Honeypot Day Nursery

A wooden pirate ship, a mud kitchen and a garden cabin give Honeypot Day Nursery its character: this is a house-based setting with substantial space for outdoor play. At 136 Princes Avenue in Walderslade, Chatham, it accepts children from birth to five and has 46 places in total. The garden is a central part of the offer, rather than just somewhere to stretch legs between indoor activities.

Ofsted rated the nursery Good at its July 2022 inspection. That gives families a dated assessment to weigh alongside the current rooms and facilities, including the toddler cabin added in 2023. In July 2022, two improvement priorities were identified: developing children's understanding of healthy bodies and making mealtimes more useful for conversation and learning.

Full-day and sessional childcare sit alongside term-time-only funded sessions for eligible three- and four-year-olds. That breadth matters for families whose childcare needs follow different working and school-year patterns.

Rooms and Ages

Four stages organise the nursery day. Baby Room covers birth to one and a half; Toddler Room takes children from one and a half to two and a half, with play emphasising communication and getting along with others. Young Risers, for two and a half to three and a half, encourages independence through activities including construction, music and water play. Pre-School, for three and a half to five, uses cabin accommodation and free-flow play, with experiences such as gardening, building obstacle courses and experimenting with water flow.

These stages give the progression a practical shape. The toddler emphasis is on language and social interaction, while the next stage gives children more opportunities to do things for themselves. For preschool children, building, digging and gardening make the outdoor environment part of learning rather than a separate break from it.

The toddler accommodation changed in 2023, when a new garden cabin was added. Families considering the youngest stages therefore need to look at the present layout, rather than treating the older inspection's account as a description of today's room arrangements.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS provides the framework for children's learning and development: learning through play builds skills and works towards learning goals. Individual teaching plans take account of children's interests and needs; development is tracked rather than leaving progress to chance. The useful detail here is the connection between play, individual planning and a record of what a child is learning.

In July 2022, younger children chose songs, while older children explored rhyme and letter sounds. Physical activities worked at different stages too: babies poured water, toddlers handled small objects with tweezers, and older children drew and made marks. These examples show how everyday materials can give children practice in communication and hand control, without turning the nursery day into formal lessons.

Outdoor and Community Life

The enclosed garden has several different uses. A forest area and mud kitchen support exploratory play; climbing tyres and a large wooden pirate ship provide places to move and imagine. Ride-along toys have a rubber-matted surface marked with a road design, while a sandpit and water play add further ways to investigate materials.

This variety is the strongest physical feature of the setting. Children can build, pretend, climb or experiment within the same outdoor environment. In July 2022, garden activities included construction, shared stories and doll's-house play, showing that quieter experiences also had a place outside.

Relationships and Communication

Each child is allocated a staff member through the Keyworker system when starting nursery. An Online Learning Journal records progress and allows parents to contribute comments and questions. That gives communication a continuing record: families can respond to what their child is doing, rather than relying entirely on a brief exchange at collection.

In July 2022, staff knew children's routines at home, offered comfort when children were tired and discussed weaning with parents. Information about the child's day and development was shared with families. These are useful examples of the relationship between home and nursery, but they belong to that inspection period.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the July 2022 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and SEND support good, with additional funding used to meet children's needs and external agencies involved where necessary. The practical mechanisms included discussing developmental concerns with parents and seeking support beyond the nursery when needed.

All staff have paediatric first-aid training, and training is refreshed regularly. Food is prepared by the nursery's own cook, with rotating menus and homemade main dishes and desserts. Daily provision includes breakfast, a snack, a hot meal with two courses and high tea.

School preparation includes tracking children's development through the EYFS. In July 2022, staff also helped children build skills for moving between rooms and on to school; this was preparation for the next stage, rather than a claim about admission to a particular school.

Sessions and Attendance

Honeypot opens Monday to Friday, from 7.30am to 6pm, for 51 weeks each year. It closes on bank holidays and for one week at Christmas. These are opening hours; the attendance offer includes full-day and sessional childcare, plus term-time-only funded sessions for eligible three- and four-year-olds.

A waiting list operates, with priority given to families who already have a child attending. That is a durable booking rule, so siblings are a relevant part of planning an application. Enquiries can be made by telephone on 01634 867712 or by email at info@honeypotdaynurseryltd.co.uk.

Getting There

The address is 136 Princes Avenue, Walderslade, Chatham, Kent ME5 8AJ. The nursery occupies a large house with an enclosed garden, giving its indoor and outdoor provision a domestic setting.

Funding and Paid Extras

Eligible three- and four-year-olds can use stretched funding for 15 or 30 hours, or term-time-only funded sessions for those entitlements. Eligible two-year-olds are offered stretched 15-hour funding. The distinction matters: the term-time-only option is specifically offered for eligible three- and four-year-olds, rather than being described as an option for every funded age group.

Fees are paid monthly in twelve equal instalments, and the charging terms include holidays, bank holidays, absences and closures. Families obtain current prices through the nursery's current fee list and written quotation; the monthly payment arrangement should be considered alongside the days a child will actually attend.

• Costs beyond attendance. The charging terms include absences and closures. When discussing a quotation, what meal and non-food consumable charges apply to private and funded hours?
• The garden and cabin layout. Toddler accommodation expanded into a garden cabin in 2023, while Pre-School also uses a cabin. A visit should explore how these spaces and the outdoor activities work for your child's stage.
• Learning during care routines. July 2022 improvement priorities concerned healthy-body learning and interaction at meals. Look for practical examples of how these subjects now enter ordinary conversations and eating routines.
• Sibling priority. Families with a child already attending receive waiting-list priority. Factor that rule into your booking plans, alongside the nursery's Christmas and bank-holiday closures.

Honeypot's clearest appeal is its combination of a house setting, substantial outdoor play and a staged route from babies to preschool children. The pirate ship, road-marked play surface and garden cabins make the offer easy to picture; individual planning and the parent journal give the day a structure beyond the equipment.

It suits families considering full-day or sessional childcare, as well as eligible three- and four-year-olds needing term-time-only funded sessions. The Good judgement dates from July 2022, and its two improvement priorities remain useful subjects for a visit. The decision rests on how the current room arrangements, attendance pattern and charging terms fit the child and family.