Playmates Pre-School
GoodTakes funded hours★ 5.0 on GoogleBirth to 8+Open for decades
A day nursery in Horsham for children from birth to 8+, open 08:50 to 02:50, 5 days a week. £25.00 a session, and they take the funded hours. Rated Good by Ofsted in April 2024. Open since 1992, with 32 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
| Age | Session | |
|---|---|---|
| All ages | £25.00Morning or Afternoon, 3 hrs |
Before you start
One-off charges to take a place.
- £5.00 Book bag rentalbag returned undamaged when your child leaves, refundable
Funded hours
Universal 15 hour free entitlement for 3/5 years, 15 hour 2 year free entitlement which is available from the term after your child turns 2 or 3. We offer 30 hour working families funding from 2 years of age using the 9 months to 2 year funding.
What childcare usually costs in West Sussex
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in West Sussex 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
RH12 4ETWhat 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, 17 April 2024 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children enjoy their time at the pre-school. They are greeted warmly by staff who listen intently as children talk about what they have been doing at home. Children are very keen to experience the wide range of activities set out for them by the staff. They excitedly chat with the staff and the close bonds that they share are evident. Staff support children and families to settle in very well. Parents and guardians are encouraged to take their time settling their children into the preschool. This approach supports children's emotional well-being.
Children demonstrate a strong sense of independence in routines such as tidying up, putting their belongings away and collecting their own lunches. This independence is well supported by staff who gently encourage children to try new things and do things for themselves. Staff have high expectations for children's behaviour. They model respectful language, turn-taking and kindness to each other.
As a result, children follow their example. They say 'please' and 'thank you' and are keen to help tidy away the toys that they have been playing with. Staff are very ambitious for children's learning and praise children for keeping on trying. Children take pride in their achievements and are keen to learn new things. All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), progress well from their starting points.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- support all staff to better recognise, and make more effective use of, spontaneous opportunities to extend and challenge children's learning during their chosen play n review and improve the organisation of activities and routines so that children's learning is not unnecessarily interrupted.
- 17 April 2024Good
- 11 June 2018Good
- 13 July 2015Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Playmates Pre-School
- 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
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.
- Is £25.00 a session still the rate? 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.
- 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.