If you’re looking for a fun and friendly messy play group for babies and toddlers near Dartford and Gravesend, then Splat Messy Play in Castle Hill is the group for you!
Splat Messy Play is a messy play group for children aged from 6 months to 5 years old. Splat messy play groups give children the opportunity to learn, discover, explore and create in a safe, stimulating and fun environment. Expect themed weeks with various messy play set ups for your child to dive into and most importantly – make a mess!
There are Splat Messy Play classes all over the U.K. – from Edinburgh to Plymouth, hopefully there should be a class near you!
I attended the Castle Hill group which is part of the Dartford, Gravesend & Surrounding Areas franchise. The Splat Messy Play Castle Hill class is held at the Castle Hill Community Centre, Ebbsfleet Valley, DA10 1AD. There’s plenty of parking directly outside the Community Centre in a good sized, free car park.
Splat Messy Play costs £9 per session which includes one adult and one child. Additional adult and sibling tickets can be bought for £7 each.
You also have the choice to book full term tickets to save money if you would like to commit to the class – currently a full term of 6 sessions is £48 for 1 adult and child. This option is great for parents craving routine to their week. If there are still spaces left, you can still book on at any time throughout the term – the price will be calculated pro-rata for the weeks left.
The Winter term of Splat Messy Play at Castle Hill is at 1:30pm on Thursday afternoons.
If you’re local and that time doesn’t suit your routine, there are nearby classes at 9:30am on a Monday morning in Cobham or 1:45pm on a Tuesday afternoon in Wilmington.
Don’t forget to check the Splat Messy Play website for your nearest venue, as different locations have different days and times of classes available.
Myself, Arthur (my two and a half year old toddler) and Ada (my newborn baby) attended Splat Messy Play baby and toddler group in Castle Hill on Thursday 30th September.
We arrived at the Castle Hill Community Centre and parked in the car park directly outside. There is ample parking, as well as a co-op and pharmacy right next door too.
When we arrived, Leanne, the host, and her son, let us settle in before talking through the theme of the week – Nursery rhymes! She talked us through each tray and what nursery rhyme they represented. The children were itching to play – the trays themselves were so well presented and definitely aesthetically appealing to both children and adults alike.
For baa baa black sheep there was green rice for grass and a black woolly sheep, humpty dumpty was made of cereal, there was a sensory bucket full of oranges and lemons, a water play set up for ‘I’m a little teapot’, a playdough tray for wheels on the bus, and painting on black paper for twinkle twinkle little star. The theme had been well explored with all tuff trays fitting the theme very well. Arthur thoroughly enjoyed all elements of the class, although I think the water play, cereal and painting were his favourites.
The trays have lots of sensory base/equipment, meaning each tuff tray had plenty for the children to do despite quite a lot of families present. Under all the tuff trays is a large tarpaulin sheet, so if your child does spill mess outside of the tuff tray it’s no bother.
After attending this session, I followed Splat Messy Play on Instagram and was lucky enough to win the giveaway for a free term of sessions! I was absolutely chuffed and so thankful to have won. We have therefore since been to more sessions and each session is just as fun as that first – with lots of mess, too! I love that some weeks are themed to tie in with real life events – such as bonfire night, Children in Need and of course Christmas! Overall we are thoroughly enjoying the messy play classes and I would definitely recommend Leanne’s sessions to all local parents.
PS – If you visit off the back of my recommendation, please tag me in your photos on Instagram and use the hashtag #JodetopiaInKent
Are you a messy play lover or are you looking for a calmer baby group? Check out all of my baby and toddler group reviews or why not try Messy Minors in Hartley?
