Cherubs Pre-School, Hornchurch

An all-weather garden and the Butterfly Room give this church-based preschool its character. Cherubs Pre-School, Hornchurch occupies Hornchurch Methodist Church on the High Street, close to Harrow Lodge Park, and has capacity for 44 children aged two to five. Its setting combines a main hall classroom with access to a smaller side room and outdoor space at the front of the building.

At its April 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated the preschool Good and found safeguarding effective. The practical appeal is a term-time preschool day, with full-day and half-day booking choices. The educational picture has strengths in conversation, independence and relationships, alongside clear work to do on drawing quieter children into activities and giving children more control over their creations.

Rooms and Ages

The Butterfly Room occupies the large hall and has access to a small side room. The preschool accepts children aged two to five; its whole-setting capacity should not be read as the number sharing an activity or attending on a particular day.

A small enclosed garden sits at the front of the church. Its all-weather surface supports daily planned outdoor activities, giving children another place to play beyond the hall. Harrow Lodge Park is nearby, a useful geographical landmark rather than a promised destination for nursery outings.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage provides the framework for learning and care: children develop language, social understanding and practical skills through play and everyday routines. In April 2024, learning included a theme about people who help others. Older children explored police uniforms through role play, while younger children tried fingerprinting and learnt the names of their fingers. Those examples connect new vocabulary with something children can handle or act out.

Conversation also grew from ordinary tasks. In April 2024, children discussed washing vegetables before cooking, and a magnetic fishing game gave a small group practice in listening and waiting for a turn. These are concrete routes into communication and cooperation.

Creative work needed more freedom. In April 2024, adults sometimes directed the placement of details on police-car pictures and restricted the paint colour. The improvement priority was to value children's decisions and the learning involved in making something, rather than concentrating on a predetermined finished picture.

Relationships and Communication

In April 2024, children had established close relationships with staff and settled readily into play. Parents met their child's key person regularly to discuss development and what to work on next. That creates a useful exchange: staff can explain what happens at preschool, while parents contribute what they know about their child at home.

Everyday care also gave children responsibility. In April 2024, they washed their hands for meals, served snacks, poured drinks and cleared up after lunch. These small tasks made independence part of the day rather than a separate lesson.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the April 2024 inspection, Ofsted found that planning for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities involved families, staff and external agencies, and that cooperative play activities benefited children with additional needs. Staff training at that time covered autism awareness, speech and language, and signing, linking professional development to the needs being supported.

In April 2024, adults helped children talk through disagreements and understand one another's feelings. However, some younger children with less developed language were not fully included in conversations and activities. For families whose child is quieter or still finding words, that distinction matters: opportunities to talk need active adult support as well as an interesting activity.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Hornchurch Methodist Church, 19 High Street, Hornchurch, RM11 1TP. Opening hours are 9am to 3pm from Monday to Thursday, with a noon finish on Friday. Attendance is term-time, with closure during school holidays, so the preschool calendar needs to fit the family's wider childcare arrangements.

Full-day and half-day choices are offered through the Hornchurch enquiry form. Admissions enquiries can be sent to admissions@cherubs-preschool.co.uk. Joining the waiting list does not guarantee a place.

Getting There

On-site parking is reserved for disabled users; public car parks are nearby. Families driving to the High Street setting therefore need to allow for parking away from the church unless using its disabled provision.

Funding and Paid Extras

In April 2024, the preschool provided free early education for children aged two, three and four. Families should obtain current prices through the nursery's written quotation.

• Quieter children's participation. In April 2024, some younger children with fewer words were not fully engaged in activities. During a visit, ask how practitioners now draw these children into conversation and group play.
• Room organisation. The two Hornchurch room arrangements give different session caps for the Butterfly Room, and one also includes the Ladybird Room. Ask which room arrangement operates for your child's attendance pattern; these figures are separate from the preschool's 44 places in total.
• The weekly calendar. Term-time attendance and Friday's noon finish require a different childcare plan from the longer Monday-to-Thursday opening window. Consider both the shorter Friday and school holidays before choosing days.
• Funding and everyday supplies. Free early education was offered in April 2024. Before committing, ask which funded entitlement applies to your child, how it fits the chosen sessions, and who supplies or pays for food and non-food consumables.

Cherubs suits families seeking either full-day or half-day preschool attendance within a term-time calendar. The hall-based Butterfly Room and all-weather garden provide a clear physical identity, while the April 2024 examples show learning rooted in conversation, role play and everyday independence. The decision points are equally concrete: the shorter Friday, room organisation, and how staff involve quieter children while leaving space for their own ideas.