Holland Park Pre-Prep & Nursery

An indoor-outdoor garden for older children gives the Holland Road pre-prep a clear physical identity. At number 9, outdoor learning sits alongside preparation for Reception, with practical skills, early reading and mathematical ideas forming part of the day. The appeal is the combination: children have structured learning to tackle and room for active play.

Holland Park Pre-Prep & Nursery is at 9 Holland Road, London W14 8HJ. Its current age range is 3 to 60 months.

At its November 2022 inspection, Ofsted judged the provision Good and safeguarding effective, and found that children needing additional learning support made very good progress. That judgement is dated. The account below distinguishes those observations from the current arrangements, rather than treating the daily life of that visit as a description of today.

Full Day and School Day attendance sit alongside morning sessions, with an age-based move from year-round attendance to term-time provision. That change deserves attention before a family commits to a pattern.

Rooms and Ages

Central Class combines practical independence with early number work and phonics, while garden equipment includes tricycles and apparatus for climbing. This keeps preparation for later learning connected to physical activity and everyday skills. Opportunities to spend time with older children also make learning across age groups part of the arrangement.

Jubilee Class prepares children approaching Reception through literacy and mathematics, alongside creative work and trips to museums, parks and art installations. The point is broader than practising letters and numbers: experiences beyond the classroom give children material to discuss, investigate and use in their own work.

At number 9, the Pre-Prep Garden provides an indoor-outdoor environment for older children. This is the outdoor feature relevant to this address; it should not be confused with the Primary Garden at number 5. For families choosing this setting, the useful distinction is which spaces their child will actually use during the day.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the framework for learning across seven areas, connecting communication, physical and social development with early literacy, mathematics and understanding the world. It is the educational foundation here, rather than an extra programme. HPPN adds its own emphasis on children exploring ideas, asking questions and developing independence.

In November 2022, children practised letter formation on an interactive white board, tracing shapes with their fingers and taking turns. It is a concrete example of early reading work using a shared resource, with the social demands of waiting and cooperating alongside the letter work.

Outdoor and Community Life

In November 2022, outdoor play included bikes, small stilts and construction using large blocks. These activities gave children different physical challenges, from balancing to coordinating movement and building together. During the same period, recycling was part of daily learning: children sorted materials and discussed why they belonged in different bins.

In November 2022, parents appreciated accompanying their children on organised visits, including Tate Modern. That is a useful example of learning extending beyond the premises, rather than evidence of a fixed trip schedule. The current pre-prep offer also includes trips linked to creativity and experiences outside the classroom, giving families a reason to look closely at how classroom themes connect with those outings.

Relationships and Communication

In November 2022, children sought staff out for comfort and conversation. One discussion about a vaccination developed into questions about medical professionals, with staff building on the children's interest. This shows how an ordinary experience could become a learning opportunity while retaining the personal connection between child and practitioner.

Communication with families has a practical role too. Feedback can be given directly to senior staff or by email, and HPPN provides a parent app. Those are routes for communication, rather than a promise about how often updates arrive. The app also appears within the additional-services arrangements for funded childcare, so its charging position belongs in the same conversation as the attendance package.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

In November 2022, Ofsted found that staff worked with families and professionals to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children learning English as an additional language, but called for more precise adult-led teaching and better use of daily routines for learning. Both sides matter: individual support was a strength, while some planned experiences did not reach every child as effectively as they could.

The lunchtime concern was specific. In November 2022, children served themselves and could take more food, but staff did not make enough use of mealtime conversation to extend learning. Independence was being practised; the social learning within that routine needed more attention. This is a more useful distinction for parents than assuming that a positive overall grade settled every aspect of the day.

HPPN has policies covering settling, SEND, safeguarding, recruitment and illness. These establish the subjects addressed by its arrangements; the dated safeguarding judgement above remains the basis for assessing effectiveness.

Food is cooked by an in-house chef, with vegetarian choices and a policy of catering for allergies and dietary requirements. Snacks include fruit and milk or an alternative; cooking activities and helping with preparation also connect food with practical learning.

Sessions and Attendance

Opening hours are 7.30am to 6.15pm. Full Day runs from 8.15am to 6.15pm, School Day from 8.15am to 3pm, and Mornings from 8.15am to 12.15pm, including lunch. Breakfast club runs from 7.30am to 8.15am, and additional hours carry an extra charge.

The attendance change follows age rather than the classroom a child occupies. Year-round attendance continues until the term after the third birthday, when children move to term-time sessions. An earlier move into a pre-prep class does not itself trigger that change. This matters for families whose working arrangements continue through school holidays.

Holiday Club serves children aged 3 to 6 outside normal term dates and requires advance booking. Its activities emphasise physical and creative experiences, with outings, rather than formal teaching. It offers Full Day, School Day and morning patterns at the times set out above, with breakfast club also offered.

The joining process starts with contact to arrange a visit or speak to the team, followed by an application. Tour booking is available. The setting's address is 9 Holland Road, London W14 8HJ.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered alongside paid childcare. Access to funded hours does not depend on paying additional charges, and the Extras and Essentials/Additional Services Fee is voluntary. Families choosing not to pay it can discuss the options with the admissions team.

For funded hours, meals and snacks are charged separately through additional-services arrangements, as are nappies, formula and other consumables. Additional hours, enrichment and parent-app access also fall outside the childcare and EYFS provision covered by funding. This distinction matters more than a headline funded-hours offer: families need to understand the package they are choosing.

Funded Entitlement Only (FEO) places use a set booking pattern and are allocated according to need under the funding policy. They are an attendance option with conditions, rather than a promise that every preferred timetable can be funded. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

• The number 9 experience. HPPN uses more than one address, and the Pre-Prep Garden belongs to number 9. On a visit, which rooms and outdoor spaces would your child use, and how would their day be organised between them?
• Teaching within routines. The November 2022 improvement points concerned the precision of planned teaching and the learning value of daily routines. Ask how staff now adapt an activity for different children and use lunchtime conversation to extend learning.
• The term-time change. Attendance switches after the third birthday, while Holiday Club requires advance booking for holiday provision. Consider how those two arrangements fit your family's year, rather than assuming a classroom move determines the timetable.
• Funding and dietary needs. Funded hours and additional services have separate charging arrangements. For an allergy-affected child, confirm current food practice and how the chosen funded package handles meals, formula and consumables.

Holland Park Pre-Prep & Nursery suits families wanting a choice between mornings, School Day and Full Day attendance, with a pre-prep emphasis on practical independence, early literacy and mathematics. The number 9 garden, Central Class and Jubilee Class give that offer a recognisable shape.

The Good judgement from November 2022 provides a positive assessment with specific teaching improvements attached. The main practical decision is how the age-based term-time transition and funded-services package fit family life. Those details deserve as much attention as the pre-prep learning.