Collingwood Under Fives Pre-school

A converted classroom, a garden and a bear who travels home with the children give Collingwood Under Fives Pre-school its character. Based within Collingwood Primary School in South Woodham Ferrers, this is a pre-school where family experiences enrich learning: Collin Bear joins children's activities at home, then his book becomes something to share together. The connection is practical and personal.

At its September 2025 inspection, Ofsted rated the provision Good and found safeguarding effective. The strongest everyday examples were conversational teaching, children cooperating in play and growing independence; the improvement point concerned making routine moments, including meals, more useful for learning. That is a meaningful distinction: the activities worked well, but the educational purpose needed to extend more consistently across the day.

Collingwood accepts children aged two and a half to five and has 21 places in total. Morning and afternoon sessions can be extended through Lunch Club or combined into a full day. Its school-site setting and parent involvement will appeal to families seeking a close connection between home, pre-school and preparation for the next stage.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the shared early-years framework: children develop language, movement, relationships and early understanding through play, with adults planning activities and reviewing their progress. Collingwood's approach combines activities children direct themselves with those guided by practitioners. The balance changes as children develop, with more adult-led learning introduced to prepare them for Reception.

Learning Through Play means doing and talking, rather than simply completing an activity. Children can choose how to use resources, while adults help extend their ideas. Practitioners use observations to plan learning, and families contribute what their children enjoy or achieve at home. This gives practitioners another perspective on a child's interests rather than treating learning in pre-school as a separate story.

In September 2025, children discussed how sand looked after being tipped from dinosaur moulds, while dressing up and the home corner supported exploration of familiar roles. Visits involving a fire engine and a dentist extended learning about people who help others. These were concrete connections between pretend play and the wider world, rather than topics confined to conversation.

Collin Bear adds a named home-learning link. Children take him home for a short stay; families can contribute photographs to Tapestry, the online learning journal, and record his experiences in his book for sharing at circle time. A familiar object gives children something personal to talk about and gives parents a straightforward way to contribute to group learning.

Outdoor and Community Life

The garden provides space for active play alongside the converted classroom. In September 2025, children used the see-saw together, negotiated movement with one another and practised climbing and running. Brushes and water also became tools for making shapes on the ground. Together, these outdoor activities provided opportunities for physical movement, cooperation and early mathematical language.

In September 2025, staff encouraged persistence as children practised cutting paper shapes with scissors. This combined hand control with learning to try again.

Relationships and Communication

An induction introduces families to their child's key person, and home visits are offered to new families. Parents share strengths, concerns, medical, dietary and toileting information. Staff and parents agree an individual settling strategy, so care starts with knowledge of the child.

Tapestry supports the continuing exchange. Families are encouraged to complete an About Me page before starting, can view it and add comments, and receive curriculum information through the journal and email. This creates opportunities to connect what happens at home with activities in pre-school. It also gives parents something specific to discuss with their child or key person.

Parents elect the management committee at the Annual General Meeting; it meets each half term. Families can help during sessions, share interests or contribute to fundraising, giving them a role in learning and management.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

One Plan is Collingwood's personalised support-planning process for children with special educational needs or disabilities. Parents contribute to assessment and planning, agreed outcomes are shared, and progress is reviewed with them. The SENCO works with the key person and, with parental permission, other professionals, including ECC Inclusion Partners. Activities and resources can be adapted, with targeted support included in the daily rota.

At its September 2025 inspection, Ofsted found that additional funding, cooperation with families and professionals, and individual support plans helped children with SEND make good progress. The current support arrangements make the process tangible: families have meetings, planned outcomes and opportunities to revisit what is working. Collingwood has also achieved the Good Beginnings: Early Years Autism-friendly Setting Award Level 2 (Silver), alongside continuing staff training.

Staff roles cover safeguarding, SEND and behaviour support. The September 2025 team included early-years-qualified practitioners and a qualified teacher.

Golden Rules and Golden Words form part of teaching considerate behaviour, alongside adults helping children name feelings and understand how their actions affect others. Staff use stories, drama and their own example to support social skills, and work with parents on recurring difficulties. The emphasis is on helping children understand and respond, including encouraging an apology when the child means it.

Sessions and Attendance

Morning sessions run from 8.30am to 11.30am, Monday to Friday; afternoons run from 12.30pm to 3.30pm. Lunch Club occupies the gap, from 11.30am to 12.30pm each day, allowing an extended morning, an extended afternoon or a full day from 8.30am to 3.30pm. This gives families a choice between a shorter session and attendance spanning both parts of the day.

Attendance is term-time. Full days need to fit the child as well as the family timetable: sleep facilities are limited, and Collingwood cautions that this arrangement may be unsuitable over the longer term for younger children or those who need an afternoon nap. Lunch Club includes time for eating followed by play or rest before the afternoon begins.

Getting There

The address is Collingwood Road, South Woodham Ferrers, Chelmsford, CM3 5YJ, within Collingwood Primary School. A ramp provides access to the pre-school; the SEND arrangements also describe a tactile surface at the entrance and accessible toilets in the main school building.

Families can contact the pre-school by telephone or email, and there is a waiting-list registration form. Being based within Collingwood Primary School does not guarantee a Reception place: families still need to apply through the local authority admissions process. For children moving on, information is shared with parental permission and meetings can be arranged to support the transition.

Funding and Paid Extras

Collingwood offers the Funded Early Education Entitlement for two-, three- and four-year-olds. Parents complete a Parent Agreement Form so the pre-school can access funding from Essex County Council; fees apply where funding is not received. Private fees are payable in advance each half term, and short absences without notice remain chargeable. Current prices come in the pre-school's written quotation.

Lunch Club is charged separately and parents supply a healthy packed lunch; drinking water or milk is provided, while a voluntary per-session contribution supports snacks and non-dairy milk. The packed-lunch policy asks families to exclude products containing nuts because some children have serious allergies, so allergy-affected families should discuss current practice before attendance.

• Naps and full days. Limited sleep facilities are a stated constraint, especially for younger children who still nap. Discuss how an extended session or full day would work for your child's rest needs.
• Learning during routines. September 2025 brought an improvement point about using meals and other routine moments more effectively for learning. On a visit, ask how these parts of the day have been planned since then.
• Support tailored to your child. One Plan meetings and access to ECC Inclusion Partners provide a defined route for additional support. Ask how your child's priorities would shape the initial plan and its reviews.
• School-site expectations. The classroom sits within Collingwood Primary School, but pre-school attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Treat the childcare choice and the school application as separate decisions.

Collingwood suits families seeking morning or afternoon sessions, with Lunch Club extending attendance or enabling full days where children's rest needs fit the facilities. Collin Bear and parent participation connect home with pre-school.

The September 2025 findings support its conversational teaching and cooperative play, while routine-time learning needed attention. Personalised settling and One Plan provide practical routes for families weighing additional support within a play-based, term-time setting.