Lancashire Archives | Little Acorns Nursery School

Fabulous New Ofsted Report for Little Acorns Nursery, Clayton-le-Woods, Chorley

Mark — Wed, 26 Nov 2025 11:27:34 +0000

A fabulous new Ofsted report is out for Little Acorns Nursery, Clayton-le-Woods, Chorley. Published on 30 September 2025, it follows an inspection earlier that month. Parents and local families will be delighted to learn that, once again, Little Acorns Nursery was rated as 'Good' across all categories. That's a high rating for overall effectiveness, the quality of education, the behaviour and attitudes of those attending, the personal development of staff, and the quality of leadership and management at the setting. A clean sweep! It's news that will instil confidence in families that are considering enrolling a child at the nursery, and a clear demonstration that little ones who attend will benefit enormously — and be kept safe. Let's take a look at some of the positive findings and encouraging comments from the Ofsted Inspector who prepared this latest report.

Little Acorns Nursery Open Day: Saturday 1st November 2025

Mark — Wed, 15 Oct 2025 15:24:53 +0000

Little Acorns Nursery is holding an Open Day on Saturday, 1 November 2025. We'll be opening our doors to Lancashire families, so they can see this wonderful childcare setting in person. There's no need to book — you are welcome to come along at any time between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. What's more, being on a Saturday, it should prove more convenient for working families. On the day, our team will be available for guided tours. We can show families the rooms, excellent facilities, and well-equipped outdoor areas, and answer any questions that you might have. Saturday is a non-working day at the nursery, so you'll have our undivided attention. Why not bring your own child with you, so they can see the setting too — and get a feel for how well they would fit in? Come along — we'd love to meet you!

Don’t Miss Out on Free Childcare This September – Apply NOW!

Mark — Sat, 28 Jun 2025 13:44:28 +0000

(Free ‘30 Hours’ Childcare Scheme for Eligible Working Families)

In September this year (2025), free childcare for eligible working families expands to 30 hours per week for children as young as just 9 months. Little Acorns Nursery in Clayton-le-Woods is supporting the funding scheme too. Taken usually over 38 weeks* of the year, it means a generous 1140 hours of funded childcare will be available to eligible children in Central Lancashire over the course of a year. For the first time, the funding will cover eligible babies aged from only 9 months and children up to 2, the scheme having previously rolled out to eligible 3-and-4-year-olds last year. An urgent factor to be aware of, however, is that the funding application deadline is only weeks away for those wanting to start in the September 2025 term. So, whether you're thinking of applying at Little Acorns Nursery or elsewhere, don't delay your application any longer if you want to access the free funding from September. If your child is eligible and you do not apply by the deadline, your child will not be able to access the free funding for the entire September term. Read on to learn more about the new funding for eligible working families, the deadlines for applications, and the rules that apply.

Glowing Ofsted Feedback for Little Acorns Nursery

Mark — Fri, 15 Nov 2024 14:28:26 +0000

Today we look at the wonderful Ofsted report published recently for Little Acorns Nursery in Clayton-le-Woods, Chorley. Ofsted is The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills. Their inspector visited this fabulous Lancashire childcare setting in late August and released its official report a month later on 25 September 2024. Our post today spotlights some of the many glowing comments made by the inspector therein, following her visit. It also highlights the reasoning for 'good provider' ratings across all areas of the Ofsted report. Take a look and you'll see why babies, children under five, and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities absolutely thrive at Little Acorns.

Free Childcare for Children Aged 9 Months+ (for Eligible Working Families in England)

Mark — Mon, 16 Sep 2024 09:27:32 +0000

With September 2024 arriving, eligible children aged as young as 9 months can now access free childcare in England. The new childcare 'hours' are available where working families are eligible for the support and, in tandem, where local childcare providers are set up with appropriate staffing ratios and capacity. The good news, however, is that Little Acorns Nursery, in Clayton-le-Woods, supports the new scheme. It's therefore with great pleasure that we're now beginning to welcome children as young as just 9 months of age for free childcare hours at the Chorley setting. In today's guide, we'll explain who is eligible and how much free childcare they can access right now — and in a year's time when the scheme expands further.

The Benefits of Sport in the Early Years – & Exciting Chorley News!

Mark — Thu, 15 Feb 2024 10:46:09 +0000

In exciting news, Chorley made it to the National press and TV this week and there has been a huge amount of buzz about what's been going on. For anyone who missed it, the story involves Chorley Football Club and stars from two pop groups. Shane Lynch and Keith Duffy from Boyzone and Brian McFadden from Westlife visited a Chorley FC match. Along with Boyzone's Ronan Keating, they are exploring the possibility of buying a stake in the club. The story has gone completely viral with the likes of Sky Sports, ITV and the BBC having sent camera crews to cover it. The stars' visit and interest in Chorley Football Club have been the talk of the Nation and have certainly put Chorley on the map!

“This is a game-changer that has the potential to bring our town into the limelight like never before, generating a buzz and publicity that will shine a bright light on Chorley and the local area.” — Chorley FC

With Chorley Football Club being only 4.8 miles and a 14-minute drive from Little Acorns Nursery in Clayton-le-Woods, this news has certainly registered on our radar. What's more, it's sure to fire up greater interest in sport from children in the Chorley area. Perhaps some of them could even end up being sporting stars of the future! With all that in mind, we thought we'd take the opportunity today to explore the value and importance of sport to children in their early years.

Help for Children with Special Educational Needs & Disabilities (SEND)

Mark — Sun, 15 Jan 2023 16:30:17 +0000

Today, we look at how early years childcare providers like Little Acorns Nursery can help children under five if they have special educational needs and disabilities. This is often referred to as ‘SEND’ or in longer forms like ‘SEN and disabilities’. Let's explore the topic to get an overview of some of the help available.

Childcare Help for Children with Special Educational Needs & Disabilities

Early years and childcare providers can support children under five in a variety of ways if they have special educational or developmental needs, and/or a disability. Indeed, helping affected children as early as possible in their lives is of paramount importance...

Halloween for Under-5s

Mark — Sun, 16 Oct 2022 08:00:56 +0000

October sees one of the year's biggest traditions in the form of Halloween, which arrives on the 31st. Halloween, which is short, in effect, for “All Hallows' Eve”, has it's historical roots in Christian and, many believe, Celtic, Gaelic and Pagan festivals. Broadly speaking, these festivals were events to remember the dead, including saints (a.k.a. “hallows”). However, for virtually all children these days, it's simply a traditional time for some themed fun. And what fun it can be! Today we'll therefore take a look at the activities and opportunities that Halloween has for little ones at this time of year.

Halloween Activities for Children

Today, in the modern day, there are many non-religious Halloween activities that children can enjoy in late October and they can be enormous fun and a time of great excitement for children. For really little ones, however, a balance will need to be struck so that things are entertainingly ‘scary’, but only in a fun way. We do not want to give them nightmares and therefore care will be needed to get the balance just right. Getting them involved in preparing the activities will help.

Halloween Costumes — Dressing Up Fun!

Children, adults and even pets can dress up in spooky outfits to look like witches, ghosts, ghouls, skeletons or any one of the many horror figures they're familiar with from films. Children will absolutely love getting involved in this activity, particularly when they get together with friends. Dressing up is a fantastic activity for all age groups. Shop-bought costumes are easily available but it doesn’t have to be an expensive activity. Home-made costumes are also completely viable, for example ...

Are You Due £2,000 in Help for Childcare? Rough Guide to Tax-Free Childcare

Mark — Wed, 13 Jul 2022 15:02:39 +0000

Each year, around 1 million families miss out on thousands of pounds in free childcare funding — despite being eligible through the Government's Tax-Free Childcare scheme. Are you one of them? In today's guide, we take a look at Tax-Free Childcare, which could effectively contribute anywhere from £2,000 to £4,000 per child, per year, towards childcare costs for eligible families. Those are significant sums, which could really help families, especially with the rising cost of living. The funding is there for for the taking if you're eligible So, don't miss out! Let's take a look.

What is Tax-Free Childcare?

In effect, the Tax-Free Childcare scheme subsidises childcare costs by utilising the tax that eligible families would ordinarily have pre-paid on the taxed income they use to pay for childcare. Specifically, the Government will add an extra £2 for every £8 that eligible families pay into a special account used childcare costs — even more if the child has disabilities. We'll explain more about the childcare account later, but the good news is that you can get as much as £2,000 per child per annum if you're eligible, or up to twice that if your child has disabilities. That's a lot of money!

Who is Eligible for Tax-Free Childcare?

Families, including single parent families, are usually eligible for tax-free childcare scheme if they meet the following criteria:

The claimants are working (employed or self-employed) in the UK;
They each earn under £100,000 per annum;
They each earn at least £152 per week, which is £1,976 over the next 3 months (the equivalent of 16 hours per week at the National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage at time of writing);
They are not in receipt of childcare vouchers (which are closed to new applicants anyway), Universal Credit, Tax Credits or a childcare bursary/grant;
Parents/carers/guardians are over 16;
Children for whom they are claiming tax-free childcare is/are no older than 11 years of age or, if they have disabilities, no older than 16;
They should usually be living with the parent/carer/guardian(s) making the claim.

The above list represents the key rules governing eligibility for most families. However, there are some additional rules around eligibility — and some welcome exceptions to the above. For example ...

20 Reasons to Choose Little Acorns Nursery for Your Childcare

Mark — Mon, 13 Jun 2022 17:03:09 +0000

If you are looking for the very best childcare provision for your child in Central Lancashire, there are a multitude of reasons why you should choose Little Acorns Nursery. Put simply, Little Acorns offers the very best possible childcare service for under-fives — but you don't need to take our word for it. This is independently verified, as you'll see below. Take a look at our top 20 reasons to choose Little Acorns Nursery and you'll soon see why it's virtually impossible to beat when it comes to outstanding childcare provision.

1. Winner of THE Top National Nursery Award

We're award-winning — and not just any award. Out of all the nurseries in the UK, Little Acorns won the award for the best Independent Nursery in the National NMT Nursery Awards. That says it all, really, and such a unique award recognises our passion, professionalism and the unparalleled quality of childcare provision.

2. We're Officially an Outstanding Childcare Provider

We're an outstanding nursery. That's official too. Ofsted, who inspect and grade childcare providers across the UK, rate us as an Outstanding Provider of childcare in every category. There is simply no higher rating.

3. Outstanding Leadership & Management

The effectiveness of our nursery's leadership and management is also outstanding and, again, Ofsted independently verify this.

4. Outstanding Teaching, Learning & Assessment

The quality of teaching, learning and assessment at the nursery was also found to be simply outstanding when Ofsted appraised us. It doesn't get any better than that.

5. Outstanding Personal Development, Behaviour & Welfare

Ofsted also found the quality of personal development, behaviour and welfare to be outstanding at the nursery, so you know your child is in the best place if they go to Little Acorns Nursery in Clayton-le-Woods, Chorley.

6. Outstanding Outcomes for Our Children

What's even more important about Little Acorns Nursery is that Ofsted found children's outcomes to be outstanding if they attend the nursery. An outstanding outcome for your child is simply priceless.

7. Exceptional Feedback from Parents

Parents give us exceptionally good feedback about the nursery/pre-school. Take a look at the lovely comments in ...