Rowlands Avenue Pre-School

An art room, a quiet classroom and a garden give Rowlands Avenue Pre-School more shape than a single hall filled with toys. Based at Hatch End Free Church in Pinner, it takes children aged two to five and has capacity for 48 children in total. The spaces serve different purposes: shared activities, quieter exploration, creative play and movement outdoors.

At its October 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated the nursery Good, judged safeguarding effective and found that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities were supported through individual intervention plans and work with external agencies. That is a dated assessment of care and education, rather than a judgement on the longer operating day introduced since then.

September 2026 brought a substantial practical change: opening across 50 weeks, with full-day, school-day, morning and afternoon booking options. The educational emphasis remains play, communication and increasing independence. For parents, the combination is useful: a preschool setting for older nursery children, with attendance choices that extend beyond a short morning.

Rooms and Ages

The Main Hall brings adult-guided activities together with resources children can choose themselves, supporting shared play and social development. The Physical Classroom provides a quieter place for books and construction alongside guided activities. The Art Room gives children space to express ideas and feelings through art, pretend play and role play.

These spaces support shared learning, quieter books and construction, and creative play. Their different purposes matter: construction and books have a quieter setting, while creative expression has a room of its own. The Garden Area adds a secure outdoor space for physical play and practising coordination. Together, these spaces give the day several different kinds of activity.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS framework shapes learning through play, covering communication, physical development, social and emotional development, and other areas of early learning. Here, children choose and explore activities alongside experiences guided by adults. This is the educational foundation; the useful detail lies in how activities change as children grow.

For children aged two to three, the emphasis includes expressing feelings, beginning toilet training and learning to play in a group. Stories, creative activities and exploration provide opportunities to practise communication and movement. These are practical early steps: participating with other children and becoming more comfortable managing everyday needs.

From age three, learning places greater emphasis on solving problems, working together, books, early writing and self-care. The curriculum description connects school preparation with independence and shared play. Preparation therefore includes the habits children need to take part in a group, alongside their developing language and interest in print.

In October 2022, storytelling included the Gruffalo, with a forest map and character puppets helping children participate. Mathematics involved sorting plastic bears by size and practising counting, while a large easel supported painting numbers, shapes and lines. These examples show learning embedded in objects children could handle and activities they could join, rather than confined to listening to an adult.

Outdoor and Community Life

The Garden Area provides space to move and play outside. Its emphasis on coordination complements the quieter books and construction activities indoors, giving physical development a place in the nursery day.

In October 2022, children took part in the Daily Mile, walking or running around the garden while staff discussed exercise and changes in their heartbeat. A wall map also represented children's families, languages and traditions, and All about me books gave them something personal to share with friends. Movement and conversations about identity sat alongside early literacy and number work.

Relationships and Communication

Each child has a key person who links home and preschool, guides settling visits and shares daily updates. The current settling sequence starts with an all-about-me form covering sleep, allergies, dietary needs, comforters and preferences. That gives staff practical information about the child before their first full session.

Two short visits of around an hour come before that first session, with parents accompanying their child and meeting the key person. Extra visits can be added, and the pace can be adjusted to the child's response. The arrangement gives families a gradual introduction rather than expecting an unfamiliar full session to be the starting point.

Daily summaries cover activities, food, rest and mood. Parents evenings take place each term, while idea packs and termly updates connect nursery learning with home. The different formats have different uses: a daily conversation explains how today went; a longer discussion gives space to consider development over time.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

The manager holds both the SENCO and Designated Safeguarding Officer roles. For children needing additional support, planning begins with a discussion with parents about their requirements, followed by an individual plan that is adjusted through observation and assessment. This provides a concrete route for sharing needs and shaping activities around them.

A locked-door policy controls entry, and staff undertake regular training in safeguarding and first aid. These are arrangements parents can discuss alongside their child's care needs. The daily routine also includes outdoor play, creative activities, meals and rest, giving quieter periods a place between more active experiences.

In October 2022, children practised independence by serving fruit with tongs and managing their coats and bags. Such tasks made self-care part of ordinary nursery life. They also provided opportunities to practise handling objects and following familiar routines.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Hatch End Free Church, Rowlands Avenue, Pinner, HA5 4DF. Since September 2026, opening hours are 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, across 50 weeks of the year, with bank-holiday closures.

Six attendance options give parents a choice of day lengths. Full Day runs from 8am to 6pm and School Day from 9am to 3pm. Full Morning is 8am to 1pm, while Full Afternoon is 1pm to 6pm. The shorter Morning runs from 9am to noon, and Afternoon from 1pm to 4pm. These are separate booking patterns, so families can compare the actual start and finish of each rather than relying on the opening window alone.

Enquiries can be made through the contact form, telephone or email. The form includes the intended start date and requested days and sessions. Once days are agreed, changes require written notice and depend on availability; the terms do not permit session swaps. That distinction matters for parents whose working days change regularly.

Funding and Paid Extras

Eligible children can access up to 15 hours or 30 hours of government-funded care each week. Funded sessions are delivered over 38 weeks, across the autumn, spring and summer terms. Additional private childcare hours are charged separately. The funded calendar therefore needs to be considered alongside the nursery's longer operating year.

Breakfast and snacks are included in the relevant paid session fees, while families supply packed lunches for full-day and school-day attendance. Parents also provide nappies, wipes, formula and other necessary personal items, including barrier cream.

The fees and funding information sets out the separation between funded sessions and additional care. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation. Additional activities may carry a separate charge with parental consent; this is separate from the normal curriculum covered by attendance fees.

A non-refundable registration charge accompanies the completed registration form. A deposit is requested after a place is offered, held until the child leaves and kept separate from attendance fees; its return depends on giving eight weeks' written withdrawal notice. Withdrawal or reduced attendance also requires eight weeks' written notice, with fees payable in lieu if that notice is not given.

• Funded sessions and additional hours. Funded sessions run from 9am to noon or 12.30pm to 3.30pm; the general Afternoon session runs from 1pm to 4pm. Ask how funded sessions combine with additional paid hours for your intended attendance pattern.
• Language and behaviour. In October 2022, the improvement priorities were helping children learning English as an additional language understand new vocabulary and making staff reminders about behaviour expectations more consistent. Ask how those practices work now, especially if language support is central to your choice.
• A visit with a purpose. Half-hour visits can be booked. Use the time to explore how children move between The Main Hall, The Physical Classroom and The Art Room, and discuss how the key person would adapt settling for your child.
• Fixed days and notice. Session swaps are excluded by the terms, and reducing attendance or leaving requires eight weeks' written notice. Families with changing work patterns should weigh those commitments alongside the choice of session lengths.

Rowlands Avenue Pre-School suits families seeking a play-led setting for children aged two to five, with both full-day care and shorter morning or afternoon attendance. The quieter classroom, separate art space and garden give different activities a clear place, while key-person settling and daily communication make the home-to-nursery relationship practical.

The longer operating year broadens its usefulness for working families. Funded attendance still follows a shorter calendar, with additional private hours charged separately. The strongest reasons to consider it are the activity spaces, gradual settling arrangements and genuine choice of day lengths, balanced against fixed-day terms and a substantial notice commitment.