Chiswick nursery top in league tables for third consecutive year

Devonshire Day Nursery in Chiswick

Devonshire Day Nursery rated consistently ‘Outstanding’

Devonshire Day Nursery in Chiswick is celebrating their company being rated number one for Early Years care and education for the third year running.

The nursery in Bennett St is part of the Childbase Partnership, which came top in Nursery World’s annual table of the 25 largest nursery groups in the UK. The magazine analysed their Ofsted reports and published them in its Nursery Groups Report 2026.

All 43 of Childbase Partnership’s nurseries were rated either Outstanding or Good, putting the group in first place, followed by Dukes Education’s Little Dukes nurseries in second place, and the London Early Years foundation in third position.

Devonshire Day Nursery was one of those which were rated Outstanding. Their last inspection in May 2025 reported they provided an outstanding service in all criteria: the quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and overall effectiveness at previous inspection. The inspector wrote:

‘The provider and staff provide offer a warm and welcoming, home-from-home environment for children. The rooms are incredibly well organised and the resources on offer spark children’s curiosity and imaginations excellently. Staff build incredibly secure relationships with children through effective settling-in sessions and provide resources that children can take home to support this process.

Childbase Partnership CEO, Emma Kneale gave her reaction on the company’s success:

“Ranking at the top of the tables for the third consecutive year is an extraordinary achievement and a powerful testament to the dedication of our colleagues in ensuring every child gets the very best start in life.

“Consistency at this level doesn’t happen by chance, and while the inspection framework has evolved, these outcomes reflect the strength of our culture and our shared commitment to continually striving for excellence.”

(L) Mary Mensah-Bonsu celebrating her 25–year work anniversary at Devonshire Day Nursery; (R) National Book Week

When they came top last year, Devonshire Day Nursery’s manager Emmy Avery told The Chiswick Calendar:

“The company is employee-owned,” she said, so staff have a vested interest in their success, “and we have a good support structure for quality and training. They put a lot of training in place around learning opportunities, the environment and relationships with parents.”

READ ALSO: Chiswick nursery comes top of the league table

Devonshire Day Nursery has an Open Day coming up on Saturday 7 March, from 10am – 12pm, by appointment only. The nursery is open Monday to Friday from 7.30am to 6.30pm (excluding inset days and public holidays), providing a fully inclusive service for children aged six weeks to five years.

Devonshire Day Nursery website

Childbase Partnership was founded in 1989 on the principle that employee wellbeing and engagement is critical to consistently high-quality provision. This commitment has seen the group dominate the UK’s ‘Best Companies to Work For’ lists for the past 15 years.

Ofsted introduced a new inspection system in November, moving away from pronouncing judgement with a single word, but most nurseries in this year’s report had been judged under the old system.

Comparatively few of the nurseries from the 25 biggest groups have experienced the new-style inspections, which evaluate six different areas: behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines; children’s welfare and wellbeing; inclusion; leadership and governance; achievement; and curriculum and teaching.

Read more stories on The Chiswick Calendar