Dandelion Day Nursery and Kids Club
GoodTakes funded hoursBirth to 8+Open for decades
A day nursery in Lincoln for children from birth to 8+, open 07:30 to 17:30, 5 days a week. They take the funded hours. They do not publish prices, so ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in January 2025. Open since 2023, with 145 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
Funded hours
Sessions for all children that are entitled to funded hours under any of the government funding schemes, from babies as young as 9 months to children who are just about to take the next steps in their education journey and start primary school.
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
LN4 4QZWhat 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.
- 18 May 2023 — Concern: actions taken what Ofsted published
Ofsted inspector, 13 January 2025 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children receive a warm welcome from staff at the start of their day. They happily embrace staff's reassuring cuddles and then quickly become engaged in the activities that staff have provided. Younger babies learn about concepts such as in and out and up and down. They repeatedly put a toy in a tin and take it out again, synchronising this action with staff's description of what they are doing. Pre-school children recall their prior learning. Staff use photos to help children remember what they have done. Children excitedly talk about a recent walk and are prompted by staff to talk about the ice that they found. This helps to embed children's new knowledge about the cold weather.
Children start to learn about the social skills that they will need to get along well with others. For instance, toddlers follow staff's instruction to take turns as they stir a pretend cup of tea. They engage in this imaginary play, then willingly pass the cup to the person sitting next to them. Pre-school children vote on what colour play dough they want to make. Here, staff are teaching children about democracy and how they can make decisions fairly when they are part of a group.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- build on the arrangements that are already in place for offering staff support, coaching, and training, so that staff's interactions with children are consistent and of high quality.
- 13 January 2025Good Safeguarding: Yes
Still missing for Dandelion Day Nursery and Kids Club
- What it costs
- 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
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.
- 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.