Acorns Nursery School
GoodTakes funded hours★ 5.0 on GoogleBirth to 5Open for decades
A day nursery in Shackleford for from 2 years up to 5 year olds, open 09:00 to 14:45, 5 days a week. They take the funded hours. They do not publish prices, so ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in October 2021, though that is 5 years ago now. Open since 2002, with 30 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
Funded hours
30 hours free childcare; Funded early education for two-year-olds (FEET) offers eligible families up to 15 hours of funded early education and childcare a week for up to 38 weeks a year.
What childcare usually costs in Surrey
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Surrey 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
GU8 6AEWhat 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, 12 October 2021 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children demonstrate that they are happy at this warm and welcoming nursery.
They confidently leave their parents at the door and quickly settle into the nursery routine. Children show a positive attitude to their learning. They are motivated and eager to join in. The well-organised environment promotes children's natural curiosity and eagerness to learn. Children benefit from a good range of experiences that prepare them well for their future success. For example, they develop their confidence and social skills and learn to manage their behaviour, while interacting with others. Children develop good communication skills and confidently articulate what they know and can do. They play imaginatively, pretending to be pirates, and practise digging and scooping as they play in the sandpit.
Children enjoy the time they spend outdoors. They are fascinated by the world around them and notice familiar things within their environment. For instance, they watch birds feeding and are curious about the webs created by spiders. Children enjoy using apparatus and show good physical skills as they negotiate a 'wobbly bridge' and 'fireman's pole'.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- build on the staff's knowledge of the curriculum intent so they are clear what skills and knowledge they want children to gain from all experiences n strengthen the use of questioning to help identify what children already know, and provide clear explanations to extend their knowledge even further.
- 12 October 2021Good
- 10 July 2015Outstanding
- 12 October 2010Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Acorns Nursery School
- 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.