West Kingsdown Pre-school
OutstandingBirth to 5Open for decades
A pre-school in Sevenoaks for children from birth to 5, open 09:00 to 15:00, 5 days a week. They do not publish prices, so that is the first thing to ask. Rated Outstanding by Ofsted in February 2025. Open since 1999, with 34 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
TN15 6JNWhat 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, 6 February 2025 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children and their families are at the heart of this incredibly caring setting. Staff nurture children's emotional well-being exceptionally well. They provide personalised support to ensure all children settle very securely and, as such, children develop very strong bonds with staff. Children develop high levels of selfesteem as staff continuously praise and encourage them. Children demonstrate excellent behaviour and attitudes. For example, they immediately settle to join in with rhyming games, and are enthralled listening intently for different letter sounds, remaining highly engaged and interested. These activities support children's communication and attention skills very effectively.
Staff plan an extensive variety of opportunities to widen children's knowledge of their local community. They encourage children to help others by fundraising for local groups. Children donate food items to the 'community cupboard' and bring in their own clothes and coats to support the donation bank. This very effectively supports children's understanding of responsibility and respect for those around them. Staff have very high expectations for all children. Those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are provided with excellent support.
Staff use sign language to help children's understanding and are incredibly patient in their approach. Children who are non-verbal when they start become confident communicators. All children make significant progress from their starting points.
- 6 February 2025Outstanding Safeguarding: Yes
- 6 November 2019Good
- 2 July 2015Outstanding
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for West Kingsdown Pre-school
- 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.