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Willow Tree Day Nursery in Blackburn

Ofsted: Expected standard·
4.8(22 parent reviews) ·Adelaide House, Dukes Brow, Blackburn, BB2 6EX · Blackburn with Darwen
Number of places
60 places
Age range
0–4 yrs
Last inspected
Jan 2026
Local authority
Blackburn with Darwen

About this day nursery

Willow Tree Day Nursery, established in 2017, is a childcare setting in Blackburn for children aged 0-4 years. Leaders have demonstrated a strong commitment to enhancing the nursery, particularly in the toddler room, where they have fostered a calm, purposeful, and engaging environment.

The nursery prioritises an inclusive culture, ensuring that all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) or those needing additional support, receive tailored resources and early identification of their needs. This approach, combined with collaborative efforts with professionals, helps children make excellent progress.

Children at Willow Tree develop strong small-muscle skills through creative play and acquire a wide vocabulary, preparing them well for their next stages of learning. The nursery operates Monday to Friday from 07:30 to 18:00, providing a consistent and nurturing environment where children form trusting relationships with staff.

Parents appreciate the swift action taken by staff regarding developmental concerns and the outstanding support their children receive.

Our ethos

Willow Tree Day Nursery fosters confident, critical thinkers with a lifelong passion for health and well-being, encouraging growth, learning, and development through play. They are committed to providing exceptional care, guided by the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) framework, and incorporate approaches like 'In the moment planning' and the 'Curiosity Approach' to support individual development. The nursery also prioritises children's personal, social, and emotional skills.

What it's like

Children arrive at nursery happy and eager to explore and learn, cared for by nurturing staff. They form trusting relationships with staff, supporting their emotional well-being and confidence. Leaders adopt a holistic approach to meeting children's care and learning needs, valuing the views of parents and involved professionals to gain an in-depth understanding of each child.

Inclusive cultureStrong developmentNurturing staffExcellent progressDedicated leadership

Pricing & funding

Pricing on request

This nursery doesn't publish its fees online. Contact them directly for an up-to-date price list and availability.

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Key facts

Opening hours

Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:30 - 18:00

Food

Healthy and well-balanced meals are provided, with an emphasis on sociable mealtimes and varied menus.

Term time / All Year

All_year

Established

2017

Ofsted Inspection — new report card

Expected standard

Last inspected Jan 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

AchievementStrong standard
Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routinesExpected standard
Children's welfare and wellbeingExpected standard
Curriculum and teachingExpected standard
InclusionStrong standard
Leadership and governanceExpected standard
Age range
0 to 4
Registers
Early Years Register, Compulsory Childcare Register, Voluntary Childcare Register
Ofsted Inspection

Ofsted rating for Willow Tree Day Nursery

Last inspected 22 January 2026 · Katie Sparrow

Safeguarding effective

What it's like to attend

Children arrive at nursery happy and eager to explore and learn, cared for by nurturing staff. They form trusting relationships with staff, supporting their emotional well-being and confidence. Leaders adopt a holistic approach to meeting children's care and learning needs, valuing the views of parents and involved professionals to gain an in-depth understanding of each child.

Inspector highlights

  • Children progress very well through the curriculum, demonstrating excellent small-muscle skills and developing a wide vocabulary.
  • Leaders have successfully created an inclusive culture, with early identification of needs and collaborative working with professionals ensuring excellent progress for all children.
  • Staff establish a highly positive environment with well-understood expectations of behaviour and mutual respect, helping children learn to collaborate and be thoughtful friends.
  • Care practices are embedded through well-understood policies and procedures, with well-considered settling-in procedures supporting children and parents.
  • Leaders are committed to the success of the nursery, making highly impactful improvements and demonstrating high ambition for all children.

Areas to develop

  • 1Leaders should strengthen the deployment of staff and ensure that staff are more aware of their roles, particularly at times of change or transition.
  • 2Leaders should extend the impact of monitoring staff's practice to focus on the quality of teaching and practice that are not yet consistent across the nursery.
Inspection #10195613 · Source: OfstedView full Ofsted report

Inclusion & environment

How they support every child

SEND provision

Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) or those who need additional support benefit from specific resources to aid their development according to their individual needs. Early identification of children's needs through purposeful observation and assessment and a strong commitment to collaborative working with involved professionals helps to ensure that children make excellent progress.

Outdoor space

Children understand the importance of keeping warm and dry during outdoor play in cold weather, knowing to put on their coats and hats before going outside.

Parent Reviews of Willow Tree Day Nursery

4.8
(22)
H Jeffries (Remy91)
2 months ago

I can't praise Willow Tree Day Nursery enough! I am a first time mum of a 9 month old baby girl and I recently had to return to work. I was very anxious about putting my baby into nursery as she was very attached to me and her dad; the staff were really understanding about this and worked with us to help her settle in before starting full days. They send me regular updates throughout the day to let me know how she's doing and always reassure me that I can phone as many times as I need to do check in, and the wonderful thing is I no longer feel like I need to because I know she's well looked after. She's already coming on leaps and bounds with her development, she loves her nursery workers and has made some friends with the other babies and toddlers that attend. Thankyou to Janine and all the staff for everything you do!

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Sumaiya Khonat
a year ago

All the staff at Willow Tree Nursery are friendly and welcoming. They have a kind and caring nature towards the children. My daughter enjoyed her time in the toddler room. She enjoyed playing with her friends, doing messy play and going on trips with the toddler class. Rehana, Rukhsar and Hannah did an amazing job at looking after her and getting her ready for pre-school. Now that she has moved into pre-school, Pollie and Sana have helped her to settle in. She enjoys talking about her day at nursery when she comes home. She has come on leaps and bounds. My son has now also started Willow Tree Nursery. The staff in the baby room - Janine, Zainab and Fazila have been really good at helping him settle in. He has only been there for a short while but I’m sure, just like my daughter, he will enjoy nursery too. I would definitely recommend Willow Tree Nursery to friends and family.

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Keziah Ofei Ankra-Badu
a year ago

A very great Nursery to be. Staff extremely helpful and lovely. Roma together with her team literally take the 'burden' off your shoulder when help is needed in making adjustments with respect to your children's care... I cannot APPRECIATE them enough - They're so HELPFUL. Mohammed, OMG is Fantastic. The Nursery staff are exceptional, demonstrating dedication, care and professionalism. Their hard work and commitment to the children deserve recognition, and a pay raise would be a fitting acknowledgement of their invaluable contributions. Just come round and experience this great team - you will not just love them, you'll really enjoy your time with them.

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Shinny Shinny
a year ago

Willow day nursery is amazing. The staff here truly understand the importance of creating a nurturing environment for young children. My child has been so happy and flourished both with his learning and social skills. The staff are exceptionally attentive and genuinely care about each child's well-being and growth, such as son’s keyworker Rehana who my son adores. Every day he is excited to go to nursery and the range of activities and experiences are wonderful.

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Naila Hussain
2 years ago

Willow Tree nursery is an AMAZING nursery. It truly has the most amazing members of staff who are more than happy to help with anything. My son loves Roma Rehana Aisha Hannah and Sana as if they are his own family, its been a blessing that I know my child is happy and well looked after there. So I’d like to thank you all very much in the toddler room for making my sons time at the nursery fun and memorable.

Read on Google

Reviews from Google for Willow Tree Day Nursery. See all on Google Maps

Inspection history

Date: December 2018

The most recent inspection point has been hidden because the parsed entry didn't match the headline Ofsted rating (Good). We're re-checking it against the original report.

  • July 2021Good
  • December 2018Outstanding

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