The Willows Preschool

Den building, minibeast investigations and art made from natural materials give The Willows Preschool its character. This Sherwood setting serves children aged 3 to 5, with outdoor exploration and practical play shaping the preparation for school. Nature is part of the learning, rather than simply a backdrop to it.

At its July 2025 inspection, Ofsted rated the provision Good and judged safeguarding effective. The current preschool offer combines Forest School, where children explore natural surroundings through practical activities and supported risk-taking, with opportunities to develop independence through everyday tasks.

Morning and afternoon half-days sit alongside day sessions, giving families more than one attendance pattern to work with. Funded childcare can be used term-time or stretched across the year.

Rooms and Ages

The Preschool room emphasises independence, communication and curiosity through art, exploration of seasonal changes and investigations of cause and effect. This is provision for the stage before school, with children's interests helping shape what they do.

Cosy corners and areas for open-ended play provide different ways to take part. Children can build with blocks, share stories or paint with their fingers; these experiences give them opportunities to practise expressing ideas and solving problems through play.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage is the required framework for children's learning, development and care: in daily life, learning happens through play, conversation and practical experiences. Alongside it, the group-wide Poplars Approach brings together learning led by children's interests, purposeful play and a connection with nature. Here, literacy and mathematics sit alongside creative work and scientific exploration.

Materials extend beyond conventional toys. Children use wood, metal, china and glass, as well as leaves, water, soil and stones; carefully chosen real tools are used under supervision. Handling these materials gives children concrete things to investigate, compare and use in their own ideas. Adults also lead activities, so children's choices sit alongside planned learning.

In July 2025, children practised hand control by squeezing water from bottles, then changed the angle to aim towards wall-mounted hoops. The activity connected physical effort with a clear practical challenge. Staff also helped children investigate garden wildlife, discussing what squirrels and ladybirds eat.

Outdoor and Community Life

Forest School includes building dens, looking closely at minibeasts and making art from things found in nature. Children explore their surroundings and take supported risks, making this a useful match for families who want practical outdoor experiences to feature in preschool life.

In July 2025, children watered beans and herbs, used herbs in imaginative play and passed some to the cook for meals. Growing, playing and eating were connected through the same plants. Caring for living things and learning to reduce waste also form part of the current outdoor approach.

Earth Day provides a named occasion for exploring care for the environment. Its emphasis is on children's relationship with nature and simple ideas about looking after resources, rather than an isolated craft theme. Outdoor play continues through the seasons, so spare clothes and suitable weather clothing matter.

Relationships and Communication

Key person relationships and consistent routines support settling. Staff take time to learn children's interests, needs and familiar habits, while families can send a small comfort item for moments when a child misses home or needs to rest. The practical aim is familiarity: a child has recognised adults and routines to return to while becoming more independent.

At the July 2025 inspection, Ofsted identified two improvements: staff were not using parents' initial information about children's abilities or gathering ongoing information about abilities at home to inform planning, and interactions needed to extend language more consistently, including accurate letter sounds and sufficient time for children to answer. These are useful distinctions for parents: knowing what interests a child is different from understanding what they can already do, and talking alongside play is different from developing a conversation.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

For children needing additional support, staff work with parents and professionals to plan individual learning journeys. Emotional communication also has practical resources: visual prompts and emotion cards help children who do not communicate verbally express feelings, while books, songs and stories provide opportunities to talk about emotions.

In July 2025, staff used words from children's home languages alongside English to help explain unfamiliar routines. Home traditions were also celebrated. This gave children ways to connect preschool life with experiences familiar from home.

Mealtimes encourage children to serve themselves and explore different tastes and textures. In July 2025, a cook prepared meals that included herbs the children had grown.

Moving towards school includes building familiarity with the adults children will meet next. At the July 2025 inspection, staff arranged for teachers to visit children at preschool before their move to school, giving them an opportunity to get to know one another in a familiar setting.

Sessions and Attendance

The Willows is at Portland Court, Sherwood, Nottingham, NG5 6EX. Opening hours are 7.30am to 6pm, Monday to Friday; the funding arrangements include day sessions from 8am to 6pm, morning half-days lasting 5.5 hours and afternoon half-days lasting 5 hours.

Families can choose a term-time funding pattern or stretch entitlement across the year. Additional childcare beyond funded hours is optional and paid for separately. Online enquiries and applications are accepted, with telephone contact on 0115 967 6051.

Funding and Paid Extras

The preschool offers the 15-hour entitlement for children aged 3 and 4, and up to 30 hours for eligible working families within its preschool age range. The stretched option spreads funding across 51 weeks, reducing the weekly allocation compared with the term-time pattern. Eligibility remains a condition of the working-family entitlement.

On funded days, a voluntary daily contribution covers food and resources including cleaning supplies and utilities; families declining it provide a packed lunch that follows the nursery's healthy packed lunch guidance. Parents supply nappies, wipes and creams where needed, and pack sun cream for warmer weather, so these personal consumables sit separately from the resource contribution.

The funding and charge arrangements explain these categories. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation. Keeping paid hours separate from the voluntary contribution makes it easier to understand what a chosen attendance pattern costs.

• Language in everyday play. The July 2025 improvement concerned how conversations extend children's language, including letter sounds and time to respond. During a visit, ask how staff now build on children's answers and ideas.
• Parents' knowledge in planning. In July 2025, staff were not using parents' initial information about children's abilities or gathering ongoing information about abilities at home to inform planning. Ask how examples from home influence the next learning steps, rather than only the choice of activities.
• The outdoor day. Forest School and seasonal outdoor play make clothing and practical exploration part of the choice. Ask how a typical session balances outdoor activity with quieter time for your child.
• Your funded pattern. Day sessions and two different half-day lengths offer several ways to organise attendance. Ask for a written example showing your chosen hours, any additional paid care and the voluntary contribution or packed-lunch arrangement.

The Willows suits families seeking a preschool for children aged 3 to 5 where natural materials, outdoor investigation and practical independence shape the day. Its day sessions and morning or afternoon half-days serve different family routines, with both term-time and stretched funding patterns adding flexibility.

The strongest reason to choose it is the concrete nature of the experiences: dens, garden wildlife, real materials and growing plants give children things to investigate. The July 2025 improvements make language interactions and the use of parents' knowledge important decision points alongside that outdoor appeal.