Hingham Playgroup
GoodBirth to 8+Open for decades
A day nursery in Norwich for children from birth to 8+, open 8am to 6pm. They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in November 2024. Open since 2011, with 26 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 Norfolk
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Norfolk 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
NR9 4JBWhat 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, 19 November 2024 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children have a good sense of belonging and happily enter the playgroup. They foster swift and trusting relationships with staff because they consistently show genuine care and empathy towards them. Staff are always attentive and offer the right level of support to ensure all children's emotional security, and well-being is at the forefront. With robust settling-in processes and regular assessments, staff get to know their key children well. This means staff recognise when children may need some extra support. They sensitively work with parents and external agencies to ensure all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, receive effective support to thrive, and achieve their best individual outcomes.
Children have plenty of time and space to explore what interests them. For example, they carefully build towers from magnetic shapes together with their friends. Children love the café, role-play kitchen and share their pretend food with one another. When they occasionally begin to have disagreements with peers in their experimental play, staff promptly notice. They calmly encourage children to use their words to explain why they are upset, and then listen to their peer's point of view. Children demonstrate the effectiveness of this teaching when regularly resolving any peer disputes appropriately themselves.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- build on existing performance management systems to help raise the quality of teaching to an even higher level n focus more closely on guiding staff to consistently support children's thinking skills to help them make even more progress in all areas of learning.
- 19 November 2024Good
- 7 January 2019Good
- 27 May 2016Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Hingham 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.