Full-day nursery in Duryard, Devon
The Ark at Thomas Hall
Thomas Hall, Cowley Bridge Road, Exeter, EX4 5AD · 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
- Ofsted registrationRegistered since September 2015Reference EY491187Ofsted · checked 30 June 2026
- Inspections on record1 inspectionlatest 15 May 2023Ofsted · checked 30 June 2026
- Registered places20 placesthe most children it may care for at onceOfsted · checked 30 June 2026
- Food hygiene rating5 (Very good)inspected 21 April 2026Food Standards Agency · checked 13 November 2026
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
Thomas Hall, Cowley Bridge Road, Exeter, EX4 5AD · More nurseries in EX4
Stations
- Exeter St Davids22 min walk · 0.9 miles
Buses
7 bus stops within 400 m, including Thomas Hall, West Garth Road and Roundhill Close.
Parks and playgrounds
- West Garth Road Park4 min walk
- Birks Bank Arboretum9 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 Devon there are about 3.7 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 The Ark at Thomas Hall
The Ark at Thomas Hall is a full-day nursery at Thomas Hall, Cowley Bridge Road, Exeter, EX4 5AD, in Duryard, Devon. It is registered for 20 children. Ofsted rated it Outstanding at its inspection in May 2023, before report cards replaced single grades in November 2025. It has a Google rating of 5.0 from 14 reviews (November 2026). It is run by The Exwick Ark Limited.
Run by The Exwick Ark Limited (company), which runs 4 nurseries.
Compare nurseries nearby
| Nursery | Ofsted | Full day from | Hours | Ages | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Ark at Thomas HallThis nursery | Outstanding | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | This nursery |
| The Exwick ArkFull-day nursery | Good | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | 0.7 miles |
| Little Explorers Day NurseryFull-day nursery | Report card 2026 | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | 1.0 miles |
| Tops ExeterFull-day nursery | Good | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | 1.0 miles |
| St David's Hill PlaygroupFull-day nursery | Outstanding | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | 1.1 miles |
| AdventurersFull-day nursery | Not yet inspected | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | 1.2 miles |
| Tic Tocs Day NurseryFull-day nursery | Good | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | 1.2 miles |
A dash means the nursery hasn't published it yet. Distances are in a straight line.
Nearby areas
Schools nearby
- Thomas Hall School All-throughages 4–16Ofsted: Requires improvementinspected March 2024 under 0.1 miles
- Exwick Heights Primary School Primaryages 2–11has a nursery classOfsted: Goodinspected October 2023 1.0 miles
- St David's CofE Primary School Primaryages 5–11Ofsted: Quality of education: Good; Behaviour and attitudes: Good; Personal development: Good; Leadership and management: Goodinspected November 2024 1.3 miles
- St Sidwell's Church of England Primary School & Nursery Primaryages 3–11has a nursery classOfsted: Report cardinspected January 2026 1.3 miles
- St Gabriel's CofE Primary School Primaryages 2–11has a nursery classOfsted: Standards maintainedinspected December 2024 1.4 miles
- Stoke Hill Junior School Primaryages 7–11Ofsted: School remains Goodinspected February 2023 1.5 miles
- Stoke Hill Infant and Nursery School Primaryages 3–7has a nursery classOfsted: Quality of education: Good; Behaviour and attitudes: Good; Personal development: Good; Leadership and management: Goodinspected February 2025 1.5 miles
- Exeter Cathedral School ages 3–13has a nursery class 1.6 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 The Ark at Thomas Hall's Ofsted rating?
Ofsted rated The Ark at Thomas Hall Outstanding at its inspection on 15 May 2023, before report cards replaced single grades in November 2025.
How many children can The Ark at Thomas Hall take?
The Ark at Thomas Hall is registered with Ofsted for up to 20 children at any one time.
Who runs The Ark at Thomas Hall?
The Ark at Thomas Hall is run by The Exwick Ark Limited, which runs 4 nurseries.
What is the nearest station to The Ark at Thomas Hall?
Exeter St Davids is the nearest station we know of, 0.9 miles away in a straight line.
How do I contact The Ark at Thomas Hall?
You can call 01392 706665 and visit exwickark.co.uk.
Tools for parents in Devon
- 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 DevonFees by age in Devon
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
- Food hygiene rating from the Food Standards Agency, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
- 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 EY491187 · Plain-text version · Report a mistake
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