Acorn Day Nursery (Castlethorpe)

Wesley House, 17 South Street, Castlethorpe, Milton Keynes MK19 7EL
Review Us
9.7 63 Reviews
  • Acorn Day Nursery (Castlethorpe), Milton Keynes
Acorn Day Nursery in Castlethorpe is a lovely converted chapel situated in a quiet village a few miles north of Milton Keynes. The former chapel has been completely refurbished to create a homely but stimulating environment with an excellent range of high quality equipment and facilities. Castlethorpe is a 36 place day nursery for children aged between 4 months and 4 years.

Acorn places a strong emphasis on outdoor learning and the children enjoy play outside in all weathers, the nursery has an enclosed garden which the children have free flow access too. Pre-school children develop their outdoor learning at regular Forest School sessions, which take place at nearby Salcey Forest with Acorn’s fully qualified Forest School Leaders.

The nursery has a close relationship with the adjoining school and the Oaks children regularly visit their library.

The nursery offers a range of activities during the week, including interactive story sessions and forest school. There are lovely places to visit around the village, such as the church, Castlethorpe moons, sports grounds and parks, which the children visit regularly.

It’s not just the children who have all the fun at Acorn. The nursery organise events on a regular basis to help parents meet each other and share their experiences.

The experienced and well-qualified staff team are very warm and welcoming and enjoy showing prospective parents round the nursery.

Funding & Fees

Full time place from £1,630
Full day from £82.50
Morning session from £47.50
Afternoon session from £43.00

Fees are inclusive of all meals, snacks, drinks (including approved formula milk), nappies and activities.
We do not charge registration fees, only a £100 deposit which is refunded against the first month’s fees. We don’t charge for settling in sessions, but we do expect payment for all nursery fees to be paid up front at the beginning of each month, which is standard practice for all childcare providers. We do not charge for bank holidays, our four training days each year, or for the three days closure between Christmas and New Year. We do, however, charge for days children don’t attend through illness or holidays, apart from exceptional circumstances.
Please view the prospectus on our website for a full fees guide.

Contact Acorn Day Nursery (Castlethorpe) to get a personalised quote.

Contact Acorn Day Nursery (Castlethorpe) to get a personalised quote.

Type of Service

  • Day Nursery
  • Open all year
  • Full Day Care
  • Sessional Day Care

Group/Owner

Person in Charge

  • Jo Davies (Nursery Manager)

Number of Childcare Staff

  • 16

Registered Charity Number

  • 1145108

Total Places for Children

  • 36

Age Range

  • from 0 years 4 months
  • to 4 years 11 months

Opening Times

  • Monday 07:30-18:15
    Tuesday 07:30-18:15
    Wednesday 07:30-18:15
    Thursday 07:30-18:15
    Friday 07:30-18:15

When Closed

  • Bank Holidays, Staff Training Days & between Christmas & New Year

Parking

  • There are some parking bays available outside the nursery for drop off/pick up and parking is also available on the street.

Acorn Day Nursery (Castlethorpe) Reviews (63)

9.7

Acorn Day Nursery (Castlethorpe) has a Review Score of 9.7 (9.654) out of 10, based on 12 reviews in the last 2 years.
Over all time Acorn Day Nursery (Castlethorpe) has 63 reviews.

Overall Experience
  • 58
  • 5
  • 0
  • 0
  • 0
Date Published
  • 63
  • 8
  • 10
  • 12
  • 51
Reviewer Connection to Acorn Day Nursery (Castlethorpe)
  • 49
  • 12
  • 2
Total of 63, showing 61-63
Review from Clare (Mother of Child) published on 18 May 2016 Submitted via Postal Card • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
A fantastic nursery, I moved my children from another local setting due to concerns over safeguarding and it was the best thing I ever did. My first impression was how homely the environment was. Previously my boy was in trouble daily and due to the new structure and huge range of activities, swimming,
forest school, zumba, mini strikers, teddy tennis (all included). He has something to look forward to and focus on daily. The staff are amazing and I can't recommend them enough. My third nursery due to relocation so I recognise good and not so good.
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Review from Gethin E (Father of Child) published on 9 May 2016 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
I feel the nursery treats my daughter very well, she gets an excellent varied diet and always seems very happy to be there. I know the nursery staff focus a lot on her development despite her young age and I can notice the difference week by week as she learns from them.
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Review from Hannah E (Mother of Child) published on 9 May 2016 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
I am extremely pleased with how my daughter has settled into the nursery and this is a testament to the staff and team there. The staff are really friendly and nurturing towards my daughter - they make me feel like they really care about each individual child at the nursery and are always incredibly
welcoming and happy to see them every morning. My daughters development has gone from strength to strength and I know the staff plan a great variety of things to do each day and make sure every day is different, challenges and encourages development as well as making it fun! I couldn't be happier leaving my daughter with them.
  • Facilities / Outside Space
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Current Review Score: 9.7 (9.654)

Overview of Review Score

The Review Score of 9.7 (9.654) out of 10 for Acorn Day Nursery (Castlethorpe) is based on a) the Average Rating and b) the number of positive Reviews.

  1. The Average Rating is 4.9 out of 5 from 12 Reviews in the last 24 months.
  2. The score for the number of positive Reviews is 4.8 out of 5 from 12 positive Reviews in the last 24 months.

Detailed Breakdown of Review Score

The maximum Review Score for a Day Nursery is 10, which is made up from the Average Rating of Reviews (maximum of 5 points) and the Number of Reviews (maximum of 5 points) in the last 24 months:

  1. 5 Points are available for the Average Rating from all Reviews in the last 24 months. The Average Rating of 4.854 for Acorn Day Nursery (Castlethorpe) is calculated as follows: ( (124 Excellents x 5) + (19 Goods x 4) + (1 Satisfactorys x 3) ) ÷ 144 Ratings = 4.854
  2. 5 Points are available for the number of Positive Reviews in the last 24 months. A Positive Review is defined as any Review with an 'Overall Experience' of '4' or '5' (out of a max rating '5'). The 4.8 Points relating to the number of positive Reviews for Acorn Day Nursery (Castlethorpe) is based on 12 positive Reviews in the last 24 months and is calculated as per below:

    The 5 points available are broken down as follows:

    1. 4 points are available for the first 20 Positive Reviews in the last 24 months; 3 points for the first Positive Review, 0.125 Points for each of the next four Positive Reviews, 0.05 Points for the next five Positive Reviews, and finally 0.025 Points for the next ten Positive Reviews. (1st = 3.000, 2nd = 0.125, 3rd = 0.125, 4th = 0.125, 5th = 0.125, 6th = 0.050, 7th = 0.050, 8th = 0.050, 9th = 0.050, 10th = 0.050, 11th = 0.025, 12th = 0.025, 13th = 0.025, 14th = 0.025, 15th = 0.025, 16th = 0.025, 17th = 0.025, 18th = 0.025, 19th = 0.025, 20th = 0.025) 3 + 0.125 + 0.125 + 0.125 + 0.125 + 0.05 + 0.05 + 0.05 + 0.05 + 0.05 + 0.025 + 0.025 = 3.8
    2. 1 point is available for the number of Positive Reviews reaching 20% of the number of registered child places in the last 24 months. If this number is partially reached, then that proportion of 1 point is given. eg a Day Nursery registered for a maximum of 50 child places has to reach 10 Positive Reviews to receive 1 point, if it has 7 reviews it will receive 0.7 points. 20% of the 36 number of registered child places is 7.2, which has been reached with 12 Positive reviews. Points = 1
  3. When a Review is submitted by someone who has previously submitted a Review, only the latest Review will count towards the Review Score.
  4. If a Day Nursery does not have a review in the last 24 months, then it will not have a Review Score.

Child Vacancies

Please contact us for latest vacancies.

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Awards / Recognitions (12)

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Meet the Team (3)

Jo

Jo Davies

Job Title: Nursery Manager Joined: 2025

Jo has over 25 years’ experience in childcare and early years education, as well as being a proud mum of four. She’s passionate about creating a nurturing, engaging environment where children feel safe, confident, and inspired to learn. Jo sees leading the nursery as a real privilege and is committed to working closely with families and her team to give every child the best possible start. Outside of work, she enjoys family time and keeping up with her children’s busy lives.

Gemma

Gemma Brewer

Job Title: Deputy Manager Joined: 2009

Gemma first joined Acorn, doing work experience as a Tea Time Assistant and then went on to gain her Level 2 and 3 NVQ in Early Years Learning and Development. Since then, Gemma has gained her Level 5 in Leadership & Management


Gemma enjoys being able to watch all the children grow and develop through the nursery and working alongside a great team.

Linda

Linda Crawford

Job Title: Administrator Joined: 2016

When Linda left school, she gained her NNEB qualification in Childcare. and since then has spent half her life working with children and the other half in business.


For Linda Acorn, it really is the best of both worlds as
Linda loves the opportunity to spend time with the children, watching them develop and grow as well as well as using the business skills she has gained by working for large corporate organisations, as well as running her own consultancy business.


Linda also ran a catering company and has a level 3 Safer Food qualification. Linda is passionate about healthy food and nutrition. You may see her sometimes in the kitchen, covering when our chef is away.

Information on this page is displayed without responsibility for its accuracy on the part of daynurseries.co.uk. Please contact Acorn Day Nursery (Castlethorpe) to verify any information. View our terms and conditions. Acorn Day Nursery (Castlethorpe) has an Enhanced Service - more info.