Bobtails Pre-School at Horley Infant School

The Warren gives Bobtails its own base, while the surrounding school grounds give children room to stretch: an adventure field, wildlife pond area and pitches for football and basketball. This is a preschool with a substantial outdoor offer, rather than a day confined to one garden. Its purpose-built building sits within Horley Infant School's grounds, with a large garden used as an outside classroom.

At its December 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated Bobtails Good overall, with Outstanding judgements for behaviour and attitudes and personal development, and found safeguarding effective. Those strengths matter for children learning to manage feelings, take turns and do things for themselves. The same inspection identified two priorities: more precise planning for individual learning and broader mathematical experiences.

Bobtails has capacity for 30 children aged 24 to 60 months. It opens during term time, Monday to Friday, from 8.45am to 3.15pm. Families should weigh that school-calendar rhythm alongside the outdoor space and emphasis on growing independence.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the framework: children learn through play, combining their own ideas with activities guided by adults. Here, that means practising communication, movement and relationships alongside literacy, mathematics, understanding the world and creative expression. The framework is the common foundation for early-years provision; the grounds and activities give this branch its character.

Children belong to two age groups: Bunnies for 2–3-year-olds and Rabbits for rising 4-year-olds. These groupings support continuity with staff as children's interests and needs develop. They are age groups, rather than a reason to assume separate rooms or fixed group sizes.

In December 2023, children practised dressing themselves, including fastening coats, while adults allowed time for repeated attempts. Turn-taking in group activities gave children another opportunity to practise patience. These are useful everyday preparations for greater independence, not simply tasks to complete before the next activity.

Mathematics needs equal attention. In December 2023, counting appeared in play with an abacus and balls in a puddle, but experiences involving shape, space and measure were less consistently developed. Individual activities also sometimes needed a clearer link to what a child should learn next. For parents, the important distinction is between keeping children occupied and building deliberately on what they already understand.

Outdoor and Community Life

The Warren's garden is complemented by access to the school field, playground and wider grounds. Trikes, hockey and football sit alongside climbing, crawling and dancing; the astro football pitch gives team games a defined space. Children can practise different kinds of movement rather than relying on one piece of equipment.

A wildlife pond area and forest area add other settings for exploration. Wellies are part of the kit because outdoor play continues through wet and muddy conditions. Families whose children enjoy active, messy play have a clear reason to consider this branch.

Relationships and Communication

Each child has a Family worker who follows their emotional and social development as well as their learning. Memory books collect achievements and go home with families when children leave Bobtails. This gives parents a continuing account of their child's experiences, rather than relying solely on occasional conversations.

Information and photographs help families follow the start of preschool. Parents can also contribute through the Parent Forum, which meets each half term and supports activities including fundraising. There is a practical route for involvement beyond receiving updates.

Staff observe children during play to inform planning, and parents receive updates about development. Staff hold relevant early-years qualifications or are working towards them, and the team undertakes continuing training. Qualifications alone do not settle the question of teaching: the December 2023 priorities make the quality of individual planning an important part of the picture.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

A designated SENCO coordinates support through individual support plans. Planning, review and evaluation involve families and external agencies, giving support a structure that can be revisited as needs change.

Children joining before age 3 have a developmental check using guidance from Surrey Early Years and the Local Health Team, unless an earlier setting or an existing two-year check has already covered it. Findings are shared with parents for discussion and with the health visitor through the child's red health book. That connects preschool observations with the child's wider care.

In December 2023, staff delivered a programme of targeted speech support for children whose speech was delayed, and researched words from children's home languages to use alongside English. Conversations about feelings also helped children describe happiness and fear. These examples show the different ways communication featured in the day at that time.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Horley Infant School, Lumley Road, Horley, RH6 7JF. Opening hours are 8.45am to 3.15pm on weekdays during term time, with closure during school holidays. This calendar needs to fit the family's childcare arrangements across the year.

Enquiries can be made through the contact form, by email at hi@bobtailspreschool.com or by telephone on 01293 784701. The email and telephone contact window is 9am to 3.30pm, Monday to Friday; this is separate from children's opening hours.

Attendance at a preschool on school grounds does not guarantee a Reception place. Families seeking a state-school place still apply through the local authority admissions process. The shared site is useful context for daily life, rather than an admissions advantage.

Funding and Paid Extras

Bobtails offers funded childcare, including Free Early Education for Two Year Olds (FEET), Universal Entitlement (UE) and Working Parents Entitlement (WPE), with 15-hour and 30-hour funding arrangements. Attendance is term-time. Additional unfunded hours are paid for privately; families obtain current prices in a written quotation.

Parents supply lunch in a named lunch box, while Bobtails provides snacks, fruit and snack-time drinks; for funded hours, food and snacks fall outside core childcare funding and are covered through a voluntary contribution or items supplied from home instead. The allergy policy asks families to disclose allergies or intolerances so an alternative can be arranged.

The voluntary contribution also covers non-food items and experiences, including memory books, photographs, printing, the lending library and outside activities. Families who decline it receive a list of daily items to bring. This is a choice between contributing and supplying items, so it belongs in the overall childcare budget rather than being treated as part of funded core care.

Invoices cover a term and payment plans can be arranged. Leaving requires one term's written notice or payment of one term's fees in advance. The notice period matters when planning a change of setting.

• Learning beyond counting. December 2023 priorities included shape, space and measure, plus more precise individual planning. During a visit, ask how activities now build on each child's next steps and develop those mathematical ideas.
• Term-time timetable. The weekday opening window ends at 3.15pm and school holidays are closed. How would the attendance pattern fit your working week and holiday childcare?
• Food and contributions. Lunch comes from home, and funded-hours extras involve a voluntary contribution or supplying daily items. Allergy-affected families should confirm the current arrangements for alternatives and discuss the items they would provide.
• Outdoor clothing. Children are encouraged to wear Bobtails uniform, knee-covering clothing and Velcro trainers, with named wellies for wet outdoor play. Allow for practical clothing that supports frequent movement and messy activities.

Bobtails suits families seeking term-time preschool with substantial outdoor space and a clear emphasis on independence. The Warren, school grounds and Family worker arrangements give it a recognisable identity. Its December 2023 strengths in behaviour and personal development deserve attention, alongside the work needed on mathematics and individual planning. For families comfortable with the school-calendar timetable, packed lunches and contribution arrangements, it offers a concrete, practical option to weigh.