St Mary's Pre-School

A small room for two-year-olds, a language intervention with books to share at home, and a community building in central Yate give St Mary's Pre-School a clear character. This is a term-time setting where the younger children's move into the larger preschool room is prepared through shared outdoor play and gradually longer visits. The youngest room has a maximum of eight children. That is a useful starting point for families choosing a first experience of group care.

At its March 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated the provision Good overall. The strongest detail beneath that judgement concerns communication: adults matched words to actions, repeated children's attempts at speech and brought mathematical language into their play. Emotional understanding was the area needing further work.

Children can start on their second birthday and stay until school; the age range is two to five, with capacity for 36 children across the setting. Morning, afternoon and full-day attendance can be mixed within the term-time timetable.

Rooms and Ages

The 2 Year Old Room serves children aged two to three, with a maximum of eight children, age-appropriate exploration at each child's pace and an outdoor area shared with the older group. Its smaller scale gives families a concrete room limit to weigh alongside the wider setting's capacity.

Room moves usually happen during the third-birthday term or at its end, depending on the child. Daily outdoor mixing and regular preschool-room visits build familiarity; visits lengthen during that term.

St. Mary’s Old School is a community building. The larger room has high ceilings and wooden flooring; the smaller room has a lower ceiling and lino. Floor-level resources, tables and a visually labelled trolley give children several ways to recognise and reach activities.

Learning and Activities

The curriculum follows the EYFS, the shared framework for early learning and care, with children developing language, physical skills, social understanding and early literacy and mathematics through play. Planning starts with what a child knows, enjoys and needs to practise next. Observations then inform the next steps, so a child's current interests help shape the activities offered.

I CAN Early Talk Boost is a language intervention for three- and four-year-olds whose language development is delayed. Children are assessed during their first term when they turn three, and those identified for the programme attend three half-hour sessions each week for nine weeks. A different book goes home each week and is also used in the sessions, connecting the small-group work with shared reading at home.

Home School Literacy bags extend that connection. Families can borrow them for a week, with titles including The Gruffalo and Handa's Surprise. The bags are used within the setting too, giving children a familiar starting point for reading and activities with their family. Identi-Play home School learning bags are also available to borrow; their approach uses an adult playing alongside a child and modelling simple play sequences to support imitation and shared attention.

Outdoor and Community Life

Outings to parks, nature trails, shops and the library, including shopping for snacks, give children concrete experiences to discuss.

An annual family trip offers time together, with parents responsible for their children and staff helping. A photographer visits yearly for family portraits.

Relationships and Communication

Each child's key person is the family's main contact. Famly, the online learning journal, shares photographs, videos and written observations. Parents can comment and add examples from home, connecting learning across both settings.

Settling is adapted to the child rather than assigned a fixed duration. Stay-and-play sessions are offered during the term before starting, with no limit on how many a family attends; the accompanying parent remains responsible and stays with the child. A family photograph goes into a shared family book, providing a familiar connection during the day.

Key-worker conversations are possible at either end of a session, with formal meetings on Fridays or at an agreed time. Families have space for both quick updates and fuller discussions.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the March 2024 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and judged that children with SEND made good progress, supported by individual plans, coordination with other agencies and regular review. Current arrangements include a SENCO role, support plans for children with additional educational or health needs, and opportunities for involved professionals to work with staff in the setting.

Communication support includes picture-exchange tools, visual prompts and Makaton. Staff have training in hearing difficulties, peg feeding and other health needs; all hold paediatric first-aid certificates.

Access requires some planning. There are two steps at the front entrance, with an alternative route using a small ramp at the back; a disabled toilet is available, but storage for mobility equipment is limited. A cornered-off sleeping area with sleeping mats and sleeping bags gives tired children somewhere to rest during the day.

In March 2024, adults comforted upset children and encouraged sharing and turn-taking, but missed some opportunities to help them name feelings and understand how their behaviour affected others. Supporting children to recognise emotions, express them and regulate their responses was the specific improvement required. That matters for children who need help handling frustration or changes in routine.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is St. Marys Youth Centre, Church Road, Yate, Bristol, BS37 5BG. Opening hours are 9am to 3pm, Monday to Friday, during South Gloucestershire's academic terms, for 38 weeks each year. This is a school-term attendance pattern, with holiday periods outside the ordinary offer.

Morning sessions run from 9am to noon and afternoons from noon to 3pm; a full day runs from 9am to 3pm. Families can choose half days, full days or a mixture. Additional early time from 8.40am and late time after 3pm, up to 20 minutes, is offered when available, so it should not be treated as the standard opening window.

The waiting-list rule considers both the chosen start date and the date a child was added. Enquiries can be made through the online enquiry form, by email or by telephone. The 2026–2027 term calendar includes training closures within the academic year, making the term calendar relevant even for a regular weekly booking.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered, including the 15-hour entitlement for three- and four-year-olds, eligible two-year-old funding and working-family funding of up to 30 hours. Delivery is term-time across 38 weeks. Privately purchased hours are also offered; contact the nursery for current prices. The fees and additional charges page explains the charge structure.

For funded and privately purchased attendance, lunch comes from home, while snacks and other food extras can be paid for through opt-in charges or supplied by parents; the nursery publishes a nut-free policy and checks lunchboxes against its healthy-eating and choking guidance. The all-inclusive daily charge covers snacks and food extras, but families still provide a lunchbox.

Non-food consumables follow the same opt-in or bring-your-own arrangement: nappies, wipes and sun cream can attract separate charges, while the daily package covers personal-hygiene items and sun cream when forgotten. Yoga, Music class, Christmas Party and Graduation Party are voluntary services with charges, and the daily package also covers additional activities, parties, outings and events. Families declining particular consumables must supply replacements consistent with the setting's policies; if a required item is missing, they may be asked to bring it or collect their child.

• Emotional support. The March 2024 improvement concerned recognising feelings and learning to regulate responses. During a visit, ask how staff now help a child who is upset, frustrated or struggling to share.
• A term-time timetable. Morning, afternoon and full-day bookings sit within a 9am–3pm opening window. Training closures also fall within the academic year, so compare the calendar with your working pattern.
• Food and opt-in extras. Lunchboxes come from home, and declining consumable charges means supplying the relevant items. Allergy-affected families should confirm current food practice and how cohort-specific restrictions are communicated.
• Access and room transition. The back ramp provides an alternative to the front steps, while younger children move rooms according to readiness. Use the visit to discuss equipment storage and how a room change would be planned for your child.

St Mary's suits families seeking morning sessions, afternoons or full days within a term-time week, with a small younger room and a gradual move into the older group. Its language intervention, borrowing bags and two-way learning journal give parents concrete ways to participate in learning beyond the session itself.

The March 2024 Good judgement carries an improvement point around emotional understanding. Families also need a routine that fits term-time care, lunchboxes from home and the opt-in or parent-supply arrangements.