Clophill Pre School

Chickens roaming outdoors, produce grown for an allotment shop and weekly dance and yoga give Clophill Pre School a character rooted in nature and village life. Based at Clophill Village Hall, Kiln Lane, it accepts children aged two, three and four and has 46 places in total. The strongest reason to consider it is the connection between practical experiences and learning: children care for living things, make things and take part in their community.

At its April 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated the provision Outstanding, found safeguarding effective and praised the progress of children, including those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). That judgement belongs to the visit, while the current offer includes a nature-based curriculum, an established key worker system and support for families through Early Help.

Attendance is term-time only, Monday to Friday, with all-day sessions and a separate lunch club. The 3pm finish needs to fit the family's working week.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS provides the framework for children's learning, development and care, with play supporting language, physical skills, relationships and early literacy and maths. Clophill's curriculum gives those areas a concrete setting through nature and everyday experiences. Children explore how plants and animals live, learn about their local community and consider environmental topics such as recycling and composting.

Sorting fruit and vegetables introduces categories; recognising roots and petals develops observation and vocabulary; maps connect discussion with places. Dressing, feeding and personal care build independence for the next stage of childhood.

The Education, Health and Wellbeing package combines resources and family services with weekly dance from Silsoe Dance School and weekly Adventure yoga sessions. Cookery, gardening and sewing give children further ways to turn ideas into something tangible.

In April 2023, children chose stories to share and then organised how to perform them. Outdoor cooking play led to written recipes, and looking closely at clouds prompted discussion of unfamiliar vocabulary. Those examples show how a child's immediate interest could lead into storytelling, writing and conversation at the time of the visit.

Outdoor and Community Life

A purpose-built outdoor shelter, stepping logs, a natural trim trail and an outdoor kitchen support movement, balance and imaginative play. The additional package includes allotment gardening and participation in the allotment shop.

Peking bantam chickens roam outdoors during sessions; children help feed them, clean them out and collect eggs. Caring for guinea pigs Simon and Theodore involves gentle handling under hygiene and safety procedures.

Clophill Flower Club makes flower posies with children, while Greensand Trust helps them learn about the local area and environmental care. Both bring outside skills into preschool life.

Adventure Fridays have a defined entry condition: children must attend at least five sessions between Monday and Thursday, have attended for at least three weeks, and be settled and ready in their key worker's judgement. Families interested in that part of the week therefore need to consider the attendance commitment alongside the activity itself.

Relationships and Communication

Each child and family has a key worker who helps with settling and serves as the main contact for questions or concerns. Regular feedback and conversations at the end of sessions make that relationship practical. Before starting, families are invited to free Tuesday-morning Stay & Play sessions during the preceding term, allowing familiarity to develop before the child's usual attendance begins.

Termly meetings with the key worker and individual next steps are included for funded and privately paid attendance. The additional Education, Health and Wellbeing package includes written progress summaries each term, a keepsake learning journey and books and story sacks to borrow. That distinction matters: routine discussion of development and the additional take-home record are separate parts of the offer.

Early Help supports discussion of concerns about a child or difficulties at home, through preschool assistance and outside organisations. A counsellor supports staff and families; staff also consult a child psychologist about individual children's needs.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

SEND provision includes a dedicated space for additional teaching and sensory activities. Where a SEND Support Plan is needed, targets are developed with parents and the plan is reviewed each half term. Links include Autism Beds and professionals such as speech and language therapists, giving families a route from an initial concern to more specialist involvement.

The 5 to Thrive ethos supports emotional regulation through calm adult responses, helping children name feelings and using breathing and mindfulness activities. Puppets and stories provide ways to explore situations, while group discussions allow children to share experiences. The emphasis is on helping a child understand an emotion and practise managing it.

At the April 2023 inspection, Ofsted found that staff responded promptly to emerging SEND concerns, adjusted support with parents and professionals, and offered families tailored help with learning at home. Current arrangements also include a safeguarding lead and deputies, weekly safeguarding-team meetings and paediatric first aid training for staff.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Clophill Village Hall, Kiln Lane, Clophill, MK45 4DA. Opening hours are 9am to 3pm on weekdays during term time, and the all-day session runs from 9am to 3pm. Lunch club runs from noon to 1pm: it is included in the all-day session, but a separately booked lunch-club hour cannot be paid for using funded hours.

Joining begins with an online registration form and an administration charge to enter the waiting list; paying that charge does not guarantee an offer. Offers are made through the list when a space in the child's age group can be offered, and a placement charge secures an accepted offer for the relevant term. Withdrawal requires four weeks' written notice, with fees non-refundable.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare and privately paid hours are both offered. The accepted entitlements are 15 hours for working parents of two-year-olds, 15 hours for two-year-olds in families receiving government support, universal 15-hour funding for three- and four-year-olds, and extended 15-hour funding for three- and four-year-olds. Two-year-old funding is accepted from the term after the child's second birthday; funding for children aged nine months to two years is not accepted.

Funding operates within the term-time attendance model. Parents are responsible for applying for working-parent funding and keeping their codes valid. The additional Education, Health and Wellbeing package is charged separately for funded hours and included in the fee for non-funded hours; families choosing to opt out provide their own consumables and forego the keepsake learning journey.

Breakfast, snacks, milk and water form part of that package, so their cost is included for privately paid hours and sits within the separate package charge for funded hours. Wipes, nappy sacks and sun cream are supplied through the package, while families opting out bring their own food, drinks and consumables, including nappies and a wet bag.

Current prices come in the preschool's written quotation. The fees policy sets out payment and notice terms, while the curriculum explains the nature and everyday-life emphasis.

• A term-time timetable. The day ends at 3pm and attendance follows term time. Families needing care beyond that window will need arrangements that work alongside it.
• Adventure Fridays require a broader commitment. Eligibility depends on at least five Monday-to-Thursday sessions, three weeks of attendance and readiness assessed by the key worker. At a visit, ask how that readiness decision works for your child.
• Funded hours and the additional package are separate. The package is separately charged on funded attendance, with a parent-provided alternative when opting out. Compare a written quotation for your intended pattern, including the lunch-club position.
• Settling and additional support. Tuesday Stay & Play sessions precede starting, and SEND plans have half-termly reviews. Use a termly open day to discuss how settling and any individual support would work together.

Clophill suits families seeking nature-based preschool education during term time, whether using all-day sessions or separate lunch-club attendance. All-day attendance runs from 9am to 3pm; separate lunch-club attendance covers noon to 1pm. Animal care, the allotment, weekly dance and yoga give its curriculum concrete expression. The April 2023 Outstanding judgement adds weight, alongside the key worker relationship and specific SEND mechanisms. Families need to match the timetable and package charges to their intended attendance.