Phase 5 Pre-School Playgroup

Dinosaur models, storybooks and balance bicycles give Phase 5 Pre-School Playgroup a more concrete identity than broad promises about early learning. In January 2024, children used a dinosaur book to identify models, tackled outdoor obstacles on bicycles and explored melting ice through play. These examples show the kinds of experiences that connected conversation, problem-solving and movement.

Ofsted rated the playgroup Good on 11 January 2024 and judged its safeguarding arrangements effective. There were also two clear priorities: staff needed to keep track of children beyond the activity they were leading, and bring quieter children more fully into learning.

The Kelston Close setting in Yate has capacity for 24 children in total. Children attending in January 2024 were aged three to four. Morning, afternoon and all-day sessions form the term-time attendance offer.

Learning and Activities

The EYFS provides the framework for children's learning and care, with play supporting communication, physical development and social skills. In January 2024, activities combined children's interests with planned learning: staff prompted children sorting dinosaur models to consult a book, giving their curiosity a practical purpose. Rather than supplying the answer immediately, adults encouraged them to compare the pictures and work it out.

Books also gave small-group conversation a shared starting point. During January 2024, staff introduced selected stories each term and asked children questions about characters and events. This gave children opportunities to remember, explain and contribute, rather than simply listen. The limitation was participation: more confident children sometimes drew the adults' attention away from quieter members of the group.

Communication took several forms. In January 2024, adults combined spoken language with gestures and signs, including when working with children who spoke English as an additional language or had SEND. The practical value lies in giving children more than one way to understand and join a conversation.

Outdoor and Community Life

Outdoor play in January 2024 included a slide, low climbing equipment and balance bicycles. Children steered around people and obstacles, while climbing and jumping offered different movement challenges. Another activity involved brushes, warm water and glitter-filled ice cubes, bringing hands-on exploration into the outdoor day.

Community experiences extended beyond the playgroup. In January 2024, staff took children to local shops, the park and library, and organised family experiences including beach trips, adventure-park outings and festive film evenings. These were opportunities to explore familiar surroundings and spend time together beyond an ordinary session; their frequency should not be read as a weekly timetable.

Key-person contact gave parents several routes into their child's learning in January 2024. Conversations at handover sat alongside parents' evenings arranged around families' schedules. Parents could discuss achievements and additional help with someone involved in their child's day, making communication more useful than an occasional general update.

At the January 2024 inspection, Ofsted found that children, including those with SEND, made good progress, with staff identifying gaps in development and arranging support. This is a dated assessment of how support worked, rather than a promise about every child's experience today.

Everyday routines also helped children understand expectations in January 2024. Adults used picture reminders during group activities and gave advance warning before tidying up. These concrete cues made changes of activity easier to anticipate. However, staff sometimes missed reminders about sitting while using scissors because their attention was elsewhere, which explains the priority around supervising the whole group.

Preparation for school involved contact with the neighbouring primary school in January 2024. Children met teachers and used its outdoor spaces, as well as taking part in celebrations and sports days. Staff also contacted other destination schools and invited teachers to meet children at the playgroup. The benefit was familiarity with people and surroundings before the move.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Kelston Close, Yate, BS37 8SZ. Enquiries can be made by telephone or email.

Morning sessions run from 9.30am to 12.30pm, afternoons from 12.30pm to 3.30pm, and all-day sessions from 9.30am to 3.30pm. Breakfast club is a separately charged session running from 9am to 9.30am. This gives families a choice between attending for part of the day and staying across both main sessions.

Attendance follows school terms, with no more than 38 opening weeks in a school year. Ad hoc sessions must be booked and paid for at least 24 hours ahead, are subject to availability and attract an additional rate. That is a booking condition, rather than a promise that an extra session can always be added.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded early education is offered for eligible two-year-olds and children aged three and four, with 15- and 30-hour funded arrangements delivered during term time. There are no fees for funded hours; attendance beyond a child's eligible entitlement is charged, and breakfast club outside funded hours is payable separately. Families receive monthly invoices for paid attendance, and current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

A voluntary contribution helps pay for outside-agency activities, cooking materials and summer sun cream. Parents can opt out when registering, so this contribution is separate from the cost of ordinary funded sessions. Sun cream is therefore supported through an optional additional contribution rather than an unavoidable funded-hours charge.

Four weeks' notice is requested when withdrawing from a session or the playgroup. Charges can continue during that notice period even if the child does not attend, and paid sessions remain chargeable during illness or holidays. These terms matter when deciding how much attendance to book.

• Attention across the group. In January 2024, staff sometimes missed safety reminders while helping other children. On a visit, ask how adults now maintain oversight when working with individuals or small groups.
• A quieter child's experience. Quieter children were sometimes overlooked during January 2024 activities. Ask for an example of how staff draw a less confident child into discussion and extend their play.
• Term-time fit and paid commitments. The setting opens for no more than 38 weeks, and four weeks' withdrawal notice can carry continuing charges. Match the morning, afternoon or all-day pattern to your family's calendar before committing.

Phase 5 suits families seeking term-time preschool attendance through morning or afternoon sessions, as well as those wanting an all-day session with an earlier breakfast-club option. Its January 2024 experiences provide useful substance: books supported problem-solving, outdoor equipment offered movement challenges, and school visits helped children become familiar with their next setting.

The balance is clear. Those experiences sit alongside specific questions about whole-group supervision and the involvement of quieter children. Families who value key-person conversations and a choice of session lengths have good reasons to consider it, while using a visit to explore those two priorities.