Garden

The Penenden Heath Pre-School Garden was officially opened on 1st May 2010 by the Deputy Mayor, Eric Hotson.  The garden was the result of years of hard work and planning by the Pre-School Committee and we secured a KCC grant to fund the project. The garden is used by the children all year round, whatever the weather, for creative play and also for learning about the natural environment: somewhere to combine adventure and fun in the outdoors. 

Many of the activities in the garden came from ideas identified by the children:

• Train, this is in the form of a climbing frame

• Mud play

• Vegetable beds to grow and care for fruit and vegetables which can be used at snack time

• Large play house

• Friendship stop

• Winding paths, a Willow tunnel and stepping stones that go around the bushes

• A sound board for children to explore different noises

• Herbs and highly fragrant plants have been planted so children can experience different smells.

The garden is looked after by the staff and children and in the autumn/spring a Parent’s garden tidy is sometimes held. 

We were lucky enough to win awards in the 'Wild about Garden's' competitions run by Kent Wildlife Trust in 2015 and 2016.

In 2021, local firm Whitehead Monckton awarded us a grant to repair our play surface edging which was lifting. The support provided here was invaluable and meant that other fundraising income could be used to support the children with resources directly in the pre-school.