The Hullbridge Preschool

Two light classrooms, an enclosed outdoor play area and a school site give The Hullbridge Preschool a clear identity: play and growing independence sit alongside preparation for primary school. The creative area, book corner and purpose-built toilets and washbasins provide practical spaces for children to make choices and manage more of their day themselves.

At its December 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated the preschool Outstanding, recognising the quality of education and children's attitudes to learning. That judgement gives weight to the approach, rather than simply to the facilities. Children could choose their own play, while adults used their knowledge of individual children to plan what came next.

The preschool has 26 places in total and accepts children from their second birthday. It operates within Riverside Primary School's grounds as a separate setting. Morning, afternoon and all-day attendance provide different ways to build preschool into the family week, with term-time attendance shaping the calendar.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS (Early Years Foundation Stage) frames learning through play, with development guiding activities and support. In-the-moment planning and free-flow play let staff follow children's interests. Classroom spaces accommodate creative work, books and snacks; daily physical and creative activities call for messy-play clothing, even with aprons for painting and water play.

In December 2023, children decorated Christmas trees using beads, tinsel and pom-poms, handling tweezers to practise fine movements while staff introduced mathematical vocabulary. Foam-snow play prompted descriptive conversation. Children also managed their outdoor clothes and footwear themselves, putting independence into practice.

Outdoor and Community Life

The enclosed, all-weather green play area supports free-flow garden access, including in wet weather. Families supply seasonal clothing and leave wellington boots at preschool.

In December 2023, children rode bicycles, swung on a large tyre, ran and climbed. Park and library visits, displayed local landmarks and regular visits from a police officer and school crossing patrol connected play with their community.

A parent helper rota invites reading, play and shared skills. Annual committee fundraising includes the Christmas Party and Graduation Party, giving families ways to contribute beyond their own child's care.

Relationships and Communication

Before starting, each child receives a key person based on First Visit information and attendance. This adult leads settling, maintains developmental records and becomes the family's main contact.

Stay & Play introduces preschool before regular attendance; All About Me gathers preferences and family information. Parents agree the settling approach, with slower transitions or timetable adjustments where needed. They may stay to help, alongside a favourite toy or blanket.

Tapestry, the online learning journal, combines home and preschool observations for planning. Parents add comments, photographs and videos. A family-photo album in the book corner provides comfort and conversation, while the WOW board shares home achievements for further learning. Half-termly newsletters cover past and planned activities.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the December 2023 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and judged that collaboration with outside agencies gave children with SEND tailored support for their progress. Current support procedures include a SENCO role, parental involvement and written permission before referrals to external specialists.

The SEND One Plan identifies additional strategies through a cycle of assessment, planning, action and review. One Plan meetings bring parents, practitioners and specialists together to agree targets, resources or equipment. Visual timetables and photographs of resources support communication and routines. The building and toilets are wheelchair accessible, with a ramp available for the step into the garden.

Children can start while still wearing nappies, and staff work with parents on toilet training when the child is ready. The positive-behaviour policy uses the Colour Monster System, which moves children's photographs between named monsters following warnings, and includes timed thinking time. Sand timers also help children share resources, making expectations visible rather than relying solely on verbal reminders.

Collection arrangements include advance notification of the collecting adult and a password system. Indoors and outdoors are checked before sessions, and the entrance gate stays locked during them. These are practical procedures for managing access and the environment.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Riverside Primary School, Ferry Road, Hockley, SS5 6ND. Preschool operates Monday to Friday during term time, following Essex County Council's school calendar, with notice of inset closures or adjusted holiday dates.

Morning Session runs from 9am to noon and All Day Session from 9am to 3pm; the price list also includes an afternoon session from noon to 3pm. Lunch Club occupies noon to 12.45pm. It is an eating-together activity, with staff joining children at the table, and is charged when that session is not covered by FEEE funding.

Children must attend at least two sessions per week, across two separate days. Waiting-list entry requires completed registration paperwork, with registration date guiding the order and other circumstances, including siblings and looked-after children, potentially considered. That is a durable admissions rule, rather than an indication of how many places are free.

Six weeks' written notice is required when leaving or changing session days. Paid sessions remain chargeable during sickness or holidays. These terms matter when choosing a pattern that the family can sustain through the term.

Funding and Paid Extras

Two-year-old funding and 15/30hrs FEEE funding are accepted for eligible families, with funded attendance delivered during term time. Additional private sessions are charged separately. A parental agreement sets out attendance hours and is renewed for each funding term; current prices come in the preschool's written quotation.

Parents supply packed lunches; morning snacks attract a separate contribution, with a suitable snack from home offered as an alternative. The preschool's food policies exclude nuts and chocolate from lunchboxes, and recommend an ice pack because lunchboxes cannot be refrigerated.

Parents provide nappies and wipes. Other consumables attract a separate contribution, with families able to supply their own instead; sensitive or prescribed sun cream also comes from home, while generic cream is provided. The additional-services package applies to non-funded sessions or when combined with morning-only attendance, and excludes nappies and wipes.

A non-refundable registration charge applies when a child starts before becoming eligible for FEEE. Uniform can be bought but is optional. These are separate decisions from the funded hours themselves.

Getting There

There is one disabled parking space outside the setting. For a child using a wheelchair, the accessible toilets and available garden ramp are relevant alongside that parking provision.

Riverside Primary School shares the site, but preschool attendance does not guarantee admission there. Families still use the local authority's primary-school admissions process. Transition arrangements include classroom and playground visits, while teachers from other receiving schools are welcome to meet children and their key person at preschool.

• Term-time attendance and continuity. The day ends at 3pm and children attend at least two sessions per week, across two separate days. Consider how morning, afternoon or all-day attendance fits the family's working week and school holidays.
• Settling and behaviour. Stay & Play, a pre-allocated key person and the Colour Monster System all shape children's adjustment. During the required family visit, ask how staff adapt these arrangements for a child who finds separation or behaviour expectations difficult.
• Food and additional charges. Packed lunches come from home, while snacks and other consumables have contribution arrangements and alternatives. Allergy-affected families should confirm current food restrictions and how their child's needs will be managed, and agree an itemised quotation for their attendance pattern.
• A shared site, separate admissions. Riverside Primary School transition visits offer familiarity, but attendance here does not secure a Reception place. Keep the primary-school application separate from the preschool decision.

The Hullbridge Preschool suits families seeking morning or afternoon sessions, as well as those wanting an all-day preschool pattern during school terms. Its strongest practical combination is free-flow play, a named adult responsible for each child and several ways for parents to contribute to learning and settling.

The December 2023 Outstanding judgement supports that choice, while the school-site connection offers useful transition experiences. The deciding considerations are the term-time calendar, the minimum of two sessions per week across two separate days and how the food and consumables arrangements fit the family's preferred pattern.