Little Explorers Hythe
GoodTakes funded hours★ 5.0 on GoogleBirth to 8+Long established
A day nursery in Hythe for babies from 3 months up to school age, open 08:00 to 18:00, 5 days a week. They take the funded hours. They do not publish prices, so ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in July 2024. Open since 2016, with 65 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
Funded hours
'Free Early Education' funding for eligible children from 9 months.
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
CT21 6PEWhat 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, 4 July 2024 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Leaders and staff are dedicated to supporting families. Staff show genuine affection and care towards the children. A strong key-person system supports children to settle quickly and form secure, trusting relationships. Relationships with babies are sensitive and stimulating. Babies interact with staff, babbling and giggling as staff playfully use animal puppets.
All staff treat children with patience and kindness and teach them about the rules to stay safe. Children mirror these behaviours and often share resources, play together and talk about their best friends. Where children struggle with their emotions, staff are quick to intervene. They calmly give them the time to feel better until they are ready to play again.
The manager implements a curriculum that prepares children to become resilient, inquisitive and compassionate. Staff focus on every child and ensure that they all have appropriate targets. They know children well and provide carefully planned activities that engage and excite the children. Older children thoroughly enjoy making car ramps and investigating which car goes the fastest. Younger children delight in tasting new fruits from 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar' story. Children learn from a young age to focus, persevere and take pride in achieving new goals.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- support staff to develop a more consistent approach to extending children's learning when joining in with their play - improve the organisation of transitions and routines, particularly at mealtimes, to prevent children needing to wait too long.
- 4 July 2024Good
- 26 September 2018Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 2 of the last 2 graded inspections.
Still missing for Little Explorers Hythe
- What it costs
- 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
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.
- What does it cost, all in? 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.
Day nurseries within a couple of miles
This one is first. Tick it and one or two others to see them side by side.