Acorns Pre-School
GoodBirth to 8+Open for decades
A day nursery in Masham for children from birth to 8+, open 07:30 to 16:30, 5 days a week. They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in November 2023. Open since 2003, with 20 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 North Yorkshire
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in North Yorkshire 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
HG4 4DYWhat 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, 13 November 2023 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children are happy to attend the pre-school. They form good relationships with staff and their peers. Staff offer children excellent settling-in procedures. They arrange the number of initial visits around each child's individual needs. As a result, even the newest children are very settled and secure in the pre-school. Staff know all children well and plan a curriculum around children's next steps for learning that also takes account of their interests. As a result, children are always fully engaged in and enjoy the learning experiences that are available. The curriculum is well implemented, and children make good progress in most areas of their learning.
However, staff do not plan as effectively for children's literacy skills.
Staff have high expectations for children's learning and behaviour. Children are well behaved. Staff promote lots of fun and laughter during the day. Children giggle when staff ask questions around whether feet, with different colour socks, belong to the same person. Staff-to-child ratios are often above minimum recommendations. This results in children receiving very good adult support and attention. Children who require additional support have designated one-to-one and small-group times with their key person throughout the week. This helps children to make good progress, particularly in relation to their language skills.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- promote children's interest in choosing books independently, to support their early literacy skills further n implement the procedure for informing parents about their child's development and progress and how they might extend their child's learning at home more consistently.
- 13 November 2023Good
- 6 July 2023Inadequate
- 26 September 2017Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 2 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Acorns Pre-School
- 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.