Tiny Stars Canterbury
GoodTakes funded hours★ 3.8 on GoogleBirth to 5Long established
A day nursery in Canterbury for children from birth to 5, open 09:00 to 17:00, 5 days a week. They take the funded hours. They do not publish prices, so ask. Rated Good by Ofsted in March 2023. Open since 2015, with 15 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
Funded hours
15 hours per week for eligible two-year-olds; 15 hours per week universal for three- and four-year-olds; 30 hours per week for eligible working families of three- and four-year-olds; from September 2024, 15 hours for eligible working parents of children aged nine months up to three; from September 2025, 30 hours for the same group.
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
CT1 3RAWhat 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, 13 March 2023 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Leaders have worked hard to make improvements since the previous inspection.
Children enjoy the varied activities on offer, which have been provided based on their developmental needs and interests. For example, they enter the main room and are greeted by the smell of flavoured tea. Children explore the coloured water as they fill and empty a range of different bowls and cups. The learn to share and take turns with the equipment available, learning new vocabulary also. Outside, children enjoy creating constructions that enable them to investigate cause and effect. For instance, they work with staff to tier crates and guttering and watch as they roll small balls to the bottom. Children learn to make decisions and use their critical-thinking skills as they tilt the ramps higher or lower.
Children behave well. They are reminded by staff to use kind hands and to make sensible choices. Children approach staff for support and comfort. This shows that they feel safe and secure. Children delight in learning about each other's varied backgrounds and the wider world. For example, staff encourage them to talk about what they like to eat at home during lunchtime. They learn new words and discover the similarities and differences between themselves and their friends.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- support staff to monitor and manage noise levels in order to better promote children's communication and language development n review group times, particularly for the youngest children, to help them become deeply engaged in their learning.
- 13 March 2023Good
- 20 October 2022Inadequate
- 27 February 2019Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 2 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Tiny Stars Canterbury
- What it costs
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.