Dicker House Preschool

Play, parent involvement and a school-site setting give Dicker House Preschool its character. Based in the Community Room at Birchwood Grove CP School in Burgess Hill, it has 26 places in total and is run by a volunteer parent committee. Families can take part in decisions about fundraising, spending and how the preschool operates, rather than simply attending its events.

At its 11 November 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated Dicker House Good overall, while identifying two teaching priorities: planning more closely around individual learning needs and giving children greater room to develop their own ideas. Those points matter alongside the grade. Enjoyable activities need to move each child's learning forward, and adult questions should help children think rather than take over their play.

Children generally start at the closest half-term or start of term after turning two and a half, with flexibility subject to space. Morning and afternoon sessions provide separate attendance options, with an additional lunch hour offered subject to space to children attending that day.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage provides the framework for learning, development and care: here, its areas of learning are explored through play, conversation, movement, stories and practical activities. Communication receives particular emphasis. Adults talk with children, encourage them to join songs and rhymes, and help them listen and respond to one another. This makes language part of ordinary play rather than something reserved for a separate lesson.

A home corner, puppet theatre and shop give imaginative play concrete starting points. Construction materials, water play and cooking add different ways to experiment, while puzzles and board games introduce problems to solve. Mathematical learning includes sorting everyday objects, comparing quantities and talking about shapes; books and early writing activities help children connect pictures, words and meaning.

The daily routine alternates child-chosen activities with shared moments. Morning play is followed by carpet time and a snack, while the afternoon includes games, conversation, stories and singing. Yoga usually takes place once a week. These changes of pace give children opportunities both to pursue their own interests and to participate in a group.

In November 2022, children used timers to manage turns and resolve disagreements. Stories were read with expression, and older children explored information books and connections between letters and sounds. Books could also be borrowed for sharing at home, extending the same learning beyond the preschool session.

Outdoor and Community Life

Bikes, rockers and a climbing frame support active play, and sports activities can use either the outdoor space or the hall, depending on the weather. The choice matters on wet days: movement need not depend entirely on getting outside.

In November 2022, the garden offered scooters, tricycles and tyres for balancing. Children also practised smaller movements through handling materials and using pencils. The combination gave physical development several forms, from whole-body balance to the control needed for writing.

Educational visits are something the preschool tries to arrange during the year, with examples including the library, fire station, nature walks and a summer outing. Members of the community also visit, or welcome visits from the children. These experiences connect learning with people and places beyond the setting, without implying a fixed timetable of trips.

Relationships and Communication

The Key Person System gives each family a main practitioner contact and introduces a second member of staff as another point of contact. Consultations and observation sheets provide ways to discuss learning, and families receive a copy of the observation information. A change of key person is communicated in writing, helping parents keep track of who holds that relationship.

Learning journals draw on observations and discussions with parents. A key-person progress review takes place between 24 and 36 months, covering the prime areas of development. Together, these arrangements give families specific material to discuss, rather than relying only on a brief exchange at the end of a session.

Membership of the Pre-School Learning Alliance adds access to staff training and advice about children's care. Parent involvement also has a practical governance role: the elected committee handles finance, policies, staffing and fundraising. Joining it is an opportunity to contribute to the preschool's decisions, with responsibilities as well as social contact.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

A SENDCO lead is responsible for individual plans and for assisting families and colleagues. At the November 2022 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and children with special educational needs and/or disabilities making good progress, supported by coordination between parents, speech therapists and other settings. Those are dated judgements, rather than a substitute for discussing an individual child's needs.

The daily routine includes handwashing before food and opportunities to manage personal belongings. Lunch is eaten from children's lunch boxes, while families are asked for a half-termly donation towards snack fruit and cookery activities. That distinction matters when planning what to send from home and what sits outside the childcare charge.

Sessions and Attendance

Dicker House operates at the Community Room, Birchwood Grove Road, Burgess Hill, RH15 0DP, within the grounds of Birchwood Grove CP School. Morning sessions run from 8.55am to 11.55am, Monday to Friday; afternoon sessions run from 11.55am to 2.55pm on the same days. The two patterns let families choose different parts of the preschool day.

Children attending that day can add an additional lunch hour, subject to space, at a separate charge or within funded entitlement. The preschool does not offer breakfast or after-school clubs. It also closes to children on Birchwood Grove School's inset days, which are generally made up elsewhere in the school year. Families arranging attendance around school dates need to account for those closures.

A visit-booking form accepts a preferred date and a message. Contact is also available by telephone or email, providing a direct route to begin joining arrangements.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare includes 15 hours of Free entitlement and the extended 15 hours of childcare, subject to eligibility and availability. Paid sessions are also offered, with fees invoiced in advance for each half-term. Current prices come in the preschool's written quotation.

The additional lunch hour is offered subject to space to children attending that day and may be paid for separately or counted towards entitlement; it is attendance time, rather than a promise of a prepared meal. Families supply lunch boxes, and the requested donation for fruit and cookery is separate from session fees. Preschool clothing is voluntary, so it need not become another joining purchase.

Sharing a site with Birchwood Grove CP School does not secure a Reception place. Dicker House is independent, and families must make a separate school application through the local authority admissions process. The convenient location should therefore be considered separately from the school admissions decision.

• Teaching priorities. In November 2022, activity planning did not consistently address each child's next learning steps, and adult questioning sometimes restricted children's own ideas. On a visit, ask how planning and conversations during play now respond to those priorities.
• School-day boundaries. Morning and afternoon sessions finish within the school day, with no breakfast or after-school club and closures on school inset days. These arrangements need to fit the family's care timetable.
• Food and lunch club. Lunch boxes come from home, snack fruit and cookery attract a requested donation, and the additional lunch hour is offered subject to space to children attending that day, charged separately or within entitlement. Discuss how these arrangements would work for your child's dietary needs and chosen sessions.
• Parent committee involvement. Volunteer parents oversee finance, staffing, policies and fundraising. Families interested in joining can ask about the responsibilities and time involved.

Dicker House suits families seeking morning or afternoon preschool sessions, with an additional lunch hour offered subject to space to children attending that day. Its play resources, emphasis on conversation and structured key-person contact give that offer substance, while the parent committee provides a route into the running of the setting.

The Good judgement from November 2022 sits alongside clear teaching priorities. Matching activities to individual learning and allowing children to develop their own thinking are the teaching priorities families should weigh alongside that grade. The shared school site adds convenience, but school entry remains a separate application.