The Learning Tree Nursery

Train tracks, homemade bridges and a garden ladybird gave children reasons to investigate at The Learning Tree Nursery in October 2022. Play carried the learning: children explored position through construction and followed their curiosity about living things.

At its 25 October 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good and judged safeguarding effective, while identifying improvements needed in activity preparation and vocabulary teaching. Later regulatory findings also matter to the choice parents make today.

The nursery has 70 places in total for children aged 0 to 60 months, at 10 Alfreton Road, Sutton-in-Ashfield, NG17 1FW.

In October 2022, children chose their own resources and sustained their interest in building and imaginative play. Boxes and wooden blocks became tunnels and bridges for trains. This gave mathematical ideas a practical setting rather than treating them as an isolated exercise.

Babies investigated corn flour, including the change when water was added, and experimented with buttons that triggered pop-up toys. Preschool children discovered a ladybird in the garden and helped find somewhere suitable for it to live. These were different experiences for different stages of development.

The early years foundation stage sets the requirements for children's learning, development and care; in everyday terms, learning through play sits alongside communication, physical development and personal skills. In October 2022, outdoor play included climbing apparatus, catching and throwing balls, and using a bat. Children practised physical skills and making decisions about risk.

There were teaching weaknesses too. In October 2022, children lost interest in footage of a partial solar eclipse because the activity assumed understanding they had not yet developed. Staff also needed to introduce and demonstrate new vocabulary more consistently during play. Interesting resources alone were not enough.

In October 2022, staff used gentle reminders to support sharing and turn-taking. Parents took part in coffee mornings, stay and play, and information sessions, giving them ways to participate in nursery life. Staff ate freshly cooked meals with children and used lunchtime conversation to discuss food and the day’s experiences.

Ofsted's regulatory outcomes published on 13 June 2025 and 11 May 2026 recorded failures to meet some requirements, followed by corrective action, with medication safety recurring across the two events. In June 2025, action included safeguarding training, revised health policies and better sharing of accident information with staff and families; in May 2026, risk assessments were revised specifically for medication storage. Those dated actions should be considered alongside the older inspection judgement.

Open from 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, the nursery operates throughout the year and closes on bank holidays. Its Alfreton Road address places the setting in Sutton-in-Ashfield.

In October 2022, attendance sessions ran from 8am to 6pm, and funded early education was provided for two-, three- and four-year-olds. These are dated arrangements, separate from the current opening window.

• Medication safety. Health policies were revised in June 2025, followed by medication-storage changes in May 2026. At a visit, ask how medication is stored and how staff communicate medication and accident information.
• Teaching through play. The October 2022 findings identified gaps in preparing children for unfamiliar activities and extending their vocabulary. A useful discussion is how practitioners now build the knowledge and language each activity needs.

The Learning Tree suits families seeking year-round weekday childcare in Sutton-in-Ashfield. Its October 2022 examples show children learning through construction, sensory exploration and garden discoveries. The balance requires care: the Good judgement is dated, and repeated medication-related regulatory findings make everyday health procedures a central decision point.