Jack And Jill Preschool

A piano, a large hall for movement and a gated outdoor area give Jack And Jill Preschool a clear character: play, conversation and music have room to happen. Based at Trinity Methodist Church on Lingfield Road in East Grinstead, it accepts children from two years and has capacity for 25 children. Its classroom and access to the hall provide different spaces for quieter learning and physical activity.

At its January 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated the preschool Good, judged safeguarding effective and found that children with special educational needs and disabilities received effective help with their learning. Those judgements belong to that visit. Two improvement priorities also matter: recognising the cultural backgrounds of children attending and strengthening adults' example in caring for toys and books.

The practical shape is term-time preschool, with optional lunch club and an early start rather than a working-day opening window.

Rooms and Ages

Lingfield Hall is the preschool's base on days other than Thursday, when it uses the Roundabout room. The room used changes on Thursdays as part of the preschool's weekly routine. For a young child learning to recognise familiar surroundings, that Thursday change is a useful detail for families to understand.

A classroom supports everyday learning, while the large indoor hall accommodates physical play and movement to music. Outside, a secure, gated area extends the places children can explore. The combination gives active play an indoor space as well as an outdoor one.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage provides the framework for learning, development and care: here, children practise communication, physical skills, relationships and early literacy and mathematics through indoor activities and outdoor play. These are the everyday foundations of early education, rather than an additional branded programme.

Concrete activities make that framework easier to picture. Playdough and threading exercise small hand movements; bikes, beanbags and ribbon dancing involve larger movements. The book corner supports shared stories, while drawing and outdoor mark-making introduce written expression. Sorting, patterns and counting give children practical ways to explore mathematical ideas.

Music has tangible resources behind it. A teacher supports singing and music-making, and the preschool has a piano. Children also play instruments together. These activities put listening, sound and participation into the nursery day alongside role play and painting.

In January 2023, staff gave children thinking time before expecting an answer and used questions to develop conversations about their artwork. Planning drew on observations of individual children, with familiar concepts consolidated before harder work followed. Counting and recognising smaller numbers preceded further number work: the emphasis was on understanding before moving ahead.

Outdoor and Community Life

During January 2023, outdoor play included steering ride-on toys around other people and equipment, investigating soil and sand, and discovering ice in the garden. These examples show physical coordination and exploration sharing the same outdoor space.

Den Day was a fundraising activity for Save the Children: children collaborated on shelters made from everyday materials. It connected imaginative construction with working together for a charitable purpose. This was a recorded activity, rather than a promise of a recurring event.

Relationships and Communication

Each child has a keyworker, and staff discuss needs with parents before and during attendance. Individual learning journals bring together photographs, observations and examples of children's work. That gives families concrete material for conversations about what their child is learning and what comes next.

Parents can contribute to planning, discuss progress and observe their child during a session involving additional support. Children's interests can become starting points for topics. This gives communication a practical role in shaping activities, rather than limiting it to updates after the event.

In January 2023, settling arrangements were adapted to individual children's needs, and children new to the preschool settled successfully. The current team includes qualified practitioners, an advisory primary school teacher and a health and safety adviser. Designated child protection roles and paediatric first aid training are also identified within the staff structure.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

Additional support is overseen by the SENCO and manager, with parents and outside agencies involved in setting targets. Staff review interventions and discuss changes with families when an approach is ineffective. Support accessed includes speech and language therapy, occupational therapy and an educational psychologist, giving families specific mechanisms to discuss rather than a general promise of inclusion.

Quiet spaces and the book corner sit alongside sensory resources, construction materials and movement activities. Staff may seek inclusion funding for additional support, and provision is reviewed termly. For transition to primary school, teachers are welcomed to visit, while staff share information about identified needs and strategies.

Children help prepare fruit for snack time and eat snacks together. In January 2023, learning about health also included food choices and a visitor's talk about caring for teeth.

Sessions and Attendance

The preschool opens for 38 weeks during school terms. Opening hours are 9am to 3pm on Mondays and Wednesdays, and 9am to 1pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Friday runs from 9am to noon, with optional lunch club extending attendance to 1pm; lunch club runs from noon to 1pm.

An early start from 8.45am provides another adjustment to the morning. These shorter openings make the setting relevant to families planning preschool around the school day, with lunch club offering an extension to the Friday morning.

Getting There

The address is Trinity Methodist Church, Lingfield Road, East Grinstead, RH19 2HA. Telephone and email provide direct contact with the preschool, and visits can be arranged through the manager.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded provision includes Free Entitlement of 15 hours per week for three- and four-year-olds, plus Free Entitlement for some two-year-olds. Attendance follows the preschool's term-time calendar; the two-year-old offer is conditional, so it should not be read as applying to every child of that age.

Paid childcare is also offered. Fees are paid ahead of attendance and are non-refundable, while leaving requires half a term's notice. The notice period matters when planning a change of childcare or the move to school.

• Thursday's different room. Children use the Roundabout room on Thursdays rather than Lingfield Hall. During a visit, ask how familiar resources and routines carry across that change.
• Cultural belonging and care of resources. In January 2023, staff did not consistently reflect attending children's cultural backgrounds or model respect for toys and books. Ask how these two priorities now shape everyday practice.
• Lunch club and total costs. Friday's noon finish can extend to 1pm through optional lunch club. Request a written quotation covering your attendance pattern, food and consumables so the whole arrangement is clear.
• Settling into preschool. Individual settling arrangements worked well in January 2023. Discuss how a start would be tailored to your child, especially if they need additional communication or sensory support.

Jack And Jill suits families seeking term-time preschool, including those who prefer a shorter morning and those who want to add lunch club. Its piano, indoor hall and outdoor area give play and movement concrete space, while keyworker contact and learning journals offer useful ways to follow a child's development.

The January 2023 Good judgement is a positive starting point, balanced by specific work on cultural belonging and adults' care of resources. For families weighing this preschool, those practical questions deserve as much attention as its appealing mix of music, play and individual planning.