Star Kids Children's Nursery
Good★ 4.4 on GoogleBirth to 8+Long established
A day nursery in Dartford for children from birth to 8+, open 07:00 to 18:00, 5 days a week. They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in November 2023. Open since 2014, 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
DA1 1BEWhat 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, 15 November 2023 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children and their families are warmly welcomed into this friendly setting. Children come in happily, waving to familiar staff and going straight to their classrooms. This develops their confidence and self-esteem. Children behave well. Staff are kind and patient in their approach. They are good role models. Children offer to help and tidy up. This encourages their social skills well. Staff praise and encourage children, celebrating their achievements. For example, staff spend a long time supporting children to use the water station to fill up their cups and twist their lids. This helps to develop children's independence skills.
Staff promote children's language successfully. They read stories to children and engage them with rhymes and songs. Children enjoy finding ribbons and using these to join in with action rhymes with their friends. They excitedly ask for their favourites, waving their ribbons and showing full engagement. Staff promote children's imaginative skills well. Children thoroughly enjoy making models out of recycled materials. They sustain high levels of concentration and perseverance, and they proudly display their creations. This supports children's creativity skills successfully. Staff plan a motivating and stimulating curriculum for children, which is based on their needs and interests. For example, babies giggle and laugh when playing peekaboo with staff. Older children enjoy exploring vegetables, talking about the 'delicious' dinners they are making. Staff encourage children to talk about the different ingredients. They describe and name the vegetables for children. This encourages children's vocabulary and communication skills well.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- support staff to further identify where individual children may need support to be fully engaged in their learning.
- 15 November 2023Good
- 23 November 2022Needs improvement
- 23 May 2022Inadequate
- 3 October 2018Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 2 of the last 4 graded inspections.
Still missing for Star Kids Children's Nursery
- 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.