Boughton Monchelsea Playgroup Association
GoodTakes funded hoursBirth to 5Open for decades
A pre-school in Maidstone for from 2 years up to 5 year olds, open sessions in term time, often mornings. £60.75 a day, and they take the funded hours. Rated Good by Ofsted in October 2024. Open since 1991, with 50 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
Term time only, 38 weeks a year.
| Age | Full day | Session | Hourly | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| All ages | £60.75after funded hours have been accessed | £27.00after funded hours have been accessed £33.75after funded hours have been accessed | £9.00extra hours over funded entitlement |
Before you start
One-off charges to take a place.
- £20.00 administration feeincludes Playgroup t-shirt and taster sessions before your
Extras
Charged on top of the session rate.
- £0.50 a session consumables fee
- £0.50 a session food fee
- £10.00 late collection fee (per half hour thereafter)every half hour after the first 10 minutes
- £10.00 late payment finefees paid late
- £10.00 a week late payment fine (weekly)fees remain outstanding
- £15.00 late collection feefail to collect within 10 minutes of session/day ending
Funded hours
15 and 30 hours, plus Free for 2 funding.
Worth knowing. Voluntary consumables fee 50p per session and food fee 50p per session added to invoices.
What childcare usually costs in Kent
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Kent 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
ME17 4HNWhat 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.
Ofsted inspector, 11 October 2024 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
All children are confident and happy during their time in the inviting pre-school.
They are independent and know and follow the routines well. For example, all children help to tidy up when they hear the 'tidy up' song. All staff have high expectations of children's abilities and plan challenging activities that they know will motivate them to learn. The curriculum is well embedded, and all staff make targeted plans for all areas of learning. When children have an interest in imaginative play and cars, all staff teach children about the rules of the road by introducing 'cones' to make roads and using 'traffic lights'. Children are keen to learn about nature. All staff teach children about the different insects and autumnal items they see on a walk. Children go on to make art with their collections as they enjoy leaf printing activities.
Children of all ages and abilities behave well and are polite. Children show empathy and understanding of other children's differing needs. The staff teach children good physical skills and support them to safely take risks. This is evident when children climb and balance skilfully on larger equipment. All staff support children to develop good communication skills. Children embrace a fondness for singing and stories. This includes those who have special educational needs and abilities
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- refine further the staff's awareness of where they are more effectively positioned to engage all children in learning more promptly n enhance children's understanding of the importance of healthy eating and making healthier choices.
- 11 October 2024Good
- 24 January 2019Good
- 25 November 2015Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Boughton Monchelsea Playgroup Association
- Nappies
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.
- Is £60.75 a day still the rate? 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.
Pre-schools within a couple of miles
This one is first. Tick it and one or two others to see them side by side.