Netley Abbey Pre-school

Play-based learning between Netley Abbey Infant and Junior School gives this pre-school a clear character: children choose activities, adults help extend their ideas, and families contribute observations from home. It serves two-, three- and four-year-olds and has 30 places in total. This is preschool provision, rather than care for babies.

At its January 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated Netley Abbey Pre-school Good and found safeguarding effective. The detail matters as much as the grade: younger children had their own books during small-group stories, outdoor football supported movement, and construction materials encouraged children to persist with their ideas. There were also improvements to make in staff coaching, response time for younger children and teaching about healthy food.

Full days and sessional care provide different ways to attend, with a choice of starting and finishing times. The practical responsibility for food sits with families: children bring snacks and, when staying for lunch, a packed lunch.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the framework for learning and care, with play supporting children's communication, physical skills and personal development. Here, planning combines activities initiated by adults with children's own choices, indoors and outside. Observations of what children already understand help staff plan what comes next, rather than treating every child as ready for the same task.

Stories, songs and rhymes are used to develop communication. Children also have opportunities to explore independently, work together and join adult-led groups. That mix gives families a useful picture of the day: shared learning has a place, but so does following an individual interest.

In January 2024, younger children took part in stories in smaller groups, each holding a copy of the book so they could turn pages and follow the pictures. Adults joined pretend play in the home corner, using shopping lists and doll parties to extend conversation. These were practical ways to connect language with something children wanted to do.

The same visit captured children building vehicles from large construction pieces and persisting until they were ready to share their creations. Painting, drawing and cutting paper gave them different ways to practise handling tools. The activities worked on different physical skills, rather than relying on one kind of play.

Outdoor and Community Life

Indoor and outdoor play are both part of the planned offer. In January 2024, children practised kicking footballs towards nets outside, while spiders in the playhouse prompted discussion about size. A small discovery became a reason to compare, describe and talk with adults. Outdoor discoveries and active play added opportunities to learn alongside indoor activities.

Relationships and Communication

Tapestry online learning journals record children's development, alongside a paper guide covering the EYFS areas for each child. Staff use these observations to shape subsequent planning. The combination links record-keeping with decisions about what children will do next.

The WOW board gives families another route into that picture. In the January 2026 newsletter, parents were invited to send in individual WOW moments when a child did something that impressed them at home. It is a simple way to recognise achievements that staff might otherwise miss.

At the January 2024 inspection, Ofsted found the key-person arrangements effective, parent communication good and children with SEND making progress, with the SENCO working successfully with outside agencies. Parents received photographs and had opportunities to discuss development at parents' evenings; support also included help with school applications. Those findings describe the relationships at that visit, rather than a promise about every family's experience.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

Current staffing roles include a SENCO, an assistant SENCO, child-protection responsibilities and first-aid roles. The additional-needs arrangements begin with discussion with parents and include seeking referrals to outside agencies where a child needs that support. This gives families a defined route for raising concerns and involving specialist services.

In January 2024, staff helped children settle and paid attention to their happiness. The staff working with children held qualifications spanning levels 3 to 6. However, supervision did not consistently pick up small differences in teaching practice, and younger children sometimes needed more time to understand questions before answering. These are relevant considerations for a child whose communication is still emerging.

Children bring a snack for each session, a named water bottle and a healthy packed lunch if staying for lunch. The January 2026 lunchbox guidance excludes sweets and chocolate bars, so preparing food is part of the family's daily routine.

Sessions and Attendance

The pre-school is on Westwood Road, Netley Abbey, Southampton, SO31 5EL, between the infant and junior schools. Full days and sessional attendance are offered. Monday to Thursday opening hours are 8.45am to 3.15pm; alternative starts are 8.30am, 8.45am, 9.15am and 12.15pm, with a 3.15pm finishing option. Lunch occupies the period from 11.45am to 12.15pm.

Admissions take account of date-of-birth order first, then residence in the area, followed by whether a sibling previously attended. Submitting an application does not secure a place. Enquiries can be made by telephone, email or in person.

Being on the school site does not guarantee a Reception place. The preschool's work on preparation for primary school and the application support observed in January 2024 should be understood separately from a school's admissions decision.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare includes fifteen hours per week for children from the term after their third birthday, subject to availability at the pre-school; eligible families may also use 30 hours funding. Private hours and ad hoc hours are charged, with payment required in advance. Families can pay weekly, monthly, half-termly or termly, and bank transfer is preferred.

Parents provide meals and snacks, including during funded attendance. A separate daily consumables charge applies to all children, including those attending with funding, and contributes towards items such as gloves, tissues, toilet paper, paper towels and soap. These are separate responsibilities from the childcare hours themselves. Current prices should be obtained in the nursery's written quotation.

• Younger children's communication. In January 2024, adults sometimes moved on before younger children had enough time to answer, and staff coaching needed greater precision. At a visit, ask how practitioners now adapt questions and use supervision to develop their teaching.
• Food preparation and learning. Families supply snacks and packed lunches, while January 2024 findings called for more consistent teaching about healthy choices. Ask how food discussions now connect with the lunchbox expectations reinforced in January 2026.
• Choosing attendance. The offer combines full days, sessional care and alternative start times. Discuss the intended combination before applying, and call ahead to arrange a look around; applications are considered under the date-of-birth, local-residence and sibling criteria.

Netley Abbey Pre-school suits families seeking full days or flexible hours through sessional care, with play-based learning and a practical role for parents through food preparation and contributions to learning records. Tapestry and the WOW board make communication more concrete than a general promise of partnership.

The January 2024 Good judgement provides a positive inspection position, supported by specific examples of shared stories, imaginative play and physical activity. Its reservations deserve equal weight: younger children's response time, staff coaching and learning about healthy eating are the useful subjects for a visit. The school's proximity is convenient context, but it carries no guarantee of a Reception place.