Wellies
Good★ 4.2 on GoogleBirth to 8+Open for decades
A day nursery in Horncastle for children from birth to 8+, open 08:00 to 18:00, 5 days a week. They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in July 2025. Open since 2007, with 100 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 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
LN9 5AHWhat 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, 23 July 2025 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Staff are welcoming as children arrive happily at the nursery. Children are eager to explore and take part in the range of activities staff offer them. For example, older children scoop sand into sieves and giggle as they shake it out for their friends to catch. Babies confidently explore the environment around them. They crawl and snuggle into staff for reassurance when needed. Staff working with babies sing songs and encourage them to join in with actions, supporting their physical and language skills. Staff know children well and provide them with invitations to learn as they set up activities that follow children's interests. This includes babies being creative and showing enjoyment as they glue and stick coloured paper. Young children tip, pour and splash in the water tray, helping to develop their hand-eye coordination.
Children's physical development is supported well. Staff offer children ideas and suggestions about how to move their bodies in different ways, encouraging them to take and manage their own risks in play. This results in children climbing ladders and confidently walking down slopes in the garden. Staff are positive role models and their interactions with children are respectful. Therefore, when children create obstacle courses in the garden and younger children find these challenging, older children recognise and respond with kindness. They offer them encouragement and help.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- gather information from parents about what children already know and can do when they first start to help plan more precisely for their learning from the outset n support staff to apply behaviour expectations consistently, so children receive consistent messages supporting their ability to follow instructions.
- 23 July 2025Good Safeguarding: Yes
- 18 October 2019Good
- 21 January 2016Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Wellies
- 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.