Hurstpierpoint Preschool

A giant sandpit, a climbing frame with a wobbly bridge, and woodland mornings give Hurstpierpoint Preschool a clear outdoor character. This committee-run charity uses the Village Centre as its base, combining mixed-age play with a Forest School programme for children approaching school age. It is a village preschool with plenty happening beyond the indoor activities.

At its October 2023 inspection, Ofsted judged the provision Good, found safeguarding effective and identified clear support for children with SEND and those learning English as an additional language. That assessment provides a useful foundation, though the detail matters more than the grade: staff followed children's interests, encouraged independent choices and helped them practise the small physical skills needed for writing.

Children can attend from two and a half to five years, and the setting has 26 places in total. Morning sessions and full days serve different family routines, within a term-time calendar. Its appeal rests on the combination of outdoor exploration, a shared preschool space and practical ways for parents to participate.

Rooms and Ages

The Club Suite in Hurstpierpoint Village Centre is the preschool's home, with its own entrance, toilets and two outdoor play areas. Sessions mix children across the accepted age range rather than separating them into age-specific bookings. For families, that means the choice of session does not depend on a child moving into a different age group.

Activity choices sit alongside shared routines. Children can pursue their own play, while adults bring them together for stories, snacks and circle time. The balance gives a child room to finish something absorbing, as well as opportunities to listen, sing and contribute within a group.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS sets the standards for children's learning, development and care; here, the day combines play chosen by children with activities led by adults. Staff observe that play and use what they notice to decide which experiences to introduce next. Learning is therefore connected to what children do, rather than confined to a separate lesson slot.

In October 2023, children chose resources from boxes labelled with pictures, including a number puzzle. Conversations about space became opportunities to introduce vocabulary and discuss size. Pegs and large tweezers gave children practice in controlling their hands, while pretend cooking brought mathematical language into play. These examples show how everyday interests can support language, early number understanding and preparation for writing.

Forest School adds a more sustained outdoor strand for children in their final preschool year. Each group spends one morning a week in local parkland, combining exploration, walks and activities shaped around children's interests. Campfires and tools are introduced as the weeks progress. This is a recurring part of the preschool experience, rather than an occasional outing.

Outdoor and Community Life

The grassy garden contains the giant sandpit, climbing frame, wobbly bridge and tunnels, giving children places to climb, dig and invent hiding games. The paved garden supports bikes, scooters, ball games and running, with access during much of the day. It is used throughout the year; an awning provides shelter from rain and strong sunshine.

Woodland activities include looking for insects, building dens and climbing trees. The changing seasons become something children experience directly. In October 2023, older children also worked together on an autumn scavenger hunt and practised a protective response to an approaching dog, linking outdoor exploration with everyday safety.

Family participation extends beyond sessions. Parents can volunteer on Forest School mornings or contribute through the committee and fundraising. A Christmas Party is scheduled for 18 December 2026, with children and their parents or carers invited. These are concrete opportunities to take part in the preschool's life.

Relationships and Communication

Each child has a key person who helps with settling, friendships, toileting and worries, and follows their learning. Usually, that relationship continues throughout the child's time here. Settling arrangements are agreed with families and can include shorter initial days or a parent staying during early sessions. The starting point is the individual child, rather than a fixed separation timetable.

Famly brings photographs, observations, messages and invoices into one app, and identifies the child's key person. Parents can contribute photographs from home, giving staff another way to understand a child's interests and experiences. A family-and-pet photo wall adds a physical connection between home and preschool, while a daily staff board helps children recognise who is caring for them.

At the October 2023 inspection, Ofsted identified two areas for further work: staff did not consistently know every child's next learning priority, and some parents could not identify their child's key person, limiting exchanges about learning. These are specific issues to explore, because a familiar adult and useful updates matter more than simply having an app account.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

The SENCO role provides a route for families to discuss additional needs and coordinate support with other professionals. The April 2026 SEND arrangements use Assess – Plan – Do – Review: identify the need, agree support, put it into practice and review its effect. Possible measures include visual timetables, individual plans, adapted resources, sensory strategies and work in smaller groups. Support is tailored rather than treated as a single package.

Parents contribute through discussions, progress reviews and shared targets. Referrals to professionals are made with families, and transition arrangements can include information sharing, visits, stories and visual preparation. That gives the receiving setting a way to understand a child's needs before the move, without implying an admissions advantage.

Toilet training is not a condition of attendance. Staff change nappies when needed and work with families' potty-training routines, while children practise managing clothing, using the toilet and washing their hands. Comfort objects can come from home to support settling. Staff also help families with behaviour and mealtime difficulties, including finding another professional where appropriate.

Safeguarding arrangements include designated lead roles and staff training. The child-protection procedure explains that concerns will generally be discussed with parents, but an urgent risk can lead to contact with children's services before parental agreement. This sets clear expectations about the limits of confidentiality when a child's safety is involved.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Village Centre, Trinity Road, Hurstpierpoint, BN6 9UY. Morning sessions run from 9am to noon, Monday to Friday; full days run from 9am to 3.30pm, Monday to Thursday. The preschool operates for 38 weeks annually and closes for school holidays. Friday therefore offers a morning pattern rather than the longer day available earlier in the week.

Once a child has started attending, families can request occasional additional sessions. An ad-hoc afternoon requires the child to be attending that morning already. This condition matters when planning occasional extra care: the afternoon option is an extension of the child's day.

The joining route is an online waiting-list form, followed by an email acknowledgement and a request for further information; a paper form can also be collected. Tours can be arranged by telephone or email. General contact is through admin@hurstpreschool.org.uk or 01273 834144, with Famly providing a messaging route once a family has an account.

Funding and Paid Extras

The preschool accepts the universal 15-hour entitlement for three- and four-year-olds from the term after their third birthday, 15-hour Local Authority funding for eligible two-year-olds, and 30-hour funding for eligible working parents, within its own intake starting at two and a half. Funding is used within the term-time offer. Families claiming the universal entitlement complete a Parent Declaration Form and supply evidence of their child's birth date; extra hours beyond funding are paid privately.

Tax-free childcare payments are accepted. Fees are invoiced at the start of each term, and absence through illness or holidays does not remove the fee liability. Current prices come in the preschool's written quotation. For children in their final preschool year, Forest School runs on Mondays and Tuesdays and carries a separate annual charge; families can choose for their child not to participate.

Lunch Club, for children staying all day, uses lunches packed by parents; snack contributions are optional, with fruit from home an alternative, while milk is free and drinking water is provided. The lunch policy prohibits nuts and food swapping, and lunch boxes cannot be refrigerated, making careful packing important.

Parents supply nappy-changing items when needed. They also send spare clothes, suitable outdoor clothing and any comfort object. These practical requirements belong in the everyday preparation for a session, rather than being treated as an all-inclusive care package.

• Term-time routines. Morning sessions run throughout the working week, but full days end at 3.30pm and operate only Monday to Thursday. Consider how that pattern fits work commitments and school-holiday care.
• Learning updates. The October 2023 findings concerned staff knowledge of next learning priorities and parents' understanding of key-person arrangements. During a tour, ask how the key person shares those priorities and how other staff use them.
• Forest School participation. Weekly woodland mornings apply in the final preschool year and carry a separate annual charge. Discuss how participation, clothing and the option to decline are organised for your child.
• Packed lunches and allergies. Lunches come from home and cannot be refrigerated. Allergy-affected families should confirm current handling arrangements, including the policy on nuts and food sharing.

Hurstpierpoint Preschool suits families seeking either morning sessions or full days within a term-time routine, with a substantial outdoor element as children approach school. The gardens provide everyday physical play, while weekly Forest School mornings give older children a recurring experience beyond the Village Centre.

Key-person continuity, Famly and tailored SEND mechanisms give families practical ways to stay involved. The October 2023 assessment also leaves a clear question about how consistently adults share learning priorities. For parents who value mixed-age play and want to participate through woodland volunteering or the committee, this is a preschool with a recognisable village character.