Caterpillars Pre-School

Parent involvement gives Caterpillars Pre-School its character: The Preschool Committee runs the setting, while families can contribute through a helpers rota and fundraising. Based within Calmore Infant School in Southampton, it has capacity for 48 children and welcomes children from 2 years to school age. This is a preschool with a practical role for parents beyond receiving updates.

At its June 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated Caterpillars Good, judged safeguarding effective and found that children, including those with SEND and additional funding, made good progress. The strongest examples were ordinary experiences used purposefully: colour experiments, counting companions and learning to manage lunchtime routines. There were also clear improvement points around extending children's chosen play and helping parents continue learning at home.

Opening hours follow a term-time rhythm. That makes the calendar a central part of the decision for families comparing preschool with childcare across the year.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage provides the framework for education and care: children learn through play, developing communication, movement and relationships alongside early literacy, mathematics and creative expression. These are the foundations of early-years provision, rather than an additional programme unique to Caterpillars. Activities are planned around children's stage of development, so readiness matters when introducing links between letters and sounds.

Creative work includes art, music, movement, dance and role-play. Exploring materials gives children ways to express an idea before they can write it down; conversation develops alongside the making. Mathematics includes counting, numbers, shapes and measures, connecting early understanding to things children can handle and describe.

In June 2024, children explored colour changes by combining blue and red powder paint. Younger children practised coordination with ribbon threading and wooden shapes placed on pegs. These examples show different demands within play: experimenting with a result, controlling a small movement and finding the words to explain what happened.

Everyday moments also carried learning. In June 2024, older children counted their companions after outdoor play, while younger children recognised shapes in their drawings. Children making rainbow pictures discussed colours, and some added letters from their names. Learning was woven into an activity rather than confined to a separate exercise.

The June 2024 improvement point was about making more of these opportunities. Some practitioners did not consistently develop children's thinking when joining play the children had selected themselves. For a parent, the useful distinction is between supplying an engaging activity and using conversation or a further challenge to deepen it.

Outdoor and Community Life

Outdoor play formed part of the day in June 2024, with children putting away insect-hunting pots before lunch. The example connects exploration with responsibility for equipment. It also gives a concrete picture of children taking part in the routines around their play.

The Preschool Committee organises fundraising during each academic year to help purchase toys and equipment. Smaller events may involve colouring competitions, sponsored activities, photograph sessions or fancy dress. These are possibilities within the fundraising calendar, rather than a fixed promise that each event happens every year. Caterpillars also belongs to the Early Years Alliance.

Relationships and Communication

A key-person system gives each child an individual point of attention. Practitioners record observations of children's achievements and use these to plan subsequent learning; photographs, taken with parental permission, contribute to learning journeys. The practical value is continuity between noticing what a child can do and deciding what comes next.

In June 2024, staff knew children well and helped them practise sharing and taking turns. Encouragement was tied to specific behaviour, such as listening to another child or allowing someone else a turn with a favourite toy. Personal and emotional development therefore had a place in everyday interactions, alongside more visible activities such as painting and drawing.

Parents received information about activities and progress in June 2024, but learning suggestions for home were not shared consistently. The improvement request was for fuller information that parents could use beyond preschool. This matters most to families who want a clear connection between the child's experiences here and what they might practise together at home.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

The staff structure includes a safeguarding lead and a special educational needs coordinator. Separate records are used to identify and monitor special educational needs, giving the support process a defined mechanism rather than relying only on informal conversations.

At the June 2024 inspection, Ofsted found that staff coordinated support with other professionals and used additional funding for private speech therapists, whose individual programmes helped children develop communication. The important detail is the link between specialist advice and the programme staff followed with the child.

Staff development in June 2024 included coaching, supervision and training in children's social and emotional development. Independence was another practical thread: older children practised cutting food with cutlery, while younger children opened sandwiches and cleared away afterwards. These were small steps towards managing routines for themselves before moving on to school.

Sessions and Attendance

Caterpillars is open Monday to Friday, 8.30am to 3.15pm, during term time, and closes for school holidays. Families need their childcare arrangements to fit both the afternoon finishing time and the holiday calendar. Uniform is optional; logoed clothing can be purchased by those who want it.

The address is Calmore Infant School, Calmore Drive, Southampton, SO40 2ZZ. Enquiries can be made through the contact form, by email at supervisor@caterpillarspreschool.org.uk or by telephone on 023 8086 4228.

Operating within Calmore Infant School does not guarantee a Reception place. Families still apply through the local authority admissions process; preschool attendance and school admission are separate decisions.

Funding and Paid Extras

Caterpillars accepts the 15-hour additional-support entitlement for eligible 2-year-olds, the universal 15-hour entitlement for 3- and 4-year-olds from the term after their third birthday, and up to 30 funded hours for eligible working parents of children aged 2, 3 and 4. Provision is term-time only, and applications for working-parent funding require an eligibility code.

Additional private sessions are charged, with payment each half-term or weekly by agreement with the manager. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation. Early Years Pupil Premium supports qualifying children aged 3 and 4, and Tax free Childcare is also accepted as a scheme supporting working parents with childcare costs.

• Term-time calendar. Opening ends at 3.15pm and school holidays are closures. This suits arrangements built around the school year; families needing later care or holiday coverage need to account for those periods.
• Learning beyond the activity. June 2024 brought improvement requests about challenging child-chosen play and sharing useful learning ideas with parents. During a visit, ask to see how practitioners now extend an activity and communicate the next learning step.
• The whole funded arrangement. Both funded entitlement and paid additional sessions form part of the offer. When discussing a place, ask how meals and non-food consumables are handled within your proposed attendance arrangement.
• A school site, a separate application. Caterpillars operates within Calmore Infant School. Choose the preschool for the early-years experience itself, and treat the Reception application as a separate process.

Caterpillars suits families seeking term-time preschool from age 2, especially those who value a key-person relationship and opportunities to contribute through a parent committee or helpers rota. Its June 2024 examples give substance to the learning offer: mathematical talk, creative experiments and growing independence within daily routines.

Its practical limits are clear. The school-day opening window and holiday closures are concrete constraints, while the June 2024 improvement priorities make the quality of adult interaction and communication with home worthwhile subjects for a visit.