Nursery World - Exclusive: how the nursery chains measure up

Nursery group Kids 1st has the highest proportion of outstanding nurseries in the country, in Nursery World’s exclusive analysis of Ofsted grades.

This is the fourth year running that the chain, which runs ten nurseries in the North-East of England, has achieved this accolade.

Two-thirds of the group’s nurseries are graded outstanding, while a third of its settings are rated as good.

Our Ofsted table is based on our analysis of the Ofsted reports of the 20 biggest nursery groups in England.

By comparing their grades we are able to determine a top-20 table for quality.

Kids Planet is a new entry to the Ofsted table and is in joint second position with Kids Allowed, with both groups only achieving outstanding and good grades.

Based in Cheshire, Kids Planet has expanded in the past 12 months to run 12 nurseries, and has also risen up the ranks in our league table of the 25 largest nursery chains, which shows the total number of settings and registered childcare places the groups provide.

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