Carey Hall Preschool

Treasure maps in local parks and learning journals that children help decorate give Carey Hall Preschool a recognisable character: children's interests shape both the activities and the way their learning is remembered. This church-hall preschool in Winchmore Hill combines play chosen by children with stories, group activities and experiences beyond the hall. The appeal is concrete. A fascination with pirates can become a reason to explore the local environment.

At its February 2025 inspection, Ofsted judged Carey Hall Good overall and found safeguarding effective. The improvement priorities concerned how changes of activity were explained, younger children's participation in group learning and the effect of indoor physical play on quieter activities. These are useful distinctions for parents: the overall judgement was positive, but the organisation of the day needed attention.

Carey Hall has 44 places in total, and its admissions policy accepts children aged 2 to 5. Morning and afternoon attendance choices feature in the registration paperwork; a pick-up and drop-off service also connects Carey Hall with Highfield School Nursery. The attendance arrangements deserve careful consideration alongside the preschool's approach to learning.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage guides the provision: children learn through play across areas including communication, physical development, early mathematics and literacy. This is the shared early-years framework. Carey Hall's own emphasis is child-led learning, with children's interests influencing the activities planned for the term.

Our Natural Environment linked children's questions about parkland with their interest in pirates: treasure-map hunts in local parks, mask-making and discussion of ships and sea life took play into exploration. The curriculum page explains the approach and assessment arrangements.

My Development Matters supplies milestones used to monitor learning. Each child has a focus week once a term, when observations across the seven areas of learning are added to a paper journal with pictures. Children contribute through drawing, cutting, sticking and adding stickers. These journals give them something tangible to revisit, while parents can follow the experiences behind the assessments rather than seeing a progress summary alone.

In February 2025, core storybooks helped organise the curriculum. Colour Monster supported discussion of feelings during Children's Mental Health Week, while making bird feeders brought together listening, practical work and conversation about birds. Children then hung their feeders in the garden. These examples show how a single activity can connect language with an experience children can see and handle.

Outdoor and Community Life

Outdoor activities complement the indoor hall. In February 2025, pretend mud mixtures prompted conversations about creatures and new vocabulary; local walks and supermarket visits extended learning beyond preschool.

Beyond nearby outings, an annual summer trip brings children together elsewhere. Past destinations include Paradise Wildlife Park and a Southend beach day; these are examples of previous trips rather than promises about the next destination. Regular dentist visits connect oral health with a visiting professional, giving children another way to encounter the subject beyond everyday reminders.

Families take part in recurring Macmillan coffee mornings. Christmas brings a nativity and a final-day party with a magician and Father Christmas; previous celebrations have included visits to the Chicken Shed, Millfield and Dugdale Theatres.

Relationships and Communication

Settling begins with stay and play sessions alongside a familiar adult, adjusted to the child's needs. Shorter sittings can be used when a child needs more support. The settling procedure also provides for a key person before attendance begins and a backup contact when that practitioner is away. There is room to reconsider the key-person allocation if a child develops a stronger connection with another member of staff.

Free introductory sessions last approximately 1–2 hours over one or two weeks, depending on individual needs. Parents can stay, with separation increased gradually where appropriate. Outings wait until children are fully settled, allowing time to build familiarity first.

Parents and key persons build records of achievement together, using information about children's interests and needs to plan next steps. Families can help through a parents' rota, share skills or read stories in their home language.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the February 2025 inspection, Ofsted found that staff worked effectively with families and professionals to obtain support for children with SEND, used additional funding for individual resources and support, and enabled these children to participate and progress. Current arrangements include a Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator role and regular moderation meetings to identify children who may need extra help, including with speech and communication. The distinction is useful: one is a dated judgement about practice, the other is a mechanism for recognising needs.

Staff update paediatric first aid and food hygiene training annually and undertake further early-years training. The team includes a Level 3 Early Years Practitioner.

Snack time brings adults and children together, while families supply packed lunches; the packed-lunch policy warns that lunches are not refrigerated and requests no nuts. Allergy-affected families should confirm current arrangements, including lunch storage and handling, before attendance begins.

If a child becomes unwell, parents are contacted for collection and the child is cared for quietly with their key person where possible. The illness policy requires children to remain away until at least 48 hours after sickness or diarrhoea has stopped. School transition includes assessment summaries at change points and, with parental consent, sharing information with schools about a child's development and interests.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Winchmore Hill Baptist Church, Compton Road, London N21 3PA. Opening hours are 9am–3pm. Morning and afternoon choices are offered across Monday to Friday, and the admissions policy distinguishes full-time from part-time attendance. It also allows full-time requests to receive preference depending on parents' work commitments and occupancy. This is an admissions condition, not an assurance of a place.

Carey Hall offers a pick-up and drop-off service from Highfield School Nursery, supporting families combining attendance at the two settings.

Enquiries use the contact form or telephone. Registration requires completed welcome forms, an original birth certificate and address proof. Admissions prioritise existing siblings, then children living within a two-mile radius, followed by specified additional needs and circumstances.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare includes up to 15 hours weekly for three- and four-year-olds, with up to 30 hours subject to eligibility. The 2025–26 terms cover Terrific Twos funding for eligible children from the term after their second birthday and funding over 38 term-time weeks.

The 2025–26 charging terms separate paid hours from funded entitlement and charge for attendance beyond funded hours. They also set separate charges for breakfast and morning and afternoon snacks, including on funded attendance; parents provide packed lunches. Non-food supplies have a mixed arrangement: hygiene products are charged separately, while families provide sun cream.

Those terms also include a charge for extra staff supporting weekly local outings. A waiting-list fee and deposit apply, and four weeks' written notice is required for withdrawal or reducing sessions. The deposit is credited against the final month's fees when the child leaves for Reception or the required notice has been given. Current prices come in the preschool's written quotation.

• How the day is organised. In February 2025, children were not consistently prepared for changes of routine, younger children sometimes disengaged from group activities, and indoor bikes interrupted quieter learning. During a visit, ask how transition cues, group participation and physical play are organised now.
• Highfield handovers. Carey Hall offers a pick-up and drop-off service from Highfield School Nursery. If combining the two settings, ask how collection and transfer fit your child's morning or afternoon attendance.
• Funding and the complete quotation. The 2025–26 terms distinguish funded hours, additional attendance, food, hygiene supplies and outing staffing. Request a written quotation for the intended pattern, with the funding conditions, waiting-list charge, deposit and notice provisions together.
• Settling and food needs. Introductory sessions can be adapted, and outings wait until a child is settled. Discuss the proposed settling sequence alongside any allergy requirements, particularly the packed-lunch storage arrangements and the policy requesting no nuts.

Carey Hall suits families seeking mornings or afternoons, including those combining attendance with Highfield School Nursery. Children's interests shape community experiences and journals, while settling adapts to individual needs.

The overall judgement in February 2025 was Good. Families should weigh that alongside the specific improvements required in transitions, younger children's group participation and indoor physical play. A visit focused on those details, paired with a complete attendance and funding quotation, will help establish whether Carey Hall's daily rhythm fits their child and household.