Bevan Lodge Community Preschool

Free movement between three rooms and a garden gives Bevan Lodge its character. This independent, non-profit community preschool in Farnborough makes children's choices a substantial part of the day: they can take their play outdoors, select resources and return inside as their interests change. Adults join their games and plan activities around those interests.

At its 16 March 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated the preschool Good and judged safeguarding effective. The setting has capacity for 26 children in total. Its usual admission point is 2 years 9 months, with younger entry possible under specific arrangements, and its general age offer extends to 5 years.

Morning, afternoon and all-day attendance sit within a term-time model. The combination of a key person, Tapestry learning records and opportunities for parents to help run the preschool gives families several ways to stay involved.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage provides the framework for learning through play, bringing together language, physical development, relationships and later skills such as literacy and mathematics. Children pursue their own ideas as well as joining activities guided by adults. That gives independent exploration and purposeful teaching a place in the same session.

Choice has a concrete shape here. Three separate rooms provide resources and activities that children can explore freely. Each session includes at least one planned activity led by an adult, responding to children's interests. Short gatherings bring children together for games, songs or sharing achievements; stories and singing bring sessions to a close.

Weekly show and tell lets children bring something from home if they wish. It gives them a personal starting point for speaking to a group. The Early Years Commitment adds a whole-setting approach to communication, intended to help staff understand language development and identify children who need support with speech or communication. Its practical value lies in making communication a shared concern across the preschool.

In March 2022, stories, rhymes, songs and conversation were prominent parts of children's experience. An outdoor dough activity also prompted children to describe textures while making models. These examples connect language to things children are doing, rather than treating talking as a separate exercise.

Outdoor and Community Life

The garden is accessible throughout sessions, and children can choose to move between outdoor and indoor play. It is equipped for use in different weather conditions, so outdoor time is part of the session structure rather than a single scheduled break.

In March 2022, children practised balancing, climbing and running outdoors, alongside movement activities set to music. Local outings were planned around their interests. Those experiences took learning beyond indoor resources and gave children opportunities to use their bodies as well as their imagination.

A preschool lending library also allows books to travel home. Parents can help run it, linking family involvement with children's reading experiences.

Relationships and Communication

Each child has a key person who helps with settling and works with parents on development. The same practitioner maintains the child's Learning Journey on Tapestry, combining photographs, observations and examples of achievements. Families therefore have a continuing record of experience and progress, alongside their conversations with staff.

Two parent evenings each year provide time with the key person, and progress records are accessible to parents. This creates both scheduled discussions and an ongoing way to follow learning. Parents can also volunteer during sessions, share an interest or skill, support fundraising or join the management committee. Community involvement here includes a say in how the preschool runs.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

A Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator supports practitioners working with children who need additional help. The manager's responsibilities include safeguarding, health and safety, and monitoring children's progress. These are identifiable roles families can use when discussing a child's needs.

Snack time includes milk or water and encourages children to select food and pour drinks themselves. It makes an everyday routine an opportunity to practise independence and spend time with friends.

In March 2022, children used timers when taking turns and followed routines such as washing hands before eating. Staff also maintained contact with other settings, local schools and professionals to support transitions. That work concerned continuity between settings, rather than an admissions advantage at a particular school.

Sessions and Attendance

The preschool occupies the ground floor of a freestanding house at 67 Albert Road, Farnborough, GU14 6SL. Opening hours are 8.30am to 3.30pm from Monday to Thursday and 8.30am to noon on Friday, during school terms.

Morning sessions offer starts at 8.30am or 9am and finishes at 11.30am or noon. Afternoon sessions offer starts at noon or 12.30pm and finishes at 3pm or 3.30pm. All-day sessions are also offered, and children usually attend a combination of mornings and afternoons. The shorter Friday opening is important when arranging the week's care.

Admission is normally soon after a child reaches 2 years 9 months. Entry from 2 years 6 months requires agreement between the registrar, manager and parent or carer. Children born in September, October or November ordinarily start no earlier than September around their third birthday, unless admitted through the Two Year Old Offer scheme. Applications use a printed form, and enquiries can be made through the contact form.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded education includes 15 hours per week over the preschool's 38-week year for eligible Hampshire children from the grant period following their third birthday. Hampshire's Two Year Old Offer scheme provides another route from the term after a child's second birthday, where referral and the scheme's criteria apply. Working parents may qualify for funding of up to 30 hours, subject to eligibility.

Entitlement can be divided between Bevan Lodge and another setting. Hours beyond the funded allowance attract private fees. Payment is normally in advance for each half term, with monthly arrangements possible; prices are reviewed annually by the Management Committee. Current prices come in the preschool's written quotation, with the session and fees information explaining the structure.

Logo clothing is optional. Families can choose it for practical everyday wear rather than as a condition of attendance.

• Teaching and individual challenge. At the March 2022 inspection, Ofsted identified incomplete use of children's assessment information and insufficiently precise staff feedback, leaving some children less challenged than they could be. During a visit, ask how practitioners now choose individual next steps and how teaching is reviewed.
• A term-time week with a shorter Friday. Afternoon attendance fits Monday to Thursday opening, while Friday ends at noon. Families needing afternoon care throughout the week will need arrangements that accommodate that difference.
• Younger entry has conditions. The usual starting age is 2 years 9 months, with agreed entry from 2 years 6 months and a separate referred funding route for younger children. Discuss the relevant admission route and settling arrangements together.
• The total cost of attendance. Private hours and advance payment form part of the charging structure. Request a written quotation that explains how meals, snacks and non-food consumables are treated during funded and privately paid attendance.

Bevan Lodge suits families seeking morning or afternoon preschool sessions, as well as those combining them into all-day attendance during school terms. Its strongest practical attractions are freedom to use the garden, a continuing key-person relationship and meaningful opportunities for parents to participate.

The March 2022 Good judgement provides a dated quality reference, with individual challenge and staff feedback the areas requiring attention then. For a family comfortable with term-time attendance and the shorter Friday, the community model offers a clear reason to choose it: parents can contribute to both their child's experience and the running of the preschool.