The Rainbow Tree Day Nursery
GoodTakes funded hours★ 4.6 on GoogleBirth to 5Long established
A day nursery in Gravesend for babies from 3 months up to 5 year olds, open 07:30 to 19:00, 5 days a week. £7.90 an hour for 0-2 year olds, and they take the funded hours. Rated Good by Ofsted in November 2021. Open since 2015, with 70 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
0-2 year old hourly rate: £7.90
One published rate. What you pay depends on the days you need and the funded hours you can claim.
Funded hours
Free for Two year old funding, 3 & 4 universal & extended funding.
Worth knowing. We allocate each child 12 hours a week, over the 48 weeks that we are open. Therefore your child still benefits from the 15 Government Funded hours but can attend during out of term time, as the 15 hours a week only applies during term time only. Likewise, the 30 hours with the extended funding works out at 23 hours a week over 50 weeks of the year.
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
DA12 1JQWhat 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 November 2021 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children are happy and settled at this welcoming nursery. They form close and trusting relationships with staff, who clearly enjoy caring for them. There is a wellestablished and effective key-person system and new children settle quickly into nursery routines. This helps support their emotional well-being. Children are developing good levels of independence and know how to keep themselves safe.
They listen and follow instructions well. Children know how to put on coats and boots and talk about walking sensibly on the steps that lead to the outdoor play area.
Children's behaviour is good. They develop skills in sharing and taking turns and show respect to each other. Children learn about each other's families. They enjoy sharing homemade books that contain photos of their immediate and extended family. This helps children to learn about similarities and value difference. Children have good opportunities to play outside in the developing outdoor areas. Babies explore musical toys on their cosy veranda. Young children enjoy drawing with chalk. They draw faces to express how they are feeling and the reason for this.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- strengthen the programme for professional development that staff receive, so that the nursery's vision for children's learning is well understood by the team n provide parents with further information about how they can guide their children's learning at home.
- 17 November 2021Good
- 22 May 2017Good
- 27 June 2016Needs improvement
Rated Good or Outstanding at 2 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for The Rainbow Tree Day Nursery
- 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 £7.90 an hour 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.
- 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.