Special investigation Childcare schemes for disadvantaged children scrapped under 30 hours
✚NOTICEBOARD
for everyone in the early years community
12-25 November 2018, £2.95 nurseryworld.co.uk
IN THIS ISSUE
The growth of ability grouping – and the alternatives Get set?
activities
Exploring sticks; hatching butterflies
COVER PHOTO AT PAINT POTS, FREEMANTLE, SOUTHAMPTON ❱ TERI PENGILLEY
A supplement to Nursery World
Editor's view
Editor's view www.nurseryworld.co.uk
Much has changed in
Much has changed in the early years landscape since we first published Nursery Chains in 1998.
landscape since we
Nursery
Chains
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The past 20 years
The past 20 years have seen
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unprecedented growth for early years
unprecedented growth for early years settings, fuelled by social and demographic change and bolstered by the commitment of successive governments of all colours to the expansion of funded childcare.
demographic change and bolstered by
Our first issue was published in November 1998 and contained the names of 70 nursery groups.
November 1998 and contained the
A visit to Paint Pots, our Nursery Group of the Year 2018 A visit to Paint Pots, our Nursery Group of the Year 2018 Winning ways
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who’s who? Essential directory of nursery groups with full contact details
Nursery Chains
twice a year, noting in June 1999 that ‘the imminent introduction of both free over the years Looking back at 20 years of our Nursery Chains supplement
We started publishing Nursery Chains twice a year, noting in June 1999 that ‘the imminent introduction of both free grant-funded places for three-yearolds and the Child Care Tax Credit is likely to further accelerate growth in the early years sector’.
001_NC_Cover 2018.indd 1 feeling good How nursery groups are promoting mental health and well-being counting up Exclusive Top 25 league table, plus quality rankings
05/11/2018 12:28
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Recruiting staff from overseas
Many of the 100 chains in the directory had been set up in the 80s and 90s and expanded steadily. Most had an average of seven or eight sites.
We know now that many of these groups would increase in size dramatically in the 2000s, fuelled by investment from venture capitalists and banks, leading to a pattern of mergers and acquisitions that continues today.
Our directory now includes the names of 180 nursery groups ranging in size from three settings to 353.
In 2018, nurseries face many challenges, with funding of 30-hour childcare a key issue for many settings.
But as our league table of the 25 biggest groups shows, the largest what’s inside
Nursery Chains: 20th anniversary
4 20 years of Nursery Chains
17 League tables
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Two decades’ worth of Nursery Chains highlights reveal how the biggest groups have changed shape amid an evolving early years sector 8 Mental health and
well-being Settings explain how they are improving the mental health and
This year’s top 25 Nursery Chains league table, plus our Ofsted listing – which rank the UK’s nursery groups by the number of places provided and their inspection grades respectively 21 Directory
The latest information about the UK’s nursery chains, including their
