Willerby & Kirk Ella Pre School

Number detectives, bicycle balancing and a giraffe mascot characterised the playful, purposeful learning observed at Willerby & Kirk Ella Pre School in January 2024. Its base is St Andrews Memorial Hall in Kirk Ella, Hull, and it has capacity for 65 children in total. The emphasis is on children taking part, finding their voice and learning through experiences they can understand.

At its January 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated the preschool Outstanding, judged safeguarding effective and found excellent progress, including for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Children attending at that time were aged two to four. Those findings give families a strong dated assessment of both education and care, rather than simply a description of activities.

Attendance follows the school-term rhythm, with a shorter morning or a longer morning that includes time for a packed lunch. That practical choice matters: families can choose whether lunch forms part of their child's preschool routine.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage Framework shapes learning through play and attention to children's development. In parent language, activities are opportunities to practise communication, movement, relationships and early mathematical understanding, rather than just occupy the morning.

In January 2024, staff adapted a number activity into a memory challenge when children wanted to play detectives. Mathematics also appeared in construction, colour sorting and sand play: children explored quantities and dimensions through handling materials. These examples show how an adult can extend a child's interest while keeping the activity recognisable as play.

Imagination had a similar purpose. During January 2024, superhero and dinosaur games introduced unfamiliar words and encouraged children to explain their ideas. Expressive storytelling and acted-out baking helped hold their attention. The practical implication is learning that gives children something to do, say and remember.

More recent topics retain that hands-on character. During spring 2026, children explored plant growth, farm animals and life cycles, while phonics activities connected letter sounds with objects and letter formation. Summer 2026 brought themed exploration of countries through food, languages, dancing and music, together with pretend air travel from a Preschool airport. These were imaginative experiences within the preschool, rather than overseas trips.

World Book Day extends across a week here. Books, costumes and acted-out stories create repeated opportunities for new vocabulary, sequencing and shared play. The dressing-up element is part of the celebration, so it is useful for families to know that books become a sustained topic rather than a single day's activity.

Outdoor and Community Life

An outdoor area and garden add a physical setting for learning. In spring 2026, activities moved outside each day of the term and children planted bulbs. That brings growing and seasonal change into something children can follow directly.

In January 2024, bicycles and scooters gave children practice in balancing, controlling speed and working around obstacles. Adults connected movement with ideas about distance and stopping. Recycling and growing flowers and vegetables also introduced questions about the environment and living things.

People Who Help Us brings working adults into children's learning. In June 2025, visitors introduced their occupations; the summer 2026 activities included police, a nurse and firefighters, with a police car and fire engine. Familiar emergency services become people children can meet and ask about.

The West Hull Villages Scarecrow Hunt has also involved preschool creations. In June 2025, children made Old MacDonald and his farm animals, arranging their animals in a pen. This gives craft a purpose beyond an individual picture to take home: children contribute to a local event together.

Relationships and Communication

In January 2024, adults gave quieter children reassurance and paid close attention to those beginning preschool. Children formed affectionate relationships with practitioners. For a family choosing a first experience away from home, those observed interactions are more useful than a general promise about settling.

Parents also had an active role in learning at that time. Goals and plans were developed together, with activities continuing at home; meetings, information boards and learning journals supported communication. This connected the child's preschool learning with family life and gave parents several ways to understand what their child was working towards.

Ginny the Giraffe, the take-home mascot used in January 2024, offered another connection between home and preschool. Children cared for him away from the setting and then talked about their experiences on returning. A familiar toy provided a reason to recall events and speak to others.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

In January 2024, observations and assessments informed children's next learning steps, and targeted activities supported early speech and communication. This is a concrete mechanism for tailoring learning: adults used what a child could already do to decide what to practise next.

Family participation continues through shared events. The April 2026 Teddy Bear's Picnic Art Display & Bake Sale brought relatives into preschool, with children's work displayed around the hall. It gave families a chance to share an occasion with their child and see the artwork together.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is St Andrews Memorial Hall, Beverley Road, Kirk Ella, Hull, HU10 7AA. Preschool runs on weekday mornings during term time, following local school terms for an average of 38 weeks each year.

The three-hour morning runs from 8.50am to 11.50am. The four-hour alternative starts at 8.50am and finishes at 12.50pm, with parents supplying a packed lunch. Both begin together; the choice is whether the child stays through lunchtime.

Enquiries can be made by telephone, email or the contact form. The form includes the child's date of birth and requested days, making it a practical route for setting out a proposed attendance pattern. Replies to form enquiries may reach the recipient's junk folder.

Funding and Paid Extras

Government-funded free entitlement hours are accepted for two-, three- and four-year-olds, alongside privately paid hours. Attendance is term-time, and invoices are issued at the beginning of each term. Payments through Tax-Free Childcare accounts are accepted, while hours beyond the agreed funded or invoiced allocation are charged separately.

Parents provide lunch for the longer morning. There are no additional food, activity or non-consumables charges; this describes the charge structure rather than a promise about which supplies are provided. Current prices come in the preschool's written quotation, and fees are reviewed annually. The opening times and pricing information brings the attendance and funding arrangements together.

• Mornings and school terms. Both patterns finish by 12.50pm, and attendance follows local school terms. Families need an arrangement that fits those finish times and holiday breaks.
• Lunch from home. The longer morning includes a parent-provided packed lunch. This adds lunch preparation to the family routine as well as extra time at preschool.
• Starting preschool. Quiet children and new starters received individual reassurance in January 2024. At a visit, ask how the settling plan would be adapted to your child's confidence and communication needs.

Willerby & Kirk Ella Pre School suits families seeking either a three-hour preschool morning or a four-hour morning with packed lunch, within a term-time routine. Its strongest case combines the Outstanding January 2024 judgement with concrete examples of learning: number games, physical challenges, imaginative topics and opportunities to involve families.

The recent outdoor activities, extended World Book Day celebrations and visiting emergency services give that offer substance. The practical boundary is equally clear. This is morning preschool provision, and its timetable needs to fit the rest of family life.