Duckies Pre-school

An undercover garden, an indoor swing and wooden cots give Duckies Pre-school a practical identity: physical play and rest each have their own space. This Barnstaple setting accepts children from 3 months to 5 years and has capacity for 60 children. At its February 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated it Good and found safeguarding effective. That judgement is a dated assessment, while the current facilities give families concrete reasons to look closely.

The offer extends beyond preschool preparation. Younger children have sensory activities in Nursery (Ducklings), while Pre-School (Duckies) encourages older children to choose activities independently. A parent app connects the nursery day with home, covering meals, toileting and learning. Morning, afternoon and school sessions sit alongside full-day bookings, so the attendance choices serve different working and family routines.

Rooms and Ages

Nursery (Ducklings), for children aged 3 months to 3 years, combines adult interaction with sensory exploration and play shaped around individual interests. Pre-School (Duckies), for ages 3 to 5 years, has a spacious room divided into learning sections, with self-chosen activities used to practise independence before school.

Those overlapping age boundaries make the move between rooms a useful discussion for families approaching a third birthday. The younger provision spans babies and children developing more independent play; the older room gives children opportunities to make choices themselves. The distinction is about what happens in the spaces, rather than simply changing the name on a room.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the educational framework: children learn through play across its seven areas of learning, with their interests helping shape activities. Duckies uses a key-person system to bring individual needs into that planning. The practical value is a link between what interests a child and what staff arrange for them to explore.

In February 2023, activities included transferring fine soil between containers of different sizes and practising how to remove a firmly attached pot lid. These were ordinary materials used for purposeful learning: handling, experimenting and persisting with a task. Staff also brought shape names into conversations about objects around the setting, connecting an activity with the wider room.

The same February 2023 assessment identified two development priorities: extending learning more consistently and broadening children's encounters with cultures and diversity. Examples included missed chances for conversation during babies' outdoor exploration and for children to take part in preparing snacks. Both priorities concern how everyday activities extend children's learning.

Outdoor and Community Life

The undercover garden contains a mud kitchen and sand tray, alongside books, creative materials and small-world toys. Cover makes outdoor play possible in wet weather as well as dry conditions. Sensory exploration and physical activity therefore have a place beyond the main rooms.

Inside, Soft Play brings together a slide, ball pool and indoor swing; an indoor grass area provides another space for physical toys. These are different ways to move and explore within the building. Holiday Club serves children aged 2 to 8 outside term time, with activities shaped around seasonal themes and children's needs, plus access to Lets Go Bowling downstairs.

Relationships and Communication

A key person follows each child's needs and interests, giving families a consistent relationship through which to discuss their child's day. The Parent App shares updates as events happen, including food, toileting, activities and learning progress. Parents can also add experiences from home, making communication work in both directions rather than ending with a daily summary.

At the February 2023 inspection, Ofsted found that relationships with key people helped children feel secure, and that staff worked with families and external agencies to support communication. These findings give substance to the care model: individual attention and language support were part of the experience assessed at that time.

In February 2023, staff used timers to prepare children for changes between activities and modelled polite interactions. Children were also helped to recognise differences and similarities through looking at their faces in mirrors. The practical emphasis was on understanding themselves, managing transitions and learning how to share space with others.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

The Sleep Room has wooden cots for younger children and mats for older ones. Staff follow sleep routines from home and check sleeping children regularly. A separate resting area matters when children attending the same session need different amounts of sleep.

Food choices include breakfast, a hot lunch and picnic tea, with meals adapted for dietary needs and allergies. The chef prepares dishes from fresh ingredients where possible, and the sample menu spans three weeks. CCTV and coded entry are also part of the building's arrangements; they describe access and monitoring measures rather than replacing the dated safeguarding assessment.

Sessions and Attendance

Duckies operates at Lets Go, Braunton Road, Barnstaple, EX31 1LG. Opening hours are 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, across 51 weeks of the year. The attendance menu includes full days, mornings from 8am to 1pm, afternoons from 1pm to 6pm and school sessions from 9am to 3pm.

These patterns offer different lengths of nursery day. Morning bookings finish after lunchtime, afternoon bookings start at 1pm, and the school session finishes at 3pm. Full-day care provides another option within the opening window. The school-session label describes a booking pattern; it does not imply a link with a school or an admissions advantage.

Enquiries can be made through the contact form, by telephone on 07534347346 or by email at duckiespreschool@gmail.com. Free parking is provided on site, which is useful when collecting children or bringing their daily bags.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare and private hours are both offered. Funding can run over term time or be spread across the year: the term-time patterns are 15 or 30 hours a week, with 11 or 22 hours a week under the year-round arrangement. Funded hours and additional items are separated on invoices, helping families distinguish entitlement from extra attendance and packages.

The standard private arrangements let families bring food under the packed-lunch policy or pay separately for a food package. Hygiene supplies can likewise come from home or be bought as a separate pack; the all-inclusive private option includes both food and hygiene supplies. For funded attendance, food and hygiene packages are separate additions, with families able to provide their own supplies instead.

The hygiene pack covers items such as nappies, wipes and sun cream. Families supplying their own items must label them and put them in the child's daily bag. The choice therefore affects both the bill and what needs packing each morning. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation; the fees page provides access to the charging terms.

Once a place is offered, a holding fee secures it and is credited to the invoice after one month of attendance. Fees for the first full or applicable part month are due before the child starts. Payments then run monthly in advance, and a month's written notice is required to reduce booked days or hours or to leave.

Absence through illness does not bring a refund for missed days. Holidays notified at least a month ahead qualify for a reduction in paid-session charges for up to three weeks a year; funded hours continue to be claimed during sickness and holidays. These terms matter when comparing the expected monthly bill with the days a child will actually attend.

• Younger children's room. Ducklings spans 3 months to 3 years. On a visit, ask how babies and older toddlers share the space, and how settling is organised for a child of your age.
• Teaching depth. In February 2023, priorities included extending learning consistently and giving children more experience of cultures and diversity. Ask for current examples of both, including how staff involve babies in outdoor exploration.
• Food and funded costs. Funded hours can sit alongside separately charged food and hygiene packs, while private bookings include an all-inclusive alternative. Compare the same attendance pattern and supplies when requesting a quotation, and confirm current arrangements for any allergy.
• Bank-holiday planning. The contact information includes bank holidays in opening, while the fee terms specify closure on those days and over Christmas and New Year. This remains a conflict; confirm the closure calendar before arranging work cover.

Duckies suits families seeking morning or afternoon sessions as well as those choosing school sessions or full days. Its strongest practical assets are tangible: covered outdoor play, indoor equipment for active children, a separate sleep space and two-way communication through the parent app. Those features make the nursery day easier to picture.

The Good judgement from February 2023 provides a useful inspection reference, alongside priorities for teaching consistency and cultural breadth. For families comparing attendance options, the decisive calculation is the whole arrangement: hours, food, hygiene supplies and the terms for holidays and changes to bookings.