Hatch Warren Under Fives Preschool

Small-group experiments, messy play and a community-centre garden give Hatch Warren Under Fives Preschool a clear play-led character. The Garden Room adds planned activities alongside the Main Room, while a Key Carer links each child's experiences with conversations at home. This is preschool life built around getting to know individual children.

Based at Hatch Warren Community Centre in Basingstoke, the preschool welcomes children aged two to five and has 45 places in total. At its May 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated it Good overall and found safeguarding effective. That judgement is dated; the practical offer centres on term-time attendance, with opening hours from 8.30am to 3pm on weekdays.

Rooms and Ages

The Garden Room is shared provision for all children, rather than a separate age-stage room, and its activities emphasise individual attention. Sessions have a maximum group of 12 children, a useful distinction from the preschool's total capacity. Key Carers accompany their children into activities planned around the week's theme, giving the familiar adult a part in these smaller-group experiences.

Main Room provision includes the same Garden Room activities in smaller groups each week. Children therefore have another route into those experiences, rather than learning opportunities being confined to one room. The arrangement matters more than the room names: shared activities can be approached through different group settings.

Learning and Activities

EYFS guides the learning: children develop through play, with activities connecting exploration to language, early writing and number recognition. Garden Room work adds concrete experiences such as science experiments, tracing and messy play. Adults generally lead these sessions, while children also explore the play possibilities themselves. Staff use shared discussion to extend children's thinking, rather than treating an activity simply as a task to finish.

The Leuven scale of wellbeing and involvement is used to assess children's engagement and enjoyment during activities. This gives practitioners a way to consider how children respond, alongside what they are learning. More detail about the small-group provision is on the Garden Room curriculum page.

Planning begins with children's interests and development. Staff gather information from families, make notes about significant actions or comments, and discuss individual children at their Monday meeting. Play opportunities can then be made simpler or more demanding. The practical value is a connection between what a child enjoys and what adults plan next.

In May 2023, play dough before lunch combined a calmer activity with hand movements useful for early writing, while magnetic shapes prompted conversations about reflections. However, the May 2023 inspection identified that planning needed to match individual development more precisely and that children needed more opportunities to explore their family cultures and home languages. These are substantive questions about teaching, alongside the engaging activities.

Outdoor and Community Life

Hatch Warren Community Centre provides a large garden and a kitchen used for baking. Outdoor space is part of the preschool's setting, rather than an occasional destination. In May 2023, children used large climbing equipment, moved around obstacles and invented games together, combining physical activity with shared play.

Leavers also have an annual graduation celebration. The next Graduation celebration - leavers only is scheduled for 20 July 2027, marking the end of their preschool time. It is a farewell event, rather than an indication of any school admissions advantage.

Relationships and Communication

Settling starts with information from home. Families complete an All About Me pack, and the first couple of weeks allow staff to see which adult a child connects with before allocating a Key Carer. That sequence gives the relationship a role in the choice, rather than assigning an adult solely before the child starts.

Tapestry is the online observation system: photographs and captions connect experiences with children's development. Regular parent meetings provide another opportunity to discuss progress, while a half-termly newsletter covers themes, closure dates and preschool news. Families have both individual updates and information about the wider routine.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

Assess, Plan, Do, Review is the preschool's graduated support approach: staff identify needs, agree provision, put it into practice and review progress. A SEN Support Plan sets out the support and agreed outcomes, with parents involved throughout. A SENCO role provides a point of contact, and support may involve speech and language therapists, educational psychologists or other agencies. These are specific mechanisms families can discuss in relation to their child.

Children staying for lunch bring their own packed food, including an ice pack and a drink; the preschool's lunch policy excludes nuts and eggs because of allergies. This puts preparation with families and makes the allergy rules relevant to every lunchbox.

Sessions and Attendance

Opening hours are 8.30am to 3pm, Monday to Friday, during term time; weekends and school holidays are closed. The finance arrangements allow families to use a minimum of 2.5 funded hours, with additional booked hours invoiced separately. Ad-hoc bookings are conditional on availability and require payment within three days. That is a payment rule, rather than a promise of a place.

The address is Hatch Warren Community Centre, Longcross Lane, Basingstoke, RG22 4XF. Telephone enquiries use 01256 322788, and there is an email contact form. Application forms are accessed through Useful Forms.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare and paid hours are both offered. The finance page describes 15 funded hours for three- and four-year-olds from the term after their third birthday, and 30 hours for eligible families of that age group. It also describes 30 hours for eligible two-year-olds from September 2025. Attendance is term time only.

Hours booked beyond a child's funded allocation are charged separately, and current prices should form part of the preschool's written quotation. Invoices are issued during each of the three terms, with flexible payment arrangements offered where needed. Fees remain payable for absence caused by illness or holidays, a material budgeting point for families.

Uniform is optional. Blue logo T-shirts, darker jumpers and cardigans provide an alternative to everyday clothes for paint and glue activities; practical, washable clothing is encouraged whichever option families choose.

• Term-time cover. Weekday opening ends at 3pm, and school holidays are closed. Families needing care beyond that timetable should weigh the preschool's hours against their working arrangements.
• Teaching and home languages. In May 2023, individual planning and opportunities to share cultural heritage needed further development. At a visit, ask how current activities respond to your child's learning stage and home language.
• Packed lunches and care supplies. Families prepare lunch under a policy excluding nuts and eggs. Confirm current allergy practice and ask which non-food care supplies you should bring.
• Closures beyond holidays. The calendar schedules staff training on 12 April 2027 and a polling-day closure with parent meetings on 6 May 2027. These dates need attention when arranging cover.

Hatch Warren Under Fives Preschool suits families seeking term-time preschool for children aged two to five, with play-based learning, shared rooms and regular smaller-group activities. The Garden Room, Tapestry and the structured SEN support process give parents concrete features to weigh. Its timetable requires a good fit with family routines, and the May 2023 teaching priorities deserve attention alongside the Good judgement. The strongest appeal is the connection between individual relationships, planned play and communication with home.