Full-day nursery in Blackwell, Darlington
Ferndene Nursery
64 Elton Parade, Darlington, DL3 8PQ · Getting there
Is it good?
Read the Ofsted reportOfsted inspection, before November 2025
Good
- Quality of educationGood
- Behaviour and attitudesGood
- Personal developmentGood
- Leadership and managementGood
- SafeguardingEffective
What does this mean?
This grade is from before November 2025, when Ofsted replaced single grades with report cards. The nursery's next inspection will give a report card, with a separate grade for each area instead of one overall grade.
Official records
- Ofsted registrationRegistered since March 1999Reference 508025Ofsted · checked 30 June 2026
- Inspections on record1 inspectionlatest 20 August 2025Ofsted · checked 30 June 2026
- Registered places78 placesthe most children it may care for at onceOfsted · checked 30 June 2026
- Food hygiene rating5 (Very good)inspected 29 May 2026Food Standards Agency · checked 13 November 2026
Fees
Fees, hours and ages: not published yet
Thanks. We count every request and show the nursery how many parents are asking.
Estimate a monthly cost with the council area's typical day rate
Hours and ages
Opening hours and ages: not published yet.
Getting there
64 Elton Parade, Darlington, DL3 8PQ · More nurseries in DL3
Buses
11 bus stops within 400 m, including Hartford Road, Ashcroft Road and Linden Avenue.
Parks and playgrounds
- Green Park6 min walk
- South Park11 min walk
- Stanhope Park12 min walk
- Playground8 min walk
NaPTAN, Department for Transport, checked 13 November 2026 · © OpenStreetMap contributors, checked 13 November 2026. Walking times are rough, from straight-line distance.
Places and next steps
Spaces: not published yet. Nurseries often fill months ahead, so ask early.
In Darlington there are about 3.8 children under 5 for every registered nursery place. Places are how many children nurseries may care for, not free spaces, so this is a guide to demand. Source: ONS Census 2021.
What parents say
Reviews on Toddly
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Write a reviewAbout Ferndene Nursery
Ferndene Nursery is a full-day nursery at 64 Elton Parade, Darlington, DL3 8PQ, in Blackwell, Darlington. It is registered for 78 children. Ofsted rated it Good at its inspection in August 2025, before report cards replaced single grades in November 2025. It has a Google rating of 5.0 from 4 reviews (October 2026). It is run by Busy Bees Nurseries Limited.
Run by Busy Bees Nurseries Limited (company), which runs 300 nurseries.
Compare nurseries nearby
| Nursery | Ofsted | Full day from | Hours | Ages | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ferndene NurseryThis nursery | Good | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | This nursery |
| Flora House Day NurseryFull-day nursery | Good | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | under 0.1 miles |
| The Outdoor Pre-SchoolSessional pre-school | Outstanding | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | 0.3 miles |
| All Saints Blackwell Pre-SchoolSessional pre-school | Outstanding | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | 0.4 miles |
| Danesmoor House Day NurseryFull-day nursery | Good | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | 0.5 miles |
| Upperthorpe NurseryFull-day nursery | Good | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | 0.6 miles |
| Pierremont Pre-SchoolFull-day nursery | Good | not shared yet | not shared yet | not shared yet | 0.8 miles |
A dash means the nursery hasn't published it yet. Distances are in a straight line.
Nearby areas
Schools nearby
- Abbey Infants' School Primaryages 4–7Ofsted: Goodinspected November 2022 0.2 miles
- Abbey Junior School Primaryages 7–11Ofsted: School remains Goodinspected June 2023 0.3 miles
- St Augustine's Catholic Primary School Primaryages 2–11has a nursery classOfsted: Goodinspected July 2024 0.4 miles
- Polam Hall School All-throughages 4–16Ofsted: Report cardinspected November 2025 0.5 miles
- George Dent Nursery School Nurseryages 2–5has a nursery classOfsted: School remains Outstandinginspected March 2024 0.7 miles
- Mowden Infant School Primaryages 5–7Ofsted: School remains Goodinspected January 2023 0.9 miles
- Reid Street Primary School Primaryages 3–11has a nursery classOfsted: School remains Goodinspected April 2022 0.9 miles
- Skerne Park Academy Primaryages 2–11has a nursery classOfsted: Requires improvementinspected June 2024 1.0 miles
Straight-line distances. Places depend on each school's admissions rules. From the Department for Education and Ofsted.
Questions parents ask
Got a question? Ask and get an answer straight away.
What is Ferndene Nursery's Ofsted rating?
Ofsted rated Ferndene Nursery Good at its inspection on 20 August 2025, before report cards replaced single grades in November 2025.
How many children can Ferndene Nursery take?
Ferndene Nursery is registered with Ofsted for up to 78 children at any one time.
Who runs Ferndene Nursery?
Ferndene Nursery is run by Busy Bees Nurseries Limited, which runs 300 nurseries.
What is the nearest station to Ferndene Nursery?
Darlington is the nearest station we know of, 1.0 miles away in a straight line.
How do I contact Ferndene Nursery?
You can call 01325 468774 and visit www.busybeeschildcare.co.uk.
Tools for parents in Darlington
- Childcare cost calculatorMonthly cost with funded hours
- Funded hours checkerWhich schemes you qualify for
- Funded hours start dateWhen your child's hours begin
- Tax-Free Childcare calculatorThe 20% top-up on your bill
- Visit checklist for this nurseryPrintable questions, pre-filled
- Cost of nursery in DarlingtonFees by age in Darlington
About this information
- Registration and inspections: Ofsted · 30 June 2026
- Rating and review themes: Google · 31 October 2026
- Schools: DfE Get Information about Schools · 4 November 2026
- Contains Ofsted data licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Contains Department for Education data licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Contains Ofsted data licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Contains National Statistics data © Crown copyright and database right; contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right.
- Contains Department for Transport NaPTAN data licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
- © OpenStreetMap contributors
- Food hygiene rating from the Food Standards Agency, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Source: Office for National Statistics, Census 2021, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Read reviews on Google
Last checked 31 October 2026 · Ofsted URN 508025 · Plain-text version · Report a mistake
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