Surestart - Where Kids Come First
GoodBirth to 8+Open for decades
A day nursery in South Ockendon for children from birth to 8+, open 08:00 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 They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask.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 June 2025. Open since 2006, with 33 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 Thurrock
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in Thurrock 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
RM15 5PAWhat 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.
- 17 January 2025 — Concern: actions taken what Ofsted published
Ofsted inspector, 25 June 2025 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children come into the nursery excited to learn and to share their news with staff about what they have done since they last met. They are aware of the routines, and they independently hang their belongings up and make their way to a chosen activity.
Children have developed very strong attachments with staff, who have created a safe environment where children are confident, happy and secure. Staff have high expectations of children's behaviour, and they have created a culture of mutual respect. Positive behaviour is promoted through encouraging responsibility, for example involving children in tidy-up routines. Children are given scripts to help them navigate difficult situations. For example, when they face difficulties with friends, staff remind them to say, 'Please don't do that, I don't like it.' This empowers children to recognise and respond to uncomfortable and unwanted situations.
Children are provided with a stimulating learning environment full of activities to explore. Staff plan an exciting curriculum using books as their theme. This promotes a love for books and reading. Children are engaged and enthusiastic when they listen to stories that are brought to life through staff's animated and expressive reading. Children are encouraged to create their own stories, which staff scribe for them, and they add illustrations to create their own personalised storybook.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- support staff in reviewing how group-time activities are organised to best support children's engagement in their learning n embed consistent supportive strategies to help children who speak English as an additional language to further develop their communication and understanding.
- 25 June 2025Good Safeguarding: Yes
- 17 July 2019Good
- 22 January 2015Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Surestart - Where Kids Come First
- 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.