Little Bears Pre-School

Woodland exploration gives Little Bears Pre-School a clear identity. Adventure Bears takes children into Sullington warren for den building, searches for small creatures and Gruffalo hunts, extending their play beyond the parish hall. This is an outdoor strand with concrete activities, rather than simply time outside.

Based at Sullington Parish Hall in Storrington, Little Bears has capacity for 30 children and accepts children from age 2. At its October 2021 inspection, Ofsted rated it Outstanding and found effective safeguarding, with excellent progress for children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. That judgement is dated; the practical appeal today rests on woodland activities, individual settling arrangements and a choice of morning, afternoon and full-day attendance.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the framework for learning through play, with activities shaped around children's interests and their next steps. At Little Bears, the key person uses observations to plan for each child around their interests and next steps. Online learning journals support that process and help identify when extra support is needed.

In October 2021, a pet snail prompted conversations about food, hygiene and the shape of its shell. A child's question about butterflies led staff to bring out a book, connecting curiosity with finding an answer. The value lay in following the children's thinking: one encounter became an opportunity to explore several ideas.

Water play had a similarly practical purpose in October 2021. Children experimented with guttering to move water between trays, while staff used questions to develop their thinking about quantities and speed. Jigsaws gave another route into perseverance, conversation and new vocabulary. These examples show what learning through play looked like at that visit, rather than a timetable of current activities.

Outdoor and Community Life

Adventure Bears gives all children opportunities during the term to explore Sullington warren. Den building, looking for mini beasts and Gruffalo hunts bring imaginative play and observation into the same outing. There is no need to turn that into a claim about weekly trips: its appeal is the recurring connection with a particular local place.

A Nature Area was announced for September 2026, with plans for children to grow and harvest vegetables, explore plants through smell and touch, and create a bug hotel. The proposed activities connect outdoor play with caring for living things over time. Planting and harvesting also give children something to return to, rather than an activity completed in one sitting.

Community experiences include visits from a Librarian and Lollipop Lady. These introduce children to people whose work they may encounter beyond pre-school, adding a practical connection between activities and everyday community life.

Relationships and Communication

Settling is agreed with each family. Children can begin with flexible hours, and a pre-start morning gives them time to try activities alongside their parent or carer. Comfort items are welcomed too. Together, these arrangements allow the first separation to be approached around the child, rather than through a single fixed routine.

Each child has a key person responsible for tracking their development. During settling, parents receive updates by text or telephone and remain involved in decisions as staff monitor how the child is managing. That offers a clear point of contact during a period when a family may need more frequent communication.

Parents can contribute their interests and skills in the setting, while newsletters and annual questionnaires provide other ways to stay involved. In October 2021, staff also helped families support learning at home, including using additional funding for resources such as books. The relationship extended beyond conversations about the session itself.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

SEND support includes a SENCO role, individual play plans where needed, and reviews of individual education plans with parents and the key person. Links with speech and language therapists, educational psychologists and an early years adviser provide routes to specialist input. These are specific support mechanisms, rather than a blanket promise about meeting every need.

In October 2021, Ofsted found that the key-person arrangements supported individual planning and continuity of care, and that hand signing and visual prompts helped children communicate. Staff also encouraged children to recognise and express emotions. For families considering additional support, the useful question is how those approaches would be adapted to their own child.

Children can start before they are toilet trained, and nappy-changing facilities are available; families supply a potty when required. Snacks are provided with milk or water, taking dietary requirements into account, and staff sit with children in small groups at snack time. A collection procedure uses passwords and signature checks, giving families a defined arrangement for authorising who collects their child.

School transition work includes visits from early years teachers, accompanied visits to children's new schools and classroom photographs used in discussion. Group or individual transition meetings can also be arranged. These activities help make the next setting familiar before the move.

Sessions and Attendance

Morning sessions run from 9am to noon on Monday and Tuesday, with afternoon sessions from noon to 3pm on those days. Full-day attendance is also offered on Monday and Tuesday. Wednesday opens from 9am to noon, Thursday from 9am to 1pm, and Friday from 9am to 3pm; Thursday includes a Lunch Club option. The shorter midweek opening windows matter when planning care around work.

Attendance follows term dates. The autumn 2026 calendar includes a half-term break from 26 to 30 October and an end-of-term date of 16 December. Applications use a registration form, after which the child joins the waiting list; start arrangements are reconfirmed six months before the planned start.

Getting There

The address is Sullington Parish Hall, Thakeham Road, Storrington, Pulborough, RH20 3PP. Prospectuses and registration forms can be requested by email at littlebearspreschool@hotmail.com, providing a direct route into the application process.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare includes the 15-hour entitlement for eligible three- and four-year-olds, starting from the first full term after the child's third birthday, funding for eligible two-year-olds and participation in 30-hour funding for eligible working parents. Delivery is term-time, and Little Bears states that it opens for 25 hours a week, a practical limit for families considering the larger entitlement. The 15-hour offer has no additional charges and can include Lunch Club.

Private hours and occasional extra hours are charged separately. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation. A registration charge and refundable deposit apply to private entry; neither applies when a child is fully funded at entry, and the deposit refund depends on the account being paid and the required notice being given.

Invoices are issued termly, with advance weekly payments among the payment options. Fees remain due during illness or family holidays, and leaving or reducing sessions requires half a term's written notice. That makes the agreed attendance pattern a financial commitment as well as a weekly routine.

• A shorter midweek pattern. Wednesday ends at noon and Thursday at 1pm. Compare those days with your working hours when discussing a combination of morning, afternoon and full-day attendance.
• The Nature Area plans. The Nature Area announced for September 2026 included plans for vegetable growing, sensory plants and a bug hotel. On a visit, ask which activities are now running and how children take part.
• Personal care and support. Children need not be toilet trained, and individual play plans can support additional needs. Use the visit to discuss your child's toileting routine, communication needs and settling arrangements, including what to bring for nappy changes and how snack charges work.
• Changing the booking. Half a term's written notice applies when reducing sessions or leaving, and fees continue during illness and holidays. Consider how that fits with changes to work or family arrangements.

Little Bears suits families seeking term-time pre-school with morning or afternoon sessions as well as full-day attendance, especially those who value woodland exploration and an individual approach to settling. Adventure Bears gives the outdoor offer a recognisable local anchor, while key-person planning and school familiarisation provide continuity around important transitions.

The Outstanding judgement belongs to October 2021. For a current decision, the strongest practical fit is between the child's needs, the family’s term-time routine and the shorter Wednesday and Thursday opening hours.