Whickham Parochial Preschool and Out of School Club

A tree house, an allotment and a mud kitchen give play a substantial outdoor setting at Whickham Parochial Preschool and Out of School Club. Growing food, investigating nature and choosing how to use resources are central to its character. This is preschool education built around children's interests, with practical independence threaded through the day.

Based at Alder Tree House in Whickham, the setting caters for children aged three to four, with 60 places in total. At its 9 June 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated it Outstanding, with teaching that extended children's knowledge through discussion, exploration and practical activity. That dated judgement has useful substance behind it: children were identifying flowers, investigating insects and using books to answer their own questions.

Attendance is term-time, with half-day and full-day choices. The strongest fit is for families who value substantial outdoor play and preparation for school through everyday skills, rather than formal work set at tables.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) guides children's learning, development and care through play, conversation, movement and practical experiences. Staff observe and talk with children, using their interests and development to plan what comes next.

Children choose indoor or outdoor play, with friends or independently. Stories, songs, a welcome circle and adult-led activities provide shared structure. At snack time, counting cups and pouring drinks combine maths with independence.

Montessori elements include child-sized real equipment and help with putting on coats. Forest School elements involve nature play, exploring risk and observing seasonal change. Both add practical experiences alongside the EYFS.

In June 2023, children recorded insects, compared markings and drew their discoveries, bringing counting and early writing into the garden. Discussions about pollination built on remembered learning, while precise insect names extended vocabulary.

Outdoor and Community Life

The garden and allotment support growing food and caring for living things. A tree house and climbing frame provide physical challenges, while the mud kitchen supplies equipment for imaginative play. Movement and nature study share the same outdoor setting.

In June 2023, children watered crops and dug up potatoes in the allotment, while bikes, climbing and a rope swing provided opportunities to practise coordination. An outdoor classroom held books that children used to investigate flowers. Physical exploration and finding information sat together naturally.

Animals About Town is the visiting farm. Librarians, vets and emergency-service visitors introduce children to their work. Optional French lessons, taught by a visiting specialist and charged separately, add another language experience.

Relationships and Communication

EYLog, the online learning journal, identifies each child's key worker and shares development observations. Early updates cover settling and preferred play; later entries become fewer and more detailed. Families can contribute photographs, interests and experiences from home, giving staff a fuller picture of their child.

Accident records and diary updates cover naps, lunch and toileting, with telephone calls for important matters. Settling approaches vary by child, and early photographs help parents understand their experiences. Regular conversations replace scheduled parents' evenings; meetings can be arranged when needed. EYLog access depends on the voluntary consumables contribution.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the June 2023 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and SEND support exceptionally strong, with specialist involvement and carefully reviewed targets helping children make progress. Current support arrangements include a SENCo and discussions with the key person about resources, changes to the room layout or specific staff training. Speech and language therapists, specialist SEND teachers and educational psychologists may work alongside children who need additional support.

For children sensitive to noise, the busy environment needs consideration. There are few quiet areas, though ear defenders are provided when needed. Individual one-to-one care is not offered, so the support arrangements need to fit the child's requirements.

Staff help with dressing, eating and personal care while encouraging children to try first. Nappies and pull-ups are normally excluded; children with SEND can have an individual action plan and toileting support when able. Personal-care expectations matter when planning a child's start.

School photographs and uniforms support transition role play. Children meet Reception teachers and future classmates, while staff share individual transition information. Visits to Reception and the hall at Whickham Parochial Primary School make the next environment more familiar.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Alder Tree House, Broadway, Whickham, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE16 5QW. Preschool opens from 7.45am to 6pm, Monday to Thursday; since September 2026, Friday closing is 5pm. The school-age Out of School Club closes at 4.45pm on Fridays. Neither service offers a later Friday collection option.

Half-day choices are 7.45am to noon or 9am to noon, Monday to Friday. Full-day bookings starting at 9am can finish at 3pm, 4pm or 5pm throughout the week, with a 6pm finish also offered Monday to Thursday. Morning or afternoon bookings require a three-hour or six-hour session. Breakfast and after-school additions must be prearranged.

The calendar follows school terms: the setting works within a 39-week year, with funding covering 38 weeks and five additional inset days taken across the year. School holidays therefore need a separate childcare arrangement. Preschool sessions generally need booking at least a term ahead, a different system from the school-age club.

Applications use the preschool's online joining form, with contact also possible by telephone or email. September is the main intake, with a January intake conditional on space and no Easter intake. The application deadline is 31 January in the year the child turns three; later applications join the waiting list. The oldest children on the waiting list receive priority. Sibling and catchment priorities also apply: siblings at Whickham Parochial Primary precede children within that school's or Cloverhill Primary's catchment area, followed by first-come allocation.

Funding and Paid Extras

The preschool accepts the universal 15 hours, the extended 30 hours entitlement for eligible working families and two year old funding. Funding is used during term time, within opening hours, up to 10 hours a day. Additional private hours can be purchased, and families using an extended-entitlement code need to provide it promptly and keep it valid.

Lunch is either a separately paid school meal, collected from the school kitchen using the Gateshead menu, or a healthy packed lunch from home. The preschool has a nut-free food policy that also excludes products that may contain nuts.

Snacks, breakfast and tea are covered through the voluntary session-based consumables contribution, alongside items such as wipes, tissues, additional art resources and EYLog. Families can opt out and supply snacks and requested resources themselves, but EYLog is then excluded; sun cream comes from home. Optional French lessons have a separate charge. Itemised monthly invoices distinguish funded hours, additional hours, food and other charges, helping families see which parts of attendance they are paying for. Current prices belong in the nursery's written quotation.

Getting There

There is no preschool car park, but families may use the Coachman car park. Parking in the residential cul-de-sac, across paths or in the school car park is prohibited, making the agreed alternative relevant to anyone driving.

The preschool is on the grounds of Whickham Parochial Primary School. Attendance does not guarantee a Reception place: families must make a separate application through the local authority's school admissions process. Transition activities help children become familiar with school.

• Friday collection. Preschool closes at 5pm and the school-age club at 4.45pm from September 2026, with no later Friday option. Compare these deadlines with the actual collection arrangements your family can sustain; repeated collection after closing can lead to childcare being discontinued.
• Noise and personal care. There are few quiet areas and individual one-to-one care is not offered. Nappies and pull-ups are normally excluded, with SEND arrangements considered individually. During a visit, discuss your child's sensory and personal-care needs.
• The consumables choice. The contribution is voluntary, but opting out means supplying snacks and requested resources and losing EYLog access. Compare the two arrangements as a whole; allergy-affected families should also confirm current food handling and packed-lunch practice.
• The school connection. Reception visits and shared transition information can make school more familiar, but they do not secure a place. Keep the preschool application and the local authority's Reception application as separate decisions.

Whickham Parochial suits families seeking half-day preschool or full-day term-time attendance, with outdoor exploration and practical independence central to learning. The allotment and visiting farm give children concrete experiences to investigate.

Its busy environment, personal-care expectations, shorter Friday and consumables choices deserve consideration alongside the Outstanding 2023 judgement. The strongest fit is for children who enjoy active play shaped by their interests.