Hempstead Pavilion Playgroup
GoodBirth to 5Long established
A pre-school in Gillingham 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 They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask.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 February 2025. Open since 2017, with 24 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 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 3RHWhat 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.
- 1 April 2024 — Concern: actions taken what Ofsted published
Ofsted inspector, 6 February 2025 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children and parents are warmly welcomed into this small friendly playgroup. On arrival, staff and parents exchange information about children to make sure they work together to support their individual needs. Children enjoy attending the playgroup. They leave their parents easily, ready to start their day. Children excitedly search out and find their friends to start playing together. They demonstrate good behaviour and an understanding of the expectations of the playgroup. For example, children work together to stand up skittles and then take turns to roll the ball to knock them down. This helps to build their social skills.
Staff have developed an effective curriculum that takes account of what they want children to learn and be able to do for their next stage in their learning, such as school. They plan the environment to maximise learning and independence, as well as taking account of what interests children. This ensures all children, including children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, are making good progress in their learning. Staff are aware of the different learning styles children have and introduce children to a variety of ways to achieve tasks, such as teaching them different ways to put on their coats. This helps children develop their selfhelp skills in a way that they choose.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- support staff to support children more effectively to understand how to conduct back-and-forth conversations as part of their ongoing language development.
- 6 February 2025Good Safeguarding: Yes
- 22 May 2019Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 2 of the last 2 graded inspections.
Still missing for Hempstead Pavilion 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.