Pippin Pre-School

A weekly book to take home, small-group language work and play that moves between indoors and outdoors give Pippin Pre-School a recognisable character. This Stotfold setting combines preschool education with a close connection to family life: children borrow from Pippin Library, while parents follow their learning through an online journal. Its purpose-built building sits on the same site as Roecroft Lower School, although the organisations are separate.

Pippin has 60 places in total, with the current age range running from 25 to 59 months. At its June 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated it Good and found safeguarding effective. The important qualifications were about teaching precision and independence: activities sometimes carried too many learning aims, and older children needed more opportunities to tackle everyday tasks themselves.

Term-time mornings, afternoons and full preschool days sit alongside wraparound and holiday care.

Rooms and Ages

Children join age-based groups: Littlestars for ages two to three and Superstars for ages three to four, with activities matched to their stage. Littlestars wear black T-shirts; Superstars wear yellow ones. These are groups within the preschool, so the whole-setting capacity should not be read as the size of either group.

Superstar children use the first floor, exploring a country's food, language, beliefs and culture each month. Free-flow indoor and outdoor access lets children choose where to play.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS shapes the day through play-based learning, initially emphasising communication, physical development and children's social and emotional skills. Monthly topics respond to children's interests and bring in number work, literacy, creative expression and understanding the world. This is the shared early-years framework; Pippin's additional programmes give its delivery more individual character.

Lift Off To Language develops speech and vocabulary over six weeks in groups of six to eight children. Listening, turn-taking and sharing activities give children structured conversation practice.

Pippin Library links preschool and family reading through weekly book borrowing. PANCo addresses physical and nutritional development, with regular movement, yoga and action songs.

Sessions finish with shared stories and action rhymes. In June 2023, children also practised letter sounds using marbles in trays shaped like letters, and staff demonstrated scissor handling before children attempted cutting. These examples connect early literacy and practical skills with objects children can manipulate.

Outdoor and Community Life

In June 2023, outdoor experiences included ride-on play, sand digging and sending water through pipes. Children tended garden plants and watched a butterfly emerge from its chrysalis. There was also collaborative construction, with children working together on a ladder for outdoor equipment. Physical activity, investigating materials and observing living things all featured in that inspection-time account.

Relationships and Communication

Each child has a keyworker who observes and records their development, while other practitioners also provide everyday care. Tapestry, the online learning journal, gives parents access to observations, photographs and updates. Three consultations during the year, held termly, provide a separate opportunity to discuss progress with the keyworker; appointments are booked through the parent portal.

Children can use comfort objects. In June 2023, familiar routines and imaginative superhero games featured in their day.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

SEND support starts with a discussion involving parents, the key person and the SENDCO when development raises concerns. A SEND Support Plan sets out shorter and longer objectives, with reviews every six to eight weeks. Parents and relevant outside professionals can take part, keeping the support connected to both home and preschool life.

Practical support includes visual aids for routines and small-group communication work. Advice can be sought through the Central Bedfordshire Early Years Allocation Meeting, and Pippin can apply for funding for an additional practitioner where necessary. Medical needs are addressed through an individual care plan developed with parents and health professionals.

Step-free access, accessible toilets and a lift between floors support physical access. The manager and assistant manager are designated safeguarding leads.

Independence deserves attention alongside care. In June 2023, children chose snacks and poured drinks, but older children were not consistently encouraged to manage simple tasks such as opening lunch packaging or putting on an apron. The improvement request was to give them more chances to do these things themselves.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Buttercup Road, Stotfold, Hitchin, SG5 4PF. Preschool operates Monday to Friday during term time, excluding bank holidays: mornings run from 9am to noon, afternoons from 12.45pm to 3.15pm, and a full preschool day from 9am to 3.15pm. Lunch Club runs between noon and 12.45pm and is restricted to children attending the full day.

Breakfast Club offers preschool children a 7.30am or 8.15am start, ending at 9am. After School Club has collection options of 4.30pm, 5pm or 6pm from Monday to Thursday; Friday collections are at 4.30pm, 5pm or 5.30pm. That earlier Friday finish matters when arranging a regular working week.

Holiday Club takes children aged two to nine (up to the end of year 4) on its scheduled school-holiday dates, offering an 8am to 5pm day or a shorter 9am to 3pm day. It covers the half-term holidays, one Easter week and the first four summer weeks, with Christmas dates arranged separately, and closes on school inset days. Registration details must be completed before booking, bookings close once the club opens, and cancellations are non-refundable.

September intake registration begins at 12 months through info@pippinpreschool.co.uk and the parent portal. Allocation prioritises catchment three-year-olds, then catchment children with a sibling at Pippin.

Funding and Paid Extras

Pippin accepts funded childcare for two-, three- and four-year-olds. Its funding arrangements include 15 weekly hours during term time and 30 hours of Nursery Education Funding for eligible children receiving three-year-old funding; the two-year-old routes include working-family codes and benefits-based support. Funded hours can be used across the day, including breakfast and after-school care, subject to the family's arrangements.

A parent declaration is required each term, and eligibility codes need renewal when instructed. Additional sessions beyond agreed funded hours are charged. Current prices should come in Pippin's written quotation; the session fees page explains the attendance structure.

Parents provide packed lunches and drinks for Lunch Club, while preschool supplies snacks of fruit, vegetables and crackers or breadsticks, with milk and water during sessions. Holiday Club also requires a packed lunch, under its no-nut-products rule, and provides breakfast and snacks.

A non-refundable registration charge applies when the form is submitted, waived for children receiving two-year-old funding at registration on presentation of their eligibility letter. Annual continuation charges also apply to preschool and wraparound care. Cancelling sessions requires four weeks' notice, otherwise session charges apply; booked sessions that are missed remain chargeable.

Pippin liaises with Roecroft Lower School during the year to support transition. Sharing its site does not guarantee a Reception place: families still use the local authority admissions process.

• Teaching and independence. The June 2023 improvement points concerned clearer learning intentions and more everyday self-help. At a visit, ask staff to explain an activity's purpose and how children practise managing their own belongings and lunch packaging.
• September entry. Registration starts from 12 months, but preschool has an annual September intake and ordered allocation criteria. Accepted registrations lead to Open Mornings in October, May and July; use these to discuss how the initial sessions will work for your child.
• Holiday care and sleep. Holiday Club cannot accommodate daytime naps and closes on school inset days. Its shorter and longer days therefore need to fit your child's stamina as well as your calendar; allergy-affected families should also confirm the current lunch arrangements.
• Written costs. Additional hours, annual continuation charges and the cancellation rules affect the overall commitment. Request an itemised quotation covering your chosen sessions, funded hours, snacks and non-food consumables before agreeing a pattern.

Pippin suits families seeking either shorter morning or afternoon preschool sessions, or a full preschool day with wraparound care. Weekly borrowing through Pippin Library, structured language work and detailed parent communication give it practical substance. Its SEND planning and accessible building also offer clear mechanisms to discuss when a child needs additional support.

The June 2023 Good judgement is useful context, with specific teaching and independence points that deserve attention. September entry, the different Friday collection times and Holiday Club's no-nap arrangement make the fit depend on a family's timetable and the child's stage, as much as on the learning offer.