Whitewell Bottom Pre School

A shared community-centre hall, play outdoors and books travelling home each week give Whitewell Bottom Pre School a clear identity. This voluntary-run setting in Rossendale caters for children aged two to four and has 25 places in total. Its scale and layout make it a different proposition from a nursery organised around separate baby, toddler and preschool rooms.

At its 12 July 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated the provision Good and found safeguarding effective. That dated judgement matters, but the practical detail is more useful: children explored measurement through play, families contributed to learning records, and community activities brought children into contact with people beyond their immediate group.

Morning, afternoon and full-day attendance fit within a term-time calendar. The appeal is a preschool rhythm with substantial involvement from home: a key person collects observations, parents contribute their own examples, and a home library scheme keeps shared reading going between sessions.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage provides the framework for children's learning and care: play develops language, physical skills, relationships, early literacy and mathematical understanding. This is the foundation of the day, rather than an extra programme. Here, continuous provision gives children activities and resources to return to, with adults using their interests and observations to shape what comes next.

The large hall has investigation, music and ICT areas. Children help change the Role Play area each term, giving them a say in the space for imaginative play. Families are choosing a shared learning space.

In July 2023, children compared lengths using long tubes, with older children also using rulers. Baking involved weighing and calculating how many eggs were needed. Play gave children practical reasons to count and measure.

Language was woven into play, too. In July 2023, adults introduced vocabulary during activities and left time for children to formulate responses to questions. A complex jigsaw gave children a task requiring persistence. The qualification is important: adults sometimes demonstrated letter sounds inaccurately, and children copied those sounds. Conversation and early phonics therefore need to be considered separately.

Through the home library scheme, children choose a book to share at home and exchange it weekly. Weekly activity sheets and activities with the termly newsletter extend preschool learning. Certificates from outside activities give children achievements to discuss and help their key person understand their interests.

Outdoor and Community Life

A large outdoor area extends the play space. Waterproof suits and wellingtons are supplied; families send suitable clothing so children can take part comfortably in different weather.

In July 2023, outdoor activity included opportunities to climb, balance, run and jump across different weather conditions. Community learning also had tangible examples. Children grew vegetables and joined exercise activities with older people, while visits from local police introduced conversations about seat belts and car seats. These were encounters with everyday responsibilities and other generations, rather than community being treated only as a classroom topic.

Relationships and Communication

Each child has a key person who builds the relationship with the family and gathers material for the child's learning journey. The record brings together observations of development and information about the child's interests. Parents' contributions matter here: photographs, artwork and news from family experiences can help connect activities at preschool with what interests a child elsewhere.

In July 2023, flexible settling sessions gathered family information to inform activities. Daily conversations, termly reports and parent meetings covered both immediate news and fuller discussions of development.

Parents can telephone or email during the day. Activity sheets link learning at home with preschool, while family contributions broaden the learning record beyond staff observations.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

A special educational needs coordinator provides a route for discussing developmental concerns. Extra support and individual learning targets form part of the preschool's SEND arrangements. This is a mechanism families can use, rather than a blanket promise about how every need will be met.

The June 2014 SEND local offer described targeted plans developed with parents, the SENCO and key worker, alongside contact with services such as Speech and Language Therapy and an Inclusion Teacher. It also described transition meetings involving families and professionals where children needed additional help moving to school. These dated arrangements give families a concrete basis for discussing how support would work for their child now.

At the July 2023 inspection, Ofsted found that activities were adapted to children's needs and interests and that children made good progress from their starting points. Emotional learning had a specific resource: in July 2023, The Colour Monster was used to help children recognise feelings and manage their responses. Discussions about drinking enough and healthy food accompanied active play.

Collection arrangements include a password for someone other than the parent or carer collecting a child. For essential medication, such as an inhaler, a care plan is required; administering prescribed medicine requires written authorisation. These procedures put practical responsibilities on both families and staff.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Whitewell Bottom Community Centre, Burnley Road East, Rossendale, BB4 9LB. Opening hours are 9am to 3pm, Monday to Friday, during term time, with 38 weeks of attendance across the year. This calendar is central to the choice: it fits school terms rather than providing year-round childcare.

Morning sessions run from 9am to noon, afternoons from noon to 3pm, and full days from 9am to 3pm. Morning attendance can extend until 1pm for an additional childcare charge; families provide the packed lunch. That lunch extension gives a different option from booking the whole afternoon.

Enquiries can be made by telephone, email or the contact form. The prospectus requires payment ahead of attendance and retains fees for sessions missed through illness or holidays during term time, with exemptions in special circumstances such as hospitalisation. Families should factor the attendance commitment into their budget, alongside the pattern they choose.

Funding and Paid Extras

The preschool offers 15 hours of funded education for three- and four-year-olds and eligible two-year-olds, alongside 30 hours of funded education and childcare for eligible working families. Provision follows the term-time calendar. Additional privately paid attendance is also offered; current prices come in the preschool's written quotation.

Children attending across lunchtime bring their own packed lunch, and snacks are supplied with donations of fruit or other snack foods welcomed; milk is free through the Nursery Milk Scheme. Parents provide nappies, wipes and sun cream as needed, and donations of tissues and baby wipes are also welcomed.

The Early Years Pupil Premium arrangements include an individual plan for each child receiving that support, identifying interventions for their needs. Communication skills receive emphasis. This is additional support planning, separate from the family's funded-hours entitlement.

Moving on to school is also part of the preschool's work. In July 2023, contact with local schools contributed to preparation for the move. The June 2014 SEND offer described visiting Reception teachers and sharing transition reports with the school a child would attend; these were transition arrangements, rather than an admissions advantage.

• Term-time coverage. Attendance follows a 38-week calendar and finishes by 3pm. Families needing care through school holidays or later afternoons need to weigh that timetable before choosing a session pattern.
• Early phonics and staff development. In July 2023, improving the pronunciation of letter sounds and broadening staff training were the two improvement priorities. A visit is a useful opportunity to discuss how teaching practice has developed in these areas.
• Lunch and care supplies. Packed lunches, nappies, wipes and sun cream come from home, while snack donations are welcomed. These are practical parts of the family's contribution alongside any paid attendance.
• Individual support. The SEND arrangements include a coordinator and individual targets, with more detailed procedures described in June 2014. For a child needing additional help, ask how settling, support planning and the move to school would be organised now.

Whitewell Bottom Pre School suits families seeking mornings, afternoons or full days within school terms. Its shared hall, outdoor play and weekly book borrowing are complemented by learning records that involve parents.

The July 2023 judgement provides a positive inspection position, tempered by specific teaching and training priorities. For families comfortable with the term-time timetable and packed-lunch arrangement, the strongest appeal is a preschool day connected to home interests and the surrounding community.