Breadsall Pre-School Playgroup

In February 2025, puppet shows and stepping-stone play gave a concrete picture of learning at Breadsall Pre-School Playgroup in its village-hall setting. Based at Memorial Hall on Brookside Road in Breadsall, it accepts children from age two and has capacity for 24 children. Its charitable structure also gives parents a practical part in how the setting is run, through a volunteer management committee.

At its February 2025 inspection, Ofsted rated the provision Good overall. The detail beneath that judgement matters: children chose snacks independently, shared painting materials and took responsibility for putting toys away. These are small, useful steps towards managing a day alongside other children.

Morning and afternoon sessions sit alongside an all-day option. That gives families different ways to use the preschool, rather than a single attendance pattern.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage shapes learning across language, relationships, physical development, early reading and number, understanding the world and creative expression. In everyday terms, children have opportunities to talk, play, make things and practise skills, with observations helping staff follow their development.

Free play occupies substantial parts of the morning timetable, alongside snack time and organised activities. Music & Singing has a daily morning slot, bringing singing into the routine; Story Time follows later, giving stories their own place before the morning ends. The sequence gives families a clear picture of how child-chosen play and shared activities fit together.

In February 2025, older children created puppet performances for one another. Staff described characters using concise language and introduced vocabulary connected with the theatre. A familiar play activity became an opportunity to practise speaking and hear new words. Children also used Spanish greetings, while number and counting activities formed part of planned learning.

Shared activities need closer attention. In February 2025, teaching during some group sessions did not adjust sufficiently to the children taking part, leaving some with too little challenge. Story time was an example. The improvement required was about how these sessions were organised and taught, rather than adding more activities to the timetable.

Outdoor and Community Life

In February 2025, outdoor play included balancing across stepping stones, giving children a concrete way to practise coordination. Another activity involved spooning oats into cupcake cases to make muffins. These examples show physical practice and exploratory play extending beyond indoor activities, with simple materials providing something children could handle and investigate.

Each child is allocated a key person who takes responsibility for their development records. Observations involve that person and other key persons, so recording progress is linked to staff watching how children play and learn. Staff also review their practice, plan learning and undertake further training; the team holds recognised childcare qualifications.

In February 2025, practitioners helped children talk through feelings, encouraged turn-taking and used reminders about safe indoor play. Toddlers selected their snacks and cleared their plates afterwards. Independence was practised through ordinary routines, rather than reserved for a separate activity.

At the February 2025 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and noted that staff had helped parents obtain additional support for their children. This gives the care section a specific basis: support included helping families reach further help, rather than simply offering a general statement about inclusion.

Communication had a clear limitation at that date. Staff told parents about activities children had enjoyed during sessions, but did not give them information to extend learning at home. The requested improvement was to make those exchanges more useful beyond the preschool day. For families who want to build on a child's interests at home, that distinction matters.

Healthy snacks were provided in February 2025, with handwashing encouraged before eating and drinking water accessible. Children staying all day bring a packed lunch from home.

Sessions and Attendance

Morning sessions run from 9am to noon each weekday. Afternoon sessions run from noon to 3pm on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, and children can stay all day on those days. The shorter morning option therefore sits alongside afternoons and a combined day, making the attendance model relevant to families with different schedules.

In February 2025, the preschool operated during term time. Its contact route is by telephone or email, through the preschool's contact details.

Getting There

The address is Memorial Hall, Brookside Road, Breadsall, Derby, DE21 5LF. The hall setting is part of the preschool's identity, rather than a separate purpose-built nursery address.

Funding and Paid Extras

Both funded places and paid sessions are offered. Funding includes 15 hours government funded childcare from the term after a child's third birthday, and 30 hours of government funded childcare for working parents with two-year-olds, subject to the necessary childcare code. These entitlements should be considered separately from additional paid attendance.

Parents provide packed lunches for all-day attendance. Families should request a current written quotation to consider the cost of their intended session pattern alongside funded hours.

• Shared learning sessions. In February 2025, some group activities gave children insufficient challenge. A visit is a useful opportunity to ask how story sessions now accommodate different stages of learning.
• Learning at home. February 2025 feedback called for more helpful information for parents beyond accounts of the day's play. Ask for an example of how a child's current interests are shared and extended at home.
• Funded attendance and lunches. Morning, afternoon and all-day attendance have different practical demands, and all-day children bring lunch. Ask how funded hours and any additional charges apply to the pattern you intend to book.

Breadsall suits families seeking weekday morning sessions, Tuesday-to-Thursday afternoons or a combined day in a village-hall preschool. The key-person arrangement and parent committee give its care and organisation a clear shape. February 2025 examples of independent routines, puppet play and outdoor balance activities add substance to that picture. The decision points are equally concrete: how shared activities challenge each child, and how communication helps parents continue learning at home.