Fryerns Community Playgroup
GoodBirth to 5Open for decades
A pre-school in Basildon for children from birth to 5, open sessions in term time, often mornings. They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in July 2025. Open since 2000, with 20 places.
What you might pay
This setting does not publish its fees, and no national dataset holds them. This is what childcare costs across the council, as a starting point for the call.
What childcare usually costs in Essex
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Essex 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
SS14 2NNWhat 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, 9 July 2025 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Staff provide children with opportunities to make choices and select activities that interest them and as a result, children are highly engaged in their play. Children demonstrate perseverance to complete tasks, for example, copying printed patterns to create different structures with the building bricks.
Children are expertly supported to follow the behavioural expectations of the setting. Staff role model how to share resources and children listen well to these instructions. They work together to negotiate and manage any conflicts that arise.
For example, children swap resources when painting in the garden, so they all get a turn of using the different colours.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- support staff to strengthen their practice during group activities so that all children are engaged in meaningful learning opportunities n continue to support all children to learn to understand the routine of the setting so they are able to fully engage in all routine activities.
- 9 July 2025Good Safeguarding: Yes
- 25 October 2019Good
- 20 November 2018Needs improvement
Rated Good or Outstanding at 2 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Fryerns Community Playgroup
- What it costs
- Funded hours
- Youngest age taken
- Meals
- Nappies
- 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
None of this is in any national dataset and this setting has not published it, which is exactly why it is worth asking.
- What does it cost, all in? What is on top: meals, nappies, late pick-up, and what happens if you are late.
- Can I use my funded hours here? Whether they stretch them over the year, and the minimum days you have to book.
- Is there a place for my child's age? 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.