Acorns Day Nursery
GoodTakes funded hoursBirth to 5Open for decades
A day nursery in Sevenoaks for babies from 3 months up to 5 year olds, open 08:00 to 18:00, 5 days a week. They take the funded hours. They do not publish prices, so ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in October 2022. Open since 1993, with 39 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
Funded hours
Universal Early Years Educational Entitlement (EYEE) for all children from the start of the school term following their third birthday and extended EYEE for eligible children, from the start of the school term following their 9-month birthday.
What childcare usually costs in Kent
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Kent 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
TN13 3LBWhat 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, 25 October 2022 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children are happy at this nursery. They form positive relationships with caring and kind staff and show that they feel safe in their care. Children of all ages appreciate having books read or songs sung to them. This helps prepare children for learning to read. Staff encourage children to problem-solve and seek how to overcome barriers. For example, when children struggle to remove their shoes or hang up their coats, staff ask how they can help them. Children are encouraged to be independent in all rooms. Leaders recognise this helps to equip children with skills for their future life.
Children enjoy food prepared in the setting. They sit together and learn to use their cutlery to feed themselves. Older children strengthen their independence skills by serving their own meal and pouring their own drinks. Children are exposed to exciting and engaging activities throughout the day. They demonstrate positive attitudes to learning and relish in the activities they partake in. Staff skilfully develop children's language development by asking questions and commenting on the children's learning. Children then use words and phrases in their play later in the day. They are therefore beginning to communicate well.
Parents did not enter the building during the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, the staff found new ways to communicate with families. Parents enjoy looking at photos online that staff share with them. This helps to keep parents informed of the activities completed in the setting.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- build further on the existing partnerships with parents to share more information about children's progress and how to support their learning at home n strengthen staff's skills to create a more consistent approach to supporting all children's communication and language.
- 25 October 2022Good
- 9 March 2017Good
- 18 February 2015Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Acorns Day Nursery
- What it costs
- 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
Some of this is above, from the setting or from parents, and it can go out of date. The rest is in no dataset anywhere. Either way it is worth ten minutes on the phone.
- What does it cost, all in? What is on top: meals, nappies, late pick-up, and what happens if you are late.
- How do you apply my funded hours? Whether they stretch them over the year, and the minimum days you have to book.
- Do you have a place for a child of my age now? 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.