The Salvation Army Rainbow Pre-School

Independence starts with small responsibilities at Rainbow: carrying a lunch box to a trolley and finding a photograph and name on a board. In March 2023, these everyday tasks formed part of the preparation for moving on to school. They give a concrete picture of the pre-school's approach: children practising things for themselves alongside learning to share, talk and play together.

The Salvation Army Rainbow Pre-School, on Woodthorpe Road in Ashford, has capacity for 24 children aged 24 to 60 months. Ofsted rated it Good on 23 March 2023, with an improvement action concerning the time children spent sitting through consecutive planned activities. Its term-time opening hours finish earlier on Mondays and Fridays than on the other weekdays.

In March 2023, conversation, number work and physical play were clear strands of the day. Staff had made mathematics a priority, giving children opportunities to count and identify numerals. Stories prompted questions and discussion, while talking together about the days of the week gave children another reason to use language. These were practical experiences rather than learning confined to a single activity.

The early years foundation stage sets the requirements for children's learning, development and care; for families, that means education and everyday care belong together. In March 2023, Rainbow's activities brought that connection into ordinary routines, from recognising a name at self-registration to practising independence with a lunch box. School preparation had a practical emphasis.

Outdoor equipment supported climbing and balancing in March 2023, and a sand tray gave children opportunities to scoop and pour. Those experiences involved both larger body movements and the smaller movements needed to handle materials. Physical development was an explicit priority at the time, with opportunities to practise coordination as well as strength.

The balance of the day also needed attention. In March 2023, several organised activities sometimes followed one another too closely, leaving children seated for extended periods. Some became restless and disengaged. That concern matters alongside the positive examples: worthwhile activities still need a pace that lets young children participate.

At its March 2023 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective, the key-person arrangements successful and children making good progress, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and those learning English as an additional language. These are dated judgements about how care and education worked at that visit.

In March 2023, children recognised their key person and sought them out comfortably. Staff used their knowledge of individual children to plan learning. Celebrating cultures and festivals connected with children's countries of origin was one way of supporting children learning English and helping the group learn about one another.

Home achievements had a place in pre-school life in March 2023: parents were invited to share things their children had accomplished outside the setting. This linked family experience with staff's understanding of each child. Children also practised sharing resources and taking turns, while calm reminders helped them understand expectations, including behaviour at lunch.

Safeguarding practice in March 2023 included staff knowing how to raise concerns about children or adults, accessible reporting information on a noticeboard and quizzes to refresh their knowledge. These concrete arrangements explain the safeguarding judgement more usefully than the grade alone.

The address is The Salvation Army, Woodthorpe Road, Ashford, Surrey TW15 3JY. Rainbow opens during term time: 9.15am to 1pm on Monday and Friday, and 9.15am to 3pm on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. The different finishing times matter when matching childcare to a working week, especially for families needing the same collection time each day.

Funding supports free early education for children aged two and a half until school age. That funding description has a different starting age from the overall age range, so families should distinguish the childcare offer from the funded offer. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation.

• The pace of planned activities. In March 2023, consecutive organised sessions sometimes kept children sitting too long. On a visit, ask how the routine now balances group activities with movement and play.
• An uneven working week. Monday and Friday end at 1pm, while the other weekdays end at 3pm, and opening is term-time only. Families need a weekly arrangement that accommodates both finishing times and school holidays.
• Funding and additional costs. Funded early education starts at two and a half in Rainbow's offer. Ask how the funded hours, any additional hours, food and consumables would work for your child's attendance.

Rainbow suits families seeking term-time pre-school education who can work with its shorter Monday and Friday hours and longer Tuesday-to-Thursday opening. The March 2023 picture gives substance to that choice: practical independence, conversation, counting and physical play, supported by familiar key-person relationships. The concern about lengthy seated activities remains a useful point to explore when judging whether today's routine will suit your child.