2J's Pre-school
GoodTakes funded hours★ 5.0 on GoogleBirth to 8+Long established
A day nursery in Gillingham for from 2 years up to school age, open 09:00 to 15:00, 5 days a week. They take the funded hours. They do not publish prices, so ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in May 2024. Open since 2013, with 40 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
Funded hours
15 & 30-hour childcare funding.
Worth knowing. Consumable charges for funded places: £2 full day, £1 per session; opt-out available with required items list.
What childcare usually costs in Medway
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Medway from the Department for Education's 2025 provider survey. No national data holds what an individual nursery charges, so ring and ask.
Places, hours and the day
Who they take, when they are open, and what a day there includes.
Where it is
ME7 1TTWhat the inspector found
One grade is one visit. A run of them tells you whether it has been good for years or has only just got there.
- 5 July 2022 — Concern: actions taken what Ofsted published
Ofsted inspector, 21 May 2024 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Staff provide children with a nurturing environment, where they feel safe and confident. They have secure settling-in procedures, which help to make sure children and their families receive the support they need when starting at the preschool. As a result, children form positive relationships with the staff.
Children's behaviour is good and appropriate to their stage of development. They are learning how to deal with emotions as they begin to socialise and share with friends. For instance, staff encourage children to use sand timers. They explain how they work so that children know when it will be their turn.
Children learn about their local community through an array of experiences. For example, the staff take the children on walks to the local shops and beach to explore the world around them. Staff make strong use of photographs to stimulate conversations with the children and help them recall past events. For instance, children happily talk about people who help us when looking at photographs of firefighters and a dentist.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- strengthen staff's understanding of the curriculum intent so that teaching consistently focuses on what they want children to learn n make better use of group activities to ensure all children are involved and engaged.
- 21 May 2024Good
- 29 June 2018Good
- 11 February 2014Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for 2J's Pre-school
- What it costs
- Waiting list
No dataset holds any of this. Two parents telling us the same thing puts it on the page for whoever looks next.
What to ask them
Some of this is above, from the setting or from parents, and it can go out of date. The rest is in no dataset anywhere. Either way it is worth ten minutes on the phone.
- What does it cost, all in? What is on top: meals, nappies, late pick-up, and what happens if you are late.
- How do you apply my funded hours? Whether they stretch them over the year, and the minimum days you have to book.
- Do you have a place for a child of my age now? Baby rooms fill first and waiting lists are common.
- Who would my child's key person be? And how long have the staff been there. No dataset holds this and it matters more than anything above.
- Can I visit at a busy time? Mid-morning on a weekday tells you far more than an empty room after hours.
Day nurseries within a couple of miles
This one is first. Tick it and one or two others to see them side by side.