YMCA Woodlands Nursery
GoodBirth to 8+Open for decades
A day nursery in Birchwood, Lincoln 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 They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask.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 January 2024. Open since 2005, with 32 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
LN6 0PFWhat 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, 26 January 2024 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
There is a strong sense of community that runs throughout the nursery. The staff team works together seamlessly. Children learn caring and considerate behaviours from watching staff help each other and show each other kindness. Staff develop this learning further. They support children to share and take turns during their play. Children respond by demonstrating their positive social skills as they hand out pipettes to each person at the water tray, saying, 'one for you, one for you and one for you'. This creates a harmonious environment, where children's friendships and their secure relationships with staff blossom.
Children of all ages join as a group before lunch to dance to music. Staff have planned this activity into the children's routine for them to wiggle and jiggle before they sit for a length of time at the dinner table. Children with differing physical abilities practise age-appropriate skills. Babies who are just learning to walk toddle a little way into the group. They look to their key person, who is close by to keep them safe, for reassurance. Older children listen carefully and follow the instructions that they hear in the songs, responding with actions, such as jumping and jogging on the spot. This group activity brings the whole nursery together for fitness and fun.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- encourage staff to act swiftly when they identify a child with emerging SEND so that specialist support can be sourced without delay n embed the new methods of involving parents and carers in supporting children's learning at home.
- 26 January 2024Good
- 4 May 2018Good
- 27 October 2014Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for YMCA Woodlands Nursery
- 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.