Little Acorns (Herne) Pre-School
OutstandingBirth to 5Open for decades
A day nursery in Herne Bay for children from birth to 5, open 08:40 to 15:40, 5 days a week. They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask. Rated Outstanding by Ofsted in April 2025. Open since 1998, with 32 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 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
CT6 7TAWhat 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.
- 15 October 2025 — Concern: actions taken what Ofsted published
Ofsted inspector, 25 April 2025 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children thrive in this nurturing pre-school, where highly qualified staff nurture their unique personalities and needs. Staff provide an inspirational environment that focuses on the children. They seize every opportunity, indoors and outdoors, to enhance children's learning. Each day offers awe, wonder and a rich array of stimulating activities, ensuring children are deeply engaged, are highly motivated and make excellent progress across all areas of development. They form strong bonds with staff, seeking reassurance and comfort when needed, which is consistently provided.
The leadership team creates a highly ambitious curriculum for all children. There is a clear emphasis on communication and language, independence and confidence.
Staff use a wide variety of communication tools, including well-being, language development and phonics programmes. This ensures all children can join in and have a good understanding of expectations of them. As a result, all children make outstanding progress.
- 25 April 2025Outstanding Safeguarding: Yes
- 10 June 2019Outstanding
- 6 December 2013Outstanding
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Little Acorns (Herne) Pre-School
- 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.
Day nurseries within a couple of miles
This one is first. Tick it and one or two others to see them side by side.