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The Acorns Nursery School was set up in 1985 following the closure of a small Nursery School attended by one of Janet’s children. Unable to find what she was looking for in Nursery Education locally, she decided to explore the possibility of establishing a Nursery School in her own home. 26 years later, Janet continues to welcome young children into her home and they thrive in the secure, relaxed and friendly atmosphere. When the government offered the option to parents of their children starting school in the September following their fourth birthday, rather than at the statutory age of school entry which is the term following their fifth birthday, Janet felt that some children would benefit from a stepping stone between the 'home from home' atmosphere of Lindfield and big school. She also wanted to establish and share her vision of Nursery education, after a lifetime of experience in early years and visiting nursery schools around the world. In 2002, Janet found the setting that she felt would complement the Lindfield venue and has since worked with the Westmeston Parish Hall Trust to bring The Acorns to Westmeston near Ditchling, East Sussex. It is now well and truly on the map and parents recognise the added value of this setting for their children.  In 2010  The Acorns opened at Stoneywish Nature Reserve on Tuesdays, offering the children Forest School adventures. Janet feels that these three settings encapsulate the essence of what she believes Nursery Education is all about: allowing the children to be children, growing in independence in their own time, developing life skills ready for the next stage of the educational ladder. OFSTED has judged the quality and standards of the Nursery Education as outstanding and Lindfield was awarded outstanding in all seventeen areas in February 2011.

Because Janet works outside Nursery School hours as a private tutor and has seen many children struggle with reading, writing and maths, she is very keen to give the children at The Acorns a very secure foundation on which to build. She works closely with parents, showing them how they can help and participate in their children’s learning and she has recently started to run workshops on Forest Schools and ran a workshop at West Sussex Chilminders Conference at Brinsbury College in June.

The curriculum at The Acorns is designed to follow The Early Years Foundation Stage, enabling all the children to grow in confidence and to flourish. Individual needs are catered for in this small Nursery School. Great care is taken to ensure that the shy children are encouraged to come out of their shell and the able children provided with many challenges.

Our Acorns Holiday Fun Playscheme has been reinstated at Westmeston and will be offering children aged 2-11 four weeks fun and adventure in July and August 2012.