Congresbury Community Preschool

Outdoor learning gives Congresbury Community Preschool its character: forest school sessions run throughout the week, alongside play led both by children and by adults. This is a term-time setting with a rural backdrop and a practical emphasis on exploration. Its capacity is 48 children in total, distinct from the number attending any particular session.

At its November 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated the preschool Good and judged its safeguarding arrangements effective. The strongest examples from that visit involved children investigating, talking and tackling physical challenges, rather than simply following instructions. Two improvement priorities also matter: younger children needed more opportunities to use numbers during play, while older children could take greater responsibility at mealtimes.

Preschool provision serves children aged two to four, with morning and afternoon attendance patterns; school wraparound care serves children attending St Andrew’s Primary School. The combination gives the setting two different roles within the local community.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the framework for learning and care, bringing together language, physical development, relationships and the other areas of early learning. In everyday terms, conversation, stories, movement and play all contribute to a child’s development. This is the shared foundation for early-years provision, rather than an extra unique to this preschool.

Development Matters Non-Statutory Curriculum Guidance supports staff in understanding how children develop and planning their learning. It guides their decisions rather than replacing professional judgement. For parents, the useful distinction is that a framework sets the expectations, while practitioners still need to respond to the interests and development of individual children.

In November 2024, binoculars prompted children to investigate how objects looked different through either end. An animal-guessing game encouraged older children to describe creatures, with questions adapted to extend discussion about habitats and diet. These examples show how an ordinary play resource can become an opportunity to observe, explain and exchange ideas.

Action songs and repetition also featured in November 2024, giving younger children opportunities to join in and practise language. Number learning was less consistently woven into their play. That makes everyday counting a useful point to explore alongside the setting’s stronger examples of conversation and curiosity.

Outdoor and Community Life

Forest school sessions take place throughout the week, adding outdoor exploration to the preschool’s child-led and adult-led play. The approach involves learning outdoors and encountering manageable challenges; in November 2024, staff training supported activities intended to develop children’s understanding of nature and appropriate risk-taking.

The physical details from November 2024 are telling. Children balanced on a plank supported by crates and collected water using a water-butt. A covered sandpit extended the possibilities for play across the seasons, while comfortable reading spaces offered a different pace. The outdoor equipment supported movement and investigation. Comfortable reading spaces provided opportunities for quieter activity.

Community participation extends beyond the children’s sessions. Families can contribute ideas for fundraising or volunteer with the preschool committee, supporting resources and maintenance. This gives parents a concrete way to participate in the organisation, alongside their child’s attendance.

Relationships were central to the November 2024 picture. Staff gathered information from parents about children’s abilities and used observations of play to identify what interested them and what they might learn next. This connects home knowledge with the day’s activities, rather than treating learning plans as separate from the child.

At the November 2024 inspection, Ofsted found that staff supported children with difficult emotions sensitively and that leaders used funding and specialist support to enable children with special educational needs or disabilities to access the curriculum. The current team includes a SENDCo, providing a defined role for additional-needs support.

Independence had practical expression in November 2024: children managed wet-weather clothing, knew where their wellies belonged and helped prepare fruit for snacks. Mealtimes were the point where older children needed further challenge. Parents weighing school preparation should look at these everyday responsibilities as well as language and learning activities.

The team includes a room leader for children aged two to three, a deputy manager and a manager overseeing preschool and wraparound provision. Degree-level early-childhood qualifications and a level 3 childcare qualification are represented. A business manager handles admissions, invoices and funding enquiries, giving administrative questions a separate point of contact from children’s care.

Sessions and Attendance

Morning sessions run from 9am to noon, and afternoon sessions from noon to 3pm, Monday to Friday during term time. Morning children can remain until 12.30pm for Lunch Club, with a separate charge. These are distinct booking patterns, allowing families to choose a morning or afternoon rather than treating the opening window as a single compulsory day.

Preschool wraparound care is offered between 8am and 6pm, subject to availability. The school-age provision has its own timetable: Breakfast Club runs from 7.30am to 9am, and Afterschool Club from 3pm to 6pm Monday to Thursday, finishing at 4.30pm on Fridays. School wraparound is for children attending St Andrew’s Primary School and operates during term time.

Getting There

The preschool is on the St Andrews School Site, Station Road, Congresbury, BS49 5DX, with the contact address identifying The Portakabin. An online enquiry form accepts enquiries for children aged two to three and three to four, with a response time of up to two working days.

Sharing a school site does not guarantee a Reception place. Preschool attendance and school admission are separate decisions.

Funding and Paid Extras

Government-funded hours are accepted. The funding arrangements include 15 hours for eligible two-year-olds receiving specified support, universal 15-hour funding for three-year-olds from the term after their third birthday, and 30 hours for eligible working families. The three-year-old entitlements operate during term time, so eligibility and the attendance pattern need to fit together.

Snacks sit within a separately charged consumables and sundries contribution, and Lunch Club attendance carries an additional charge. Non-food consumables are also covered by the consumables contribution, which supports classroom activities and everyday resources.

An induction administration charge applies when a child registers. Fees are invoiced by term and payable in advance; additional ad hoc sessions are billed separately and payable within five days. School wraparound also carries an annual activities charge and a late-collection charge. Current prices come in the preschool’s written quotation; the sessions and fees information explains the charge structure.

• Everyday independence and number play. In November 2024, older children needed more responsibility at meals and younger children needed more number learning within play. On a visit, ask how staff now build these opportunities into ordinary routines.
• Two wraparound timetables. Preschool wraparound and school-age clubs have different hours, with an earlier Friday finish for the school club. Match the relevant pattern to your working week.
• Term-time funding and extras. Funded hours sit alongside separate snack, consumables and Lunch Club charges. Request a written quotation showing how your proposed sessions and funded entitlement fit together.

Congresbury Community Preschool suits families seeking term-time morning or afternoon preschool sessions, with outdoor exploration an important part of the experience. It also serves families using school-age breakfast and afterschool care, whose timetable differs from preschool wraparound.

The November 2024 examples give substance to its outdoor character: practical challenges, investigation and conversation all featured. The improvement priorities are equally useful when choosing. This is a setting to assess through the everyday detail of children’s independence and learning, alongside the practical fit of its sessions and charges.