Acorn Childcare Centre
GoodBirth to 8+Long established
A day nursery in Stamford for children from birth to 8+, open 07:30 to 18:00, 5 days a week. They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in March 2024. Open since 2013, with 92 places.
What you might pay
This setting does not publish its fees, and no national dataset holds them. This is what childcare costs across the council, as a starting point for the call.
What childcare usually costs in Lincolnshire
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Lincolnshire from the Department for Education's 2025 provider survey. No national data holds what an individual nursery charges, so ring and ask.
Places, hours and the day
Who they take, when they are open, and what a day there includes.
Where it is
PE9 2SRWhat the inspector found
One grade is one visit. A run of them tells you whether it has been good for years or has only just got there.
Ofsted inspector, 22 March 2024 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children's voices are heard and respected in this inviting nursery. For example, in the toddler room, children are asked to vote for which book they want staff to read to them. In the baby room, when children point to paints, staff provide them with craft activities to explore these. Staff support children to understand routines, including those children who speak English as an additional language. For example, they use images, such as photos of outside and nappies, to help children know what is happening next.
Children show that they thoroughly enjoy playing in the garden. They ask staff to use chalk to draw around their bodies and they draw images themselves, showing their early literacy skills. Staff supervise children closely when they ride on balance bikes and toys, removing any broken ones, to help promote their safety. In the toddler room, children are physically active when they copy staff as they wave scarves and move their bodies to music. Staff ask them to wave their scarves up high and down low, helping children to begin to understand language that describes position.
Children are happy to help staff. For example, in the toddler room, they follow staff to carry wooden blocks into the garden. Children in the pre-school room receive stickers from staff to praise them for helping to tidy away toys, contributing to raising their self-esteem.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- support staff in the pre-school room to help children understand all of the rules and boundaries that are in place n help staff to strengthen their interactions with children in the baby room to support their early communication skills.
- 22 March 2024Good
- 9 May 2018Good
- 3 April 2014Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Acorn Childcare Centre
- What it costs
- Funded hours
- Youngest age taken
- Meals
- Nappies
- Waiting list
No dataset holds any of this. Two parents telling us the same thing puts it on the page for whoever looks next.
What to ask them
None of this is in any national dataset and this setting has not published it, which is exactly why it is worth asking.
- What does it cost, all in? What is on top: meals, nappies, late pick-up, and what happens if you are late.
- Can I use my funded hours here? Whether they stretch them over the year, and the minimum days you have to book.
- Is there a place for my child's age? Baby rooms fill first and waiting lists are common.
- Who would my child's key person be? And how long have the staff been there. No dataset holds this and it matters more than anything above.
- Can I visit at a busy time? Mid-morning on a weekday tells you far more than an empty room after hours.
Day nurseries within a couple of miles
This one is first. Tick it and one or two others to see them side by side.