Great and Small Forest School
Outstanding★ 5.0 on GoogleBirth to 8+Long established
A day nursery in Accrington for children from birth to 8+, open 09:00 to 15:00, 2 days a week. They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask. Rated Outstanding by Ofsted in September 2024. Open since 2017, with 14 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 Lancashire
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Lancashire 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
BB5 5SBWhat 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, 18 September 2024 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
The provider puts children at the centre of everything they do at this exceptional outdoor setting. All staff have a superb understanding of what the provider wants children to learn. The ambitious and rich curriculum sets clear learning intentions for what they want children to achieve. This is carefully planned and sequenced to build on what children already know, to extend and challenge their learning to the highest level. All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), make superb progress from their starting points.
Staff support children to be inquisitive, curious and highly motivated learners.
Children show immense curiosity, ask lots of questions and are excited to learn new things. They explore their natural environment and search for signs of animals.
- 18 September 2024Outstanding
- 6 September 2018Outstanding
Rated Good or Outstanding at 2 of the last 2 graded inspections.
Still missing for Great and Small Forest 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.
Day nurseries within a couple of miles
This one is first. Tick it and one or two others to see them side by side.