Cobham Community Pre-School

A garden reserved for the children, a parent-elected committee and home visits before starting give Cobham Community Pre-School its village character. Its base is a large activity room within The Meadow Room, with additional use of another room and the hall. Outside, playhouses, slides and a mud kitchen make space for imaginative, messy and physical play.

At its June 2025 inspection, Ofsted rated the pre-school Good and judged safeguarding effective. The setting has 28 places in total, and children can join from the term after turning two and a half, staying until they begin school. This is provision for the preschool years rather than baby care.

Morning sessions serve the younger children, while afternoons support those approaching primary school. The parent committee also organises fundraising for equipment and projects, giving families a practical role in the life of the setting.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) guides learning through play, with attention to language, physical development, relationships and the other areas of learning. Here, morning activities let children choose what to explore, with adults joining their play to extend it. Afternoon sessions give greater emphasis to the move towards school. Children attending a Swan session bring a bag for their reading book.

In June 2025, staff joined children in pretend play indoors and in the mud kitchen, using conversation to extend their ideas. Songs, rhymes and expressive storytelling introduced words and encouraged children to think about what they heard. Children needed more opportunities to express their own ideas independently.

The same June 2025 picture included parents sharing professional skills and their cultural backgrounds. Children also went into the community to post letters and visit their next school, while visiting animal-handling workshops and a yoga session added different experiences.

Outdoor and Community Life

The garden is for the pre-school’s sole use. Bikes and a playframe support movement, while the playhouses and mud kitchen provide settings for make-believe. Children need wellies and clothing suited to the weather: outdoor play usually continues except in extreme conditions. Paint and water play also make washable, practical clothing a sensible choice.

In June 2025, children cared for plants, watched caterpillars become butterflies and looked after stick insects. Bird spotting and learning words for trees and insects connected outdoor exploration with language.

The calendar also gives families shared occasions to plan around. The Nativity / Christmas Fayre and Christmas Party are scheduled for December 2026, followed by Sports Day and the Leaver’s Party in July 2027. These event days replace ordinary sessions, so they affect childcare arrangements as well as providing celebrations.

Relationships and Communication

Settling begins before the first session. A home visit is offered, and the family completes an All About Me form to help staff learn about the child. A key person is allocated before starting; where possible, siblings share the same one. Each key person has a colleague who can step in during their absence, maintaining a familiar point of contact.

Parents help decide how separation should work. During the first week, a parent, carer or close relative is expected to stay for some sessions or be able to collect early, with time apart increasing as the child becomes comfortable. Children who struggle with separation may need that support for longer. The policy rejects leaving a child to cry as a settling method.

Tapestry and Class Dojo support exchanges between home and pre-school. Families can send photographs and stories, which staff share with children in circle time or a smaller group. Developmental records are shared electronically, and a settling report follows once the child has settled or within the first term.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

A SEND co-ordinator provides a point of responsibility for additional needs. The safeguarding arrangements include a lead and deputy, and the policy provides for the safeguarding lead to work with the SENCO on support. Practitioners receive training in food hygiene, child protection and safeguarding; paediatric first aid cover is required on site and on outings.

Behaviour support uses practical explanations and a visual sand timer for taking turns. Parents and the key person work together when difficulties recur, using observations to understand what is happening. In June 2025, Ofsted found that children made good progress through thoughtfully planned learning, but asked staff to give children more help understanding how their choices and behaviour affected themselves and others.

Children staying for lunch bring a packed meal; it cannot be refrigerated or heated, so an ice pack is recommended. The pre-school has a strict no-nuts policy and develops allergy action plans with families, with dietary information shared with staff handling food.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Meadow Rooms, The Street, Cobham, Gravesend, DA12 3BZ. The pre-school operates for 38 weeks each year, closing during the main school holidays and half-terms.

Morning sessions run from 9am to noon, Monday to Friday. Afternoons run from noon to 3pm, Monday to Thursday, for children in the year before primary school. The admissions policy limits two-year-olds to mornings and allows three- and four-year-olds up to six sessions weekly, subject to availability. In the year before Reception, up to three Swan sessions, described as full days, may be offered, again subject to availability.

The morning session cap is 28 children; the afternoon cap is 15. Lunch sessions are also offered, with priority given to children attending both morning and afternoon.

Applications use the online registration form, and registering is free. To enter the allocation process, an application must arrive at least a full term before the intended start. Priority goes first to children living in the parishes of Cobham, Sole Street and Luddesdown, followed by looked-after children, including adopted children, and siblings. The time spent on the waiting list decides priority within each category. Paying session charges does not confer preference over receiving universal funding.

Funding and Paid Extras

Universal funded early education is accepted for three- and four-year-olds, providing up to 15 hours from the term after the third birthday, across the term-time year. A parental declaration must be returned by the deadline each term; otherwise attended sessions are charged. Working Parent Entitlement for two-year-olds is also accepted. The position on the extended working-parent entitlement needs clarification before a family builds its attendance plan around it.

Private sessions beyond funded hours are charged separately. Drinks are included in the session charge, while a voluntary contribution supports snacks and workshops; it is added to invoices but can be removed on request. Parents supply lunch, and lunch sessions are excluded from universal funding. Outings, celebrations or entertainment beyond usual activities may fall outside the session charge.

Parents provide nappies and wipes when needed. A refundable deposit is payable when accepting a place and is credited against the first invoice. Withdrawing some or all sessions leaves charges payable until the end of the current full term. Current prices come in the pre-school’s written quotation.

• Working-parent funding. The admissions terms exclude participation in the 30-hour scheme, while the charges document allows a possible claim of up to 30 hours, subject to entitlement and sessions. Ask which arrangement applies to your child and how lunch fits into it before accepting a place.
• Settling time. The first week requires a familiar adult to stay or collect early, and some children need longer. At a visit, discuss how the home visit and gradual separation would work alongside your family’s commitments.
• Language and choices. The June 2025 improvement priorities concern independent speaking and understanding the consequences of behaviour. Ask for examples of how children now lead conversations and learn about safe choices during play.
• Term-time attendance. Younger children attend mornings, while older children can combine sessions into full days subject to availability. The December and July celebration days replace normal sessions, so include these changes and holiday closures in your childcare planning.

Cobham suits families seeking morning preschool sessions for a younger child, or afternoon and combined full-day attendance in the year before school. Its strongest practical features are the garden, home visits and continuity through the key person and their supporting colleague. Parent participation extends from sharing home experiences to running the committee.

The June 2025 Good judgement gives a clear inspection position, alongside specific work to strengthen independent speech and children’s understanding of behaviour. Term-time attendance and gradual settling need to fit family commitments.