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Scallywags Nursery in Derby

Ofsted: Expected standard·
5.0(4 Google reviews) ·Rowallan Way, Chellaston, Derby, DE73 5WX · Derby
Number of places
140 places
Age range
0–4 yrs
Last inspected
Mar 2026
Local authority
Derby

About this day nursery

Scallywags Nursery in Derby provides all-year-round care for children from birth to four years old. It is open Monday to Friday from 7:30 am to 6:00 pm and offers funded hours for eligible two, three, and four-year-olds. The day nursery follows the Early Years Foundation Stage framework. Ofsted inspected the provision in March 2026 and gave it an overall rating of Good. The inspector noted that staff provide an inclusive environment and work with parents and other professionals to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

According to the Ofsted report, children are happy and eager to learn, moving freely to choose their own activities. They develop their physical skills outdoors using garden equipment, toy tractors, and trikes, and also learn about nature through activities such as building dens in the woodland area. Indoor activities include exploring paint and creating art. The inspector found that children build strong relationships with staff and that partnerships with parents are strong, with regular communication about learning.

What it's like

Children are happy and comfortable in their surroundings, moving around their group rooms and the outside area, freely choosing where and what to play with. Children safely negotiate steps and ramps and develop their spatial awareness as they run and play outdoors. Children behave well and have an eagerness to learn, building strong relationships with each other and the staff. Staff provide exciting activities for all children to play and explore, such as paint exploration and creating art.

Happy childrenStrong relationshipsEngaging activitiesPhysical developmentInclusive environment

Pricing & funding

Funding accepted

15 hours — eligible 2-year-olds15 hours — universal (3–4 yrs)

Key facts

Opening hours

Monday to Friday 7:30 - 18:00

Term time / All Year

All_year

Registered with Ofsted

2014

Ofsted Inspection — new report card

Expected standard

Last inspected Mar 2026

Headline: Expected standard

Grade summary

Exceptional
—
Strong standard
—
Expected standard
Needs attention
Urgent improvement
—

Each dot represents one of the six inspection categories. Headline is the average of the six grades, rounded up.

Category grades

AchievementExpected standard
Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routinesExpected standard
Children's welfare and wellbeingNeeds attention
Curriculum and teachingExpected standard
InclusionExpected standard
Leadership and governanceNeeds attention
Age range
0 to 4
Registers
Early Years Register, Compulsory Childcare Register, Voluntary Childcare Register
Ofsted Inspection

Ofsted report for Scallywags Nursery

Last inspected 24 March 2026

Actions the provider must take

  • Ensure that all staff understand and consistently implement practices to promote children's wellbeing at mealtimes. (By 21/04/2026)
  • Improve the oversight and monitoring of the provision to help identify and provide targeted support to improve inconsistencies in staff practice. (By 21/04/2026)

What it's like to attend

Children are happy and comfortable in their surroundings, moving around their group rooms and the outside area, freely choosing where and what to play with. Children safely negotiate steps and ramps and develop their spatial awareness as they run and play outdoors. Children behave well and have an eagerness to learn, building strong relationships with each other and the staff. Staff provide exciting activities for all children to play and explore, such as paint exploration and creating art.

Inspector highlights

  • Children are happy and comfortable in their surroundings, moving freely and choosing activities.
  • Children behave well, build strong relationships with staff, and show an eagerness to learn.
  • The managers and staff implement a curriculum that helps to prepare children for future learning.
  • Staff support older children to develop their physical skills through outdoor play.
  • Staff provide exciting activities for all children, such as exploring paint and creating art.
  • Partnership with parents is strong, with regular communication and shared learning experiences.

Areas to develop

  • 1At mealtimes, staff do not always implement expected arrangements for managing mealtimes.
  • 2Staff do not always communicate well with each other, or deploy themselves effectively, to consistently promote children's wellbeing.
  • 3Leaders' systems to evaluate the provision are not robust enough to help identify and improve weaknesses and inconsistencies in staff practice and in teaching.
Inspection #10236471 · Source: OfstedView full Ofsted report

Inclusion & environment

How they support every child

SEND provision

Staff have a good understanding of how to support children's language skills, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Leaders and staff provide an inclusive and welcoming environment, identifying and monitoring the needs of all children effectively, and working in partnership with parents and other professionals.

Outdoor space

Children safely navigate steps and ramps, developing spatial awareness as they play outdoors. Pre-school children ride toy tractors and trikes, and older children develop physical skills on garden equipment. Children also learn about bees and celebrate "World Bee Day," building dens in the woodland.

Google Reviews of Scallywags Nursery

5.0
(4 Google reviews)
Pink Unicorn
8 years ago

Scallywags is a really super place for children. We really love the teacher led groups and the home cooked food 🥘. The staff are friendly, welcoming and helpful. They are conscientious and professional keeping you up to date with progress of the children by way of periodic parent reviews based on the early years curriculum and also anything else we need to know about e.g. government updates with free hours. They always have time for you and are so good with the children. The children are happy to be there. They do a lot of activities with them e.g. painting, reading, music time, a lot of time playing in the open air - they have an asphalt area with toys and play areas as well as a grass field. They have special events (which are well publicized in their news letter) for example: Chinese New Year, Nativity Play, Diwali, Easter bonnet parade, summer party. We would highly recommend you check it out!

Read on Google
Christopher Premraj
6 years ago

My son goes to this nursery 5 times a week. The price is reasonable and staff are good. The children are provided with fresh food . This is definitely one of the best you can get in Chellaston Derby close to Homefields Primary school.

Read on Google

Reviews from Google for Scallywags Nursery. See all on Google Maps

Inspection history

Date: October 2016

  • March 2026Expected standard
  • June 2022Good
  • October 2016Good

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This listing has been compiled from official Ofsted records, the nursery's own website, details provided directly by the nursery where available, and other trusted public sources. We regularly review and update listings to keep the information as accurate as possible. Learn more