: Office for National Statistics, Census 2021, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Read reviews on Google
Last checked 4 November 2026 · Ofsted URN EY415762 · Plain-text version · Report a mistake
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