Tarporley Pre-School

The Done Room gives Tarporley Pre-School a recognisable village setting: a listed building behind St. Helen’s Church, with a main classroom and substantial space for play indoors and outside. A voluntary parent committee runs the charity. That gives families a role in the organisation as well as in their own child’s learning.

At its May 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated the provision Outstanding, highlighting language development, imaginative play and the attention given to children’s feelings. The strongest current details connect home and pre-school: Donald the Pre-School Bear takes children’s adventures back into conversation, while WELLCOMM assesses speech and language and helps staff plan support.

Children attend from age two until school entrance, and there are 35 places in total. Morning and afternoon sessions can be supplemented with Breakfast Club and later care; Holiday Club extends the offer into school holidays.

Learning and Activities

Learning through play is the guiding approach. The Early Years Foundation Stage Framework gives that play its educational purpose, supporting children’s communication, physical development, relationships and wider learning. Here, home experiences also contribute to planning: staff use family observations to identify what a child can do and what to work on next.

Donald the Pre-School Bear, the setting’s mascot, can stay with a family overnight or accompany a holiday. Children and adults contribute pictures, drawings and accounts of their adventures to his book. Children revisit these memories together, and key carers draw on them when considering development. A familiar bear gives children something personal to talk about, rather than requiring them to start a conversation from scratch.

Home Learning Packs take this exchange further. Families try suggested activities and return observation sheets; staff connect these with learning and add them to the child’s Scrap book. The lending library offers another straightforward link: children borrow a book, share it at home and revisit the story during group time. Books to keep are also offered in the entrance hall.

In May 2022, children led imaginative games involving castles, handmade shields and knights. Adults helped them think through construction problems rather than supplying an immediate answer. Storytelling also involved children inventing plots and performing them, making language something they used to organise their own ideas.

Outdoor and Community Life

The Done Room combines its main classroom with large outdoor and indoor play areas. For families choosing a village pre-school, the physical setting provides space for both active play and classroom activities.

In May 2022, growing produce and turning fruit peel into compost connected food with the natural world. Children also explored life cycles through ducklings and caterpillars, and learned about community roles through police officers, doctors and farmers. Outdoor riding included thinking about speed on a slope. These examples brought science, physical judgement and everyday responsibilities into play rather than treating them as separate lessons.

Relationships and Communication

EYLOG is the online learning journey used to share observations and, potentially, daily diaries with families. Parents can contribute their own notes, giving practitioners information about a child beyond the session. Together with the Scrap book and Home Learning Packs, it creates several ways for families to contribute, rather than making communication solely an update from staff.

Home visits are offered when families want them. They can help adults establish consistent responses to behaviour and support children who need more help settling. Key carers are involved in this home-to-setting relationship, so information about a child can feed into both reassurance and planning.

In May 2022, staff gathered information before children started and used their interests to shape early activities. Children had time to explain experiences that had pleased or worried them, while those struggling to manage behaviour received individual reassurance and support. The practical emphasis was on understanding the child before deciding how to respond.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

WELLCOMM identifies where speech and language support is needed. Assessments are shared with parents, alongside activities matched to the child’s development; these include easier alternatives and further challenges. This gives families a concrete way to continue the work at home.

The team includes special educational needs co-ordinator and designated safeguarding lead roles, alongside practitioners with paediatric first aid training. At the May 2022 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and exceptional progress among children, including those with special educational needs or disabilities, with speech therapists contributing to language support. Those are dated judgements; the current support mechanisms are the co-ordinator roles, assessment tools and communication with families.

Sessions and Attendance

The opening window is 7.50am to 5.50pm. Morning Session runs from 8.50am to 11.50am, followed by Afternoon Session from 11.50am to 2.50pm. Breakfast Club, from 7.50am to 8.50am, can precede a session; Late collection extends attendance from 2.50pm to 3.50pm, and After School Club runs from 2.50pm to 5.50pm.

Attendance options cover 38 or 50 weeks, with Holiday Club operating during school holidays within normal pre-school hours. Bank holidays and two weeks at Christmas are closures. This makes the distinction between term-time attendance and care across the year important when choosing a pattern.

Getting There

The address is High Street, Tarporley, CW6 0AG, behind St. Helen’s Church. Enquiries can be made by telephone or email, and an application form is provided through the Downloads page.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare includes the 15-hour and 30-hour entitlements for children aged two to four, subject to the relevant eligibility conditions. Working-family entitlement codes must be validated by the pre-school and renewed by parents every three months. Additional sessions beyond a child’s funded entitlement are paid for privately.

Breakfast, snacks and tea carry separate charges, including alongside funded hours. Families supply suncream, nappy sacks, creams, wipes and nappies. Classroom visits, trips and celebrations are listed as additional voluntary services, keeping those extras separate from the funded educational offer.

Current prices come in the nursery’s written quotation; the fees page explains the charge structure. Fees are calculated across the year for monthly direct debit payments, due on the first of the month, and remain payable during sickness or holidays. The pre-school requests four weeks’ notice when leaving, except when a child is moving to primary school.

• Choosing extensions. Breakfast Club, Late collection and After School Club offer different additions to the core sessions. At a visit, discuss how the proposed combination will work for your child across the day.
• Home involvement. Donald’s book, Home Learning Packs and EYLOG invite family contributions. This will suit parents who enjoy sharing observations and continuing activities together at home.
• The whole bill. Meals and snacks are charged separately, while families bring personal care supplies. Request a written quotation for the intended attendance pattern, including its funded hours and chosen extras.
• Settling support. Home visits can support consistency between family life and pre-school. Discuss whether one would help your child and how the key carer will support their start.

Tarporley Pre-School suits families seeking morning or afternoon sessions, with breakfast and later care to extend them, as well as those using holiday provision. The Done Room supplies a memorable setting; Donald, the lending library and the learning journeys give home involvement a practical shape.

The Outstanding judgement dates to May 2022. Today’s decision rests on a clear combination of play-based education, specific language-support tools and flexible session additions, balanced against separate food charges and the contribution expected from families.