Happy Days Pre-School

A large hall keeps physical play going when wet weather interrupts outdoor plans. At Happy Days Pre-School, scooters, bikes and Little Tykes cars can move indoors, giving this charity-run Berkhamsted setting a practical answer to days when the garden cannot be used. Play shapes the day, with children helping determine how a flexible routine unfolds.

At its June 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated Happy Days Good, found safeguarding effective and described children as settled, enthusiastic learners with close relationships with staff. That is a dated judgement rather than a promise about every child's experience. The children attending at that visit were aged two to four.

Happy Days operates at Lagley Meadow Youth Centre, Douglas Gardens, and has capacity for 26 children. Morning, afternoon and all-day bookings run during term time, with lunch club offering a way to connect or extend the shorter sessions.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS provides the framework for children's learning, development and care: here, learning through play sits alongside observation of what each child can do and planning for their next steps. Each child has a keyworker who follows their progress and communicates with parents. The practical value is continuity between the activities children choose and the support staff plan for them.

Free play begins each session, allowing children time to settle before other activities. Singing and physical play happen in both sessions, while the routine leaves room for children's interests to influence the day. This is a useful distinction for parents: the structure exists, but it does not require every activity to follow a rigid timetable.

In June 2023, imaginative play included washing toy vehicles at a water tray using spray bottles, water and foam. Play dough offered another kind of hands-on activity, with children manipulating cutters and exploring colour and shape. These examples show how familiar materials can connect conversation, make-believe and the small hand movements used in later practical tasks.

Language deserves attention alongside those activities. In June 2023, staff introduced unfamiliar words in conversation, but the improvement priority was to give children more opportunities to hear and practise new vocabulary, especially younger children and those needing additional help. For families weighing support for communication, that is the most useful qualification to the Good judgement.

Outdoor and Community Life

Outdoor space is used whenever possible. The large hall provides an alternative for wheeled play when weather prevents outdoor activity, and parachute games add a shared physical activity indoors. Children therefore have more than one way to move during a session.

In June 2023, the garden included a bug hotel, where children examined insects with magnifying glasses and counted them. A mud kitchen supplied a different experience: combining natural materials and handling utensils during pretend play. These were concrete opportunities to investigate living things and experiment with materials, rather than outdoor time being solely a break between indoor activities.

Relationships and Communication

A keyworker is responsible for following each child's development and passing information to parents. The inclusion arrangements also provide for daily feedback, conversations in person or by telephone, and discussion of learning journeys. This gives parents several ways to follow progress beyond hearing whether their child enjoyed the session.

In June 2023, children starting at Happy Days made a personal name tag using a drawing they liked. It was a small, individual way to connect their own interests with the setting. Staff also used observations of children's existing knowledge and skills when deciding what to introduce next.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

Support begins with observation and a confidential discussion with parents when concerns arise. Outside advice can involve a speech and language therapist, health visitor or educational psychologist, with parental consent obtained before referrals. The SENCO coordinates support and access to relevant staff training where possible; photographic visual timetables in the main hall provide another practical tool for understanding the routine.

The building has step-free arrangements, ramps at external doors and a wheelchair-accessible toilet; the garden is on one level. Movable equipment can be repositioned to improve access. Those physical details matter when considering how a child will take part in the same activities as their peers.

Food is straightforward: children bring a packed lunch for lunch club, while snacks are offered during morning and afternoon sessions and a snack donation is requested. The lunch arrangements include a no-nuts policy, which families managing allergies should discuss in detail before joining.

For children also receiving care elsewhere, Happy Days aims to work with the other setting by sharing their learning journey. For the move to nursery school, Happy Days invites the child's teacher to meet them and discuss development with their keyworker. The emphasis is on passing on knowledge of the child.

Sessions and Attendance

Morning sessions run from 9am to 11.30am, Monday to Friday. Afternoon sessions are 12.30pm to 2.45pm, Monday to Thursday, while all-day sessions run from 9am to 2.45pm on those same days. Friday has a morning session and lunch club, with no afternoon session.

Lunch club runs from 11.30am to 12.30pm and can be added to either shorter session. This makes the choice more flexible than a simple morning-or-all-day arrangement: families can extend a morning through lunch or begin an afternoon booking with lunch. Attendance is term time only, so the pattern needs to fit around school holidays.

Getting There

The address is Lagley Meadow Youth Centre, Douglas Gardens, Berkhamsted, HP4 3PE. Enquiries can be made through the contact form, by telephone on 07592 730556 or by email at happydaysberkhamsted@gmail.com.

Funding and Paid Extras

Happy Days accepts 15 and 30 hours funding for three- and four-year-olds, as well as funding for two-year-olds. The term-time attendance pattern applies, and eligibility remains a separate question from the setting accepting funding.

Paid bookings include the shorter sessions, lunch club and an all-day option. Packed lunches come from home; snacks have a separate donation arrangement. A registration charge includes a Happy Days T-shirt. Families should obtain a current written quotation covering their chosen attendance pattern and funding through the fees page.

• Friday and holiday cover. Afternoon sessions run only Monday to Thursday, and attendance is term time only. Families needing Friday afternoons or holiday childcare will need a different arrangement for those periods.
• Language support. In June 2023, extending vocabulary was the improvement priority, especially for younger children and those needing extra help. Ask how staff now give those children opportunities to practise unfamiliar words.
• Lunch and allergies. Lunch club uses food brought from home, and the lunch policy excludes nuts. Families managing allergies should confirm current snack and packed-lunch procedures.
• Settling with a keyworker. Each child has an allocated keyworker, and support includes communication with parents. A visit is the time to discuss how that relationship and the settling plan would work for your child.

Happy Days suits families seeking term-time morning or afternoon sessions, as well as those wanting an all-day booking Monday to Thursday. Lunch club adds a useful middle option. Its large hall, physical play in each session and child-led routine give the day a clear practical character.

The June 2023 Good judgement provides a positive inspection position, with vocabulary development the specific area to examine more closely. For parents comfortable with the shorter Friday and school-holiday breaks, the combination of play, keyworker communication and flexible session choices makes Happy Days a purposeful option.