Jack & Jill Nursery

Woodland walks, weekly music and sports, and access to Shawfield Primary School’s hall give Jack & Jill Nursery a clear outdoor and community character. This Ash preschool serves children aged two to five, with play chosen by children alongside activities led by practitioners.

At its June 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good overall and found that children’s individual needs were understood well, including those requiring additional support. Current provision includes language and emotional support programmes, online learning journals and a key person for each family.

Attendance follows a term-time calendar, with morning, afternoon and full-day sessions.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS guides children’s learning through play, covering communication, physical and emotional development alongside early literacy, mathematics, creativity and understanding the world. Here, the curriculum combines activities children organise themselves with experiences practitioners plan. Resources are also accessible for independent play, allowing children to return to an interest rather than depend on an adult to choose their next activity.

Ovivio Educational, an assessment system informed by Birth to 5 Matters, helps practitioners record children’s development and plan what comes next. Children’s interests, strengths and difficulties shape subsequent activities.

In June 2023, children explored mint and oranges using scissors and safety knives, describing smells while practising the hand movements needed for early writing. Garden herbs then became ingredients for experimental potions, with children making predictions about mixtures. These were small, practical examples of language, imagination and investigation working together, rather than separate lessons.

Weekly music and sports sessions add shared activities to the child-led day. Shawfield Primary School’s hall is used twice weekly for hour-long sessions supporting the curriculum. The hall also hosts the nativity performance.

Outdoor and Community Life

Children can move between indoors and outdoors during most of a session. Outdoor play continues across weather conditions, with wet-weather suits supplied and families providing suitable clothing and wellington boots. This is a practical part of the day, so clothing needs to support exploration rather than restrict it.

In June 2023, the outdoor space included a slope, slide, tyre trail and a bike track. Children practised balance and coordination by deciding where to put their feet and how to manage the equipment.

Children approaching their move to school take walks in local woodland, exploring seasonal changes, making dens and creating homes for small creatures. Walks continue in different weather conditions, except very high winds. Major excursions require separate parental consent; shorter outings are covered by the consent sought when children join.

The wider programme includes community walks, picnics, parental craft sessions and an Easter bonnet parade. These experiences are covered by the voluntary contribution requested for funded hours.

Relationships and Communication

A child’s key person helps with settling and works with parents to understand interests, strengths and difficulties. Families contribute information about familiar comforts and what reassures their child.

Ovivio’s parent app shares observations and learning journals, and parents can comment or add experiences from home. Parents’ evenings provide another opportunity to discuss progress with the key person.

Rest is accommodated within the day. A designated part of the setting can be arranged for sleep, with rest mats and individual bedding; family routines and preferences are discussed during settling. Ovivio records sleep and waking times for parents.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

Early Talk Boost provides interactive support for talking and understanding words, with three sessions each week lasting approximately 20 minutes. ELSA Support Sessions address emotional and social skills through activities that include recognising feelings and reflecting afterwards. Targeted Support Sessions provide individual work for children needing additional help, including continuing targets set by outside professionals.

A SENCO coordinates support, using an assess, plan, do and review cycle with parents involved throughout. Where needs require more resources than the setting’s core funding can provide, the nursery can apply to Surrey County Council’s inclusion fund. This describes a route for organising support, rather than a promise that every application will receive funding.

At the June 2023 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and SEND support successful, with picture-based communication and children’s interests used to help them participate. Current arrangements include a designated safeguarding lead and two deputies, alongside procedures for responding to concerns.

Calm areas give children space to regulate their feelings. The nursery says it emphasises helping children understand emotions and consequences, with staff and parents working together when difficulties recur. For children with continuing medical needs, healthcare planning involves parents and identifies daily requirements and emergency responses.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Shawfield Primary School, Winchester Road, Ash, Aldershot, GU12 6SX. The nursery operates for 38 weeks annually, broadly following Surrey school terms, and closes during school holidays. Standard opening hours are 9am to 3pm, Monday to Friday; an earlier 8.30am start is a paid option.

Morning sessions run from 9am to noon, afternoons from noon to 3pm, and full days from 9am to 3pm. Extended sessions are also offered through the earlier start. A full day includes lunchtime and provision for quieter activities as children’s energy changes, while the shorter patterns give families a choice of which part of the day to attend.

Enquiries can be made by telephone on 01252 319595 or by email at info@jajn.org.uk. Uniform is optional and can be bought through the setting. Parents provide spare clothing, indoor footwear and wellington boots, with clothes chosen to help children manage dressing and toileting independently.

Funding and Paid Extras

The nursery accepts privately paid attendance and funded childcare through Early Learning for 2 Year Olds, Universal Funded Early Entitlement and Working Parent Entitlement. Early Learning for 2 Year Olds provides up to 15 hours weekly from the term after the second birthday for families meeting its criteria. Universal Funded Early Entitlement provides up to 15 hours weekly from the term after the third birthday, for 38 weeks annually. The working-parent entitlement provides up to 30 hours for eligible families; this nursery accepts children from age two. Funding is used within term-time sessions, and additional private hours are charged separately.

For funded hours, a voluntary contribution is requested towards snacks, non-food supplies and enhanced activities. An alternative policy can be requested. Parents provide packed lunches, while snacks are supplied by the nursery; families also supply nappies, with additional nappies, wipes, creams and suncream included among the items covered by the voluntary contribution.

Current prices come in the nursery’s written quotation, and the fees and funding page explains the charge categories. Bills are issued each half-term, with payment either in full by the due date or weekly in advance. Fees remain payable during sickness and holidays, and late collection can incur additional charges.

Moving to school involves sharing development summaries and relevant support information, with parents contributing their view before transfer. The setting’s use of Shawfield Primary School’s premises and hall does not guarantee a Reception place: families still apply through the local authority admissions process.

• Term-time timetable. Sessions finish at 3pm and attendance covers 38 weeks annually. Families needing care through school holidays or later afternoons will need arrangements that fit those boundaries.
• Understanding other cultures. In June 2023, opportunities to explore people, cultures and heritage needed further development. On a visit, ask how current everyday activities build this understanding beyond individual celebrations.
• Funded-hours contributions. The requested contribution is voluntary and covers snacks, non-food supplies and enhanced experiences, with an alternative policy available on request. Discuss how that alternative works alongside the sessions you intend to book.
• Support and rest. Language interventions, emotional support and an adaptable sleep area form part of the offer. During a visit, discuss how the key person would combine these with your child’s communication needs and usual rest routine.

Jack & Jill Nursery suits families seeking morning or afternoon preschool sessions as well as those wanting a full day across lunchtime. Its practical strengths are the combination of outdoor choice, woodland exploration, weekly music and sports, and clearly described language and emotional support.

The term-time calendar and 3pm finish define the childcare it can provide. Within those boundaries, the key-person relationship and Ovivio communication offer parents useful ways to take part in their child’s learning. The June 2023 finding on cultural understanding tempers that positive picture.