Springfield Bees Preschool

A persona doll called Freddie, a sheltered field for outdoor play and language sessions built around stories give Springfield Bees Preschool a recognisable character. This is a preschool where talking, imaginative play and learning to manage feelings sit alongside practical independence. Its home is Perryfields Community Hall in Springfield, Chelmsford, within the grounds of Perryfields Infant & Junior schools.

At its January 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated the preschool Outstanding, highlighting ambitious learning, attentive interactions and rapid progress. The children attending then were aged two to four; the setting has capacity for 56 children in total. That whole-setting figure is separate from the organisation of its two rooms, Honeys and Bumbles.

Morning, afternoon and combined full-day attendance are offered during term time. The appeal goes beyond the timetable: outdoor space, a clear system for sharing children's development and specific language and emotional support give families several concrete reasons to consider it.

Rooms and Ages

Honeys serves two- to three-year-olds, with changing play opportunities and an emphasis on familiar relationships, while pretending to be other people supports conversation and social understanding. Bumbles caters for older children, combining adaptable role play with a dedicated block play area and opportunities to explore early number and writing through play. A space station can become a dinosaur swamp. Children's interests help shape the setting around them.

Across the two large rooms, children can choose from water, sand, painting and messy play, with a cosy place for books alongside role play resources. Independent access matters: children can select materials and pursue an idea rather than wait for an adult to organise every activity. The rooms support different stages, but both make exploration a practical part of the day.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the required framework for learning and care: here, children build knowledge and skills through play, conversation, problem-solving and supported activities. Springfield Bees adds small-group cooking and STEM, meaning science, technology, engineering and maths, to those everyday experiences. These enrichment activities are free of charge. They give children opportunities to investigate materials and try practical tasks together.

By May 2026, Bumbles had begun Early Talk Boost, using a weekly story and activities centred on language to support understanding and communication. This is a concrete addition for families interested in how staff help children develop their speech. Sharing and discussing stories at home extends the same activity beyond the room.

Recent topics show how learning connects different experiences. In June 2026, space activities included shaping clay planets, exploring water with pipettes and constructing rockets from magnetic and wooden blocks. Children could investigate balance and height through building, then explore the same topic through books and sensory materials. The subject gave several ways into learning rather than one task for everyone.

In January 2024, children's hospital game prompted staff to adapt the role play resources, and children used writing materials to make prescriptions. Water investigations encouraged predictions about floating and sinking, with children discussing their ideas together. In these January 2024 activities, staff developed children's ideas into opportunities to practise language, writing and reasoning.

Outdoor and Community Life

Outdoor provision reaches beyond the hall. Children use Perryfields Infant School Playground and the Boswell’s School Field, where a purpose-built shelter allows outdoor learning in changeable weather. A November 2025 update also described Bumbles using the infant school's EYFS playground and children using Perryfields Junior school's covered playground on wet days. These spaces give outdoor activity a practical place in the preschool routine.

The November 2025 account described outdoor play in every session. Families therefore need to treat suitable clothing as everyday equipment, with coats and wellies for colder weather and sun hats for summer. All-in-one wetsuits are supplied, while parents provide the other outdoor clothing.

Community visitors bring topics to life. In July 2026, the Fire Service showed children a fire engine and explained the breadth of firefighters' work. A January 2026 update recorded the Rooting Award through Nourishing Our Future, a project concerned with healthier lifestyles for children and families. By May, participation with ARU and guidance from nutritionists included a donated blender used for children's smoothie-making. The project connects discussion about food with something children can prepare and taste.

Relationships and Communication

Each child has a key person, giving families a familiar practitioner with whom to discuss development and concerns. Free settling sessions are normally two visits of an hour each, allowing children to get to know their Key Worker while parents discuss individual needs. Familiarity is built before the usual attendance routine begins.

Tapestry is the online learning journal used to share children's experiences and development between home and preschool. Parents can contribute their own observations, so staff can connect what happens in the setting with a child's life elsewhere. Termly reports and updated next steps provide a more structured account of progress; the preschool also takes part in Integrated 2-Year Reviews with health visitors.

Freddie, the persona doll, helps children discuss feelings and understand other people's needs. In January 2026, Bumbles used his stories to explore choices, mistakes and asking for help. Yoga and relaxation activities sit alongside small-group conversations. Emotional support therefore includes resources and activities children can engage with, rather than relying only on adult instructions about behaviour.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the January 2024 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and identified rapid progress for children, including those with SEND, supported by carefully adapted learning and skilful staff interactions. Current support arrangements include a SENCO role, visual aids and provision plans reviewed with parents and the key person. Speech and language therapists and other specialists can contribute when further support is needed.

The building is wheelchair accessible, with accessible changing and toilet facilities. These are useful practical details for families whose child's needs affect movement or personal care. Additional funding can also be used to adapt the environment and improve participation in activities.

Sleep is a significant consideration here: the preschool cannot accommodate sleeping children and contacts parents to collect a child who falls asleep. For a child who still needs a daytime nap, this has a direct bearing on whether a morning, afternoon or combined day will work.

Children moving from Honeys to Bumbles had visits during the summer term of 2026 before changing rooms, with their next Keyworker confirmed before September. School preparation includes practising dressing for PE and building early literacy and number skills. Staff exchange information with other settings and liaise with schools, including arranging visits and encouraging teachers to meet children at the preschool.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Perryfields Community Hall, Lawn Lane, Springfield, Chelmsford, Essex CM1 7PP. Opening hours are 9am to 3pm, Monday to Friday, and the preschool operates for 38 weeks during term time. Mornings run from 9am to noon and afternoons from noon to 3pm; a full day joins the two sessions from 9am to 3pm. Children can attend any pattern across these options.

Paid sessions are invoiced termly in advance, and reserved sessions are not refunded when children miss them through illness or holidays. At least one month's notice is required to reduce hours or withdraw, with withdrawal notice given in writing. These terms matter when work patterns or family arrangements change.

The preschool's telephone number is 01245 264110. Its waiting-list rule is clear: joining the list does not guarantee a place. Once an offer is made, parents must confirm acceptance within a week; a non-refundable registration charge then applies, except to children receiving FEEE only.

Funding and Paid Extras

Qualifying two-, three- and four-year-olds can use the 15 hours free entitlement known as FEEE, or up to 30 hours extended entitlement. Attendance follows the preschool's term-time model. Additional private sessions are also offered, with current prices obtained in a written quotation.

Children staying for a full day bring a packed lunch; snacks are supplied in each session with a separate voluntary contribution requested, including for funded attendance. The preschool has a nut-free policy, while its terms explain that cross-contamination cannot be excluded and individual allergy risks are assessed.

Parents supply nappies, wipes and nappy sacks when needed, and apply sun lotion before attendance because it cannot be applied at the setting. These responsibilities apply alongside the funded or paid session arrangements. Families need to plan the child's bag and outdoor preparation as well as the timetable.

Getting There

Families cannot use the onsite car park, including during morning and afternoon collections. That restriction matters for anyone organising attendance by car.

The preschool occupies school grounds, but attending does not guarantee a Reception place. Families still apply through the local authority's school admissions process. Transition activities and contact with teachers help children prepare; they do not confer an admissions advantage.

• Daytime sleep. Sleeping children must be collected because the preschool cannot accommodate naps. A child who still needs a daytime nap may find the session difficult to fit around their usual routine.
• Term-time hours. Morning, afternoon and combined days end by 3pm, and attendance runs for 38 weeks. Families needing care beyond these hours or during school holidays will need additional arrangements.
• Allergies and lunch. Full-day children bring lunch, and the nut-free policy sits alongside a warning that cross-contamination cannot be ruled out. Confirm current food-handling practice and your child's individual arrangements before starting.
• Settling and support. The usual introduction consists of two free hour-long sessions with the Key Worker. During a visit, discuss how those sessions and any provision plan would be adapted to your child.

Springfield Bees suits families seeking morning or afternoon preschool sessions, as well as those combining both into a term-time day. The January 2024 Outstanding judgement carries weight, while Freddie, Early Talk Boost and the sheltered outdoor space give the offer substance beyond its grade.

The practical boundaries are equally clear. A 3pm finish and collection of sleeping children make the fit dependent on family routines and the child's stage. For children ready for this sessional pattern, the combination of imaginative play, language activities and specific support mechanisms makes a persuasive case.