Blues Preschool & Nursery

A large outdoor play area, a parent-and-child introduction through Stay & Play, and a personal learning journal give Blues Preschool & Nursery a clear character. This charitable preschool at Cox's Gardens in Bishop's Stortford takes children aged 2 to 5, with play, relationships and growing independence shaping its offer.

At its 27 January 2025 inspection, Ofsted rated Blues Good overall and judged safeguarding effective. The practical strengths are concrete: a key person for each child, Tapestry for sharing learning with families, and a choice of morning, afternoon or full-day attendance during term time. Breakfast and afterschool care can extend the day.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the framework for learning through play, covering language, physical development, relationships, early literacy and maths, creativity and understanding the world. It is the common foundation for early-years education. At Blues, the useful detail is how adults connect activities with a child's interests and what they are ready to learn next.

In January 2025, staff used photographs supplied by families to build activities around experiences children already recognised. Home life therefore contributed to learning, rather than sitting separately from it. Children also persisted with practical challenges, including repairing a book with tape. That is a small but telling example of a day that gives children things to solve for themselves.

Role play supplied opportunities for conversation. In January 2025, children caring for dolls as medical professionals encountered new vocabulary, while x-ray pictures prompted discussion about the body. Staff joined children's play and helped with pronunciation. Group stories gave another opportunity to revisit words and ideas, alongside time for children to choose their own activities.

Outdoor and Community Life

The preschool has a bright indoor environment and a large, secure outdoor area used for learning and play. That physical space matters: children have somewhere to move and explore beyond indoor activities. In January 2025, puddle play and yoga featured in the day, giving children different ways to use their bodies.

Stay & Play is a separate, accompanied introduction for children from birth to nursery age. Every Thursday in term time, from 1pm to 2.30pm, parents or carers remain with their children while they explore activities such as construction, pretend domestic play, painting and modelling with reclaimed materials. Garden play is included when weather allows. It offers familiarity with the setting before a child joins independently; it does not change the main preschool's accepted age range.

Relationships and Communication

Each child has an assigned key person who helps them settle, gets to know their family and follows their development through play and observation. Parents can review their child's learning records at arranged meetings, and those records can accompany the child to their next setting with parental agreement. This gives families continuity both during preschool and when moving on.

Tapestry, the online learning journal, adds photographs, videos and written observations to that relationship. Parents receive email alerts when an observation is added and can respond with comments of their own. It gives families something specific to discuss with staff, rather than relying solely on a brief conversation about how the session went.

In January 2025, settling sessions were adjusted to individual children, and staff encouraged children to talk about their feelings. Matching coloured objects together supplied practice in cooperation and turn-taking. Children also served their own snacks and cleared their plates and cups afterwards, putting independence into everyday routines.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

A designated Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENCo) provides a point of contact for additional needs. At the January 2025 inspection, Ofsted found that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities were supported well through work with outside professionals, use of the sensory room and additional funding, including musical storytelling activities. These are practical mechanisms for tailoring support, rather than a general promise about inclusion.

Staff undertake professional development that includes food hygiene, paediatric first aid and child protection awareness. The charity's trustees meet the management team regularly to oversee decisions and spending, and a parent-liaison role provides another route for concerns that a family feels unable to raise with staff.

Sessions and Attendance

Blues operates during term time, with school holidays outside its attendance calendar. Morning sessions run from 8.50am to 11.50am; afternoons run from 11.50am to 2.50pm. A full-day session runs from 8.50am to 2.50pm. Flexible hours are also offered, allowing families to combine attendance patterns rather than treating a full day as the only option.

Breakfast Club runs from 8am to 8.50am, and Afterschool Club runs from 2.50pm to 4pm. These are separately paid extensions to preschool sessions. Admissions enquiries and requests to add wraparound care go to admissions@bluespreschool.co.uk.

The address is Cox's Gardens, Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire, CM23 3GX. Uniform is optional, so families can use ordinary clothes for preschool activities.

Funding and Paid Extras

Blues accepts universal funding for 15 hours, Supported Families funding for eligible two-year-olds, and Additional Entitlement funding. Universal funding starts in the term after a child's third birthday, and families do not have to use their whole entitlement. Paid additional hours are also offered, and Tax-Free Childcare is accepted.

The funding and prices page describes Additional Entitlement as 30 hours but limits its delivery at Blues to 28 hours because of Thursday Stay & Play. Eligible families must make their funding application before registering their child for enrolment. Government funding cannot be used for the breakfast or afterschool clubs; childcare vouchers and Tax-Free Childcare can be used for them.

Preschool snacks attract a voluntary charge, invoiced half-termly, with children receiving Early Years Pupil Premium funding exempt. Breakfast Club provides breakfast and Afterschool Club provides a light tea; current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

The Amazon Wish List invites donations towards resources and day-to-day supplies, including craft materials and toileting essentials. That fundraising sits alongside the charity's educational work and gives families a practical way to contribute.

• Outdoor time and the daily routine. In January 2025, children had too little time outside before lunch, and the organisation of the day restricted participation in some activities. At a visit, ask how outdoor play now fits around meals and group sessions.
• Learning beyond familiar experiences. January 2025 improvement priorities included giving children broader experience of cultures and communities. Ask for recent examples of how this is built into the day, beyond occasional food tasting.
• Thursday attendance and funded hours. Additional Entitlement delivery is capped at 28 hours because of Stay & Play. Families planning to use this entitlement should establish how their proposed weekly pattern fits Thursday's arrangements.

Blues suits families seeking term-time preschool through morning or afternoon sessions, as well as those combining full days with breakfast or afterschool care. Its strongest practical combination is personal contact through a key person, learning shared through Tapestry, and an accompanied introduction through Stay & Play.

The January 2025 priorities give families two useful points to weigh: the balance of the daily routine and opportunities to encounter lives beyond children's own experience. Those questions deserve attention alongside the outdoor space and the clear choice of attendance patterns.