Headingley Preschool

An outdoor area created with Outdoor Classrooms Ltd and a Reception class next door give Headingley Preschool a clear character: room to explore, with school life close by. Children choose between indoor and outdoor play, while the Reggio Emilia Approach puts their interests and curiosity at the centre of learning. The emphasis is on children developing ideas with adults, rather than simply moving through a timetable of tasks.

At its January 2023 inspection, Ofsted judged the preschool Outstanding, highlighting the way staff extended children's language, encouraged persistence and used everyday activities to develop mathematical understanding. That judgement belongs to a specific visit. The current offer combines child-led exploration with regular observations and contributions from parents through Tapestry, an online learning journal.

There are 28 places in total for children aged 30 to 60 months, on the Shire Oak Primary School site in Headingley. Attendance is term-time, with mornings, afternoons and full days offered.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage guides children's development across language, physical skills, relationships, early reading, mathematics and creative play. It is the shared foundation for early-years care and education. Headingley's Reggio Emilia Approach adds an emphasis on children's own questions and interests, developed through collaboration with adults. Regular cooking, contact with nature and construction using real tools make that approach concrete.

Choice has a practical place in the day. Children can select an activity, return to an idea and spend time working it through; collaborative activities also introduce experiences that involve sharing materials and working alongside others. The learning page explains how the indoor and outdoor environments support that balance.

In January 2023, speaking and listening were a priority. Staff prompted children to explain their thinking and used questions to take conversations further. Mathematics was woven into play: older children divided dough into portions, while younger children explored quantity through filling cups and compared sizes when sorting vehicles. These were practical encounters with mathematical ideas, rather than a separate lesson detached from play.

Problem-solving was equally tangible that January. Children built a measuring structure with pegs, then used pebbles to keep its supporting board steady.

Outdoor and Community Life

Outdoor Classrooms Ltd helped design and create Headingley's outdoor area in 2018. Children can move between inside and outside through free flow, choosing where their play takes place. Across Leeds Early Years Association, outdoor classroom access occupies much of the day; at Headingley, the purpose-built outdoor area gives that group-wide approach a physical setting.

In January 2023, a wooden sculpture became a place to practise jumping. Staff helped children begin from sitting before attempting the movement standing up, and children returned to the challenge repeatedly. Outdoor play here had a learning purpose: physical confidence developed through manageable steps, with adults supporting the attempt.

The group-wide sustainability work also has a practical expression in children's activities. Everyday objects are reused for scrap sculptures, alongside discussion about recycling. The group's Eco Team supports this work. It gives environmental care a form children can handle and make things with, rather than leaving it as an abstract message.

Relationships and Communication

A key person works with each family on the child's interests and needs, supports settling and remains involved throughout attendance. Settling can begin with brief periods apart from a parent, building towards longer stays. Staff and parents can also discuss adjusting the number or length of sessions if the original pattern proves too much. The pace is intended to respond to the child.

Each term includes a learning journey week for the child, with parents invited to contribute their views. Observations are shared through Tapestry, and families can add their own entries about interests, celebrations or achievements at home. That exchange gives staff material to discuss with children and helps connect preschool learning with family life.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

Headingley's SEND provision includes a responsible practitioner working with parents and other professionals. The preschool identifies needs, involves families in decisions and works with the local authority and external agencies, reviewing provision and making adjustments. For children learning English alongside another home language, a Language Bank collects useful phrases from families, giving staff familiar words to use for comfort and reassurance.

At the January 2023 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and reported successful support for children with SEND and children learning English as an additional language, including signing, targeted interventions and effective use of additional funding.

Self-care is part of the day. In January 2023, children practised managing coats, gloves and zips, with staff encouraging their efforts. Current toilet-training arrangements support work already underway at home, although staff do not undertake training from the beginning; children who still wear nappies can attend.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Shire Oak (CE) VC Primary School, Wood Lane, Headingley, LS6 2DT. Opening hours are 8.30am to 5pm during term time. The attendance choices are morning sessions from 9am to noon, afternoons from noon to 3pm, and full days from 9am to 3pm, Monday to Friday.

Breakfast club runs from 8.30am to 9am, Monday to Friday. After school Club extends the day from 3pm to 5pm, Monday to Thursday. Friday therefore needs its own place in a family's weekly plan. There is no minimum number of sessions: children can begin with one or two and build their attendance gradually.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare includes the 2 Year old funding, 15 hour entitlement and 30 hour entitlement, subject to the relevant eligibility conditions, within the term-time offer. Additional sessions and wraparound childcare can be paid for privately. The fees and funding page sets out the structure; current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

Parents supply a named, healthy packed lunch for children staying over lunchtime; the preschool supplies morning and afternoon snacks and milk or water, and its food guidance asks families to exclude nuts. Parents also supply nappies, wipes and nappy bags when needed, keeping responsibility for these consumables separate from childcare hours.

An administration charge covers registration and a paper Learning and Development Journal; the admissions policy exempts children attending only for funded hours from charges. Six weeks' notice is required to cancel or reduce an enrolled child's allocated attendance. Both terms matter when choosing an initial pattern, especially if a family expects its needs to change after settling.

The preschool describes a partnership with Shire Oak Primary School, whose Reception class is next door and shares facilities. Children moving there can become familiar with the surroundings and teachers before starting school. Attendance at Headingley Preschool does not guarantee a Reception place; families still apply through the local authority admissions process. The proximity helps children become familiar with the school; preschool attendance does not guarantee a Reception place.

• Friday arrangements. Breakfast club operates every weekday, but After school Club runs only Monday to Thursday. Match the Friday finish to your family's collection arrangements, and use a visit to discuss the attendance pattern you intend to book.
• Term-time care. The preschool closes for school holidays. Families needing childcare throughout the year should account for those breaks alongside the flexibility of morning, afternoon and full-day sessions.
• Lunch and personal care. Families prepare packed lunches and supply nappy-changing consumables. Allergy-affected families should confirm current food-handling practice, and parents beginning toilet training should discuss how preschool will support the routine already started at home.
• School connection. Shared facilities and the neighbouring Reception class can make Shire Oak familiar, but preschool attendance does not secure admission. Treat the school application as a separate decision and process.

Headingley suits families seeking term-time morning or afternoon sessions, as well as those combining full days with breakfast and after-school care. Its strongest practical qualities are the freedom to move between indoor and outdoor learning, the exchange of observations through Tapestry and the close physical connection with Shire Oak Primary School. The January 2023 Outstanding judgement adds a dated assessment of quality to that picture.

The trade-offs are concrete: holiday closures, a different Friday wraparound pattern and lunch preparation at home. For families comfortable with those arrangements, this is a preschool built around exploration, parent participation and growing independence, with a school connection that supports familiarity while leaving Reception admission separate.