Brookside Pre-School

Woodland, an allotment and a Scout Hut on Gatley Hill give Brookside Pre-School a clear identity. Children grow things, explore outdoors and take part in local life, with a covered outdoor area keeping fresh-air play practical across the seasons. Nature is part of the learning day here, rather than an occasional outing.

Brookside accepts children from age two until the term before Reception and has 24 places in total. At its 5 March 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated it Good and found safeguarding effective, with children making good progress across their learning and development. The improvement priority was more opportunity for children to investigate their own ideas and weigh different answers to a problem.

Morning, afternoon and all-day attendance patterns give families several ways to use the preschool. Its committee-led structure also creates opportunities for parents to contribute beyond their own child's daily care, through volunteering or helping guide the organisation.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the learning framework: children develop language, relationships and physical skills through play, alongside early experiences of reading, mathematics, creativity and the world around them. This is the shared foundation for early-years provision. Brookside's own emphasis brings children's interests, seasonal changes and nature into the activities planned around it.

Child-chosen play sits alongside small groups and adult-directed activities, with key-group learning adapted to children's development. The routine changes to accommodate walks and Forest School.

Physical development has a dedicated lead role. Dough Disco develops the small movements used in writing, while Mindfulness movement combines flexibility and strength with attention to wellbeing. Ballet sessions are planned and delivered by a ballet teacher. These are concrete additions to the everyday movement that comes with outdoor play, giving children different ways to practise controlling their bodies.

Choice extends to resources and play spaces. Children can move between indoors and outdoors for much of the day, choosing materials and following interests while learning to share and care for their surroundings. In March 2024, children also chose the story after lunch by voting. That gave them a manageable experience of expressing a preference and making a decision together.

Outdoor and Community Life

Forest School gives children regular, practical learning in nature, led by their interests with support to understand boundaries and risks. Forest School leaders and practitioners run the programme, with additional participation support where appropriate. Den-making, wildlife searches and imaginative games give children opportunities to investigate.

The Scout Hut setting is surrounded by fields, woodland and a stream. Within the preschool's outdoor space, children can climb, investigate sand and water, look for minibeasts and create with natural materials. A covered area provides shelter, and children each have waterproof clothing for outdoor play. These details matter for a setting that uses the outdoors through changing weather, rather than reserving it for sunny days.

At the allotment, children prepare soil, sow seeds, tend and harvest fruit, vegetables and flowers, taking produce home. Following crops as they grow gives children a practical reason to observe, compare and wait.

Outings include Gatley Green, shops and parks, borrowing books at Wythenshawe Library and Christmas singing for Wellcroft care home residents. These experiences give children reasons to practise language and social skills beyond preschool.

Relationships and Communication

Each child has a key person responsible for their wellbeing, development and learning, giving the family a consistent relationship within the team. Taster sessions allow parents and children to play together before starting, and a familiar comfort object can help during settling. Parents are asked to keep their phone switched on during this period so staff can reach them.

Tapestry, the online learning journal, connects observations at preschool with achievements at home. Parents can see photographs and observations, receive notifications when entries are added and contribute their own updates. Everyday milestones can then inform the key person's planning. Half-termly newsletters provide a broader picture of activities and forthcoming plans, while regular stay-and-play sessions let families spend time alongside their children.

A volunteer Board of Trustees oversees the preschool. Families can help shape the service through committee roles or contribute as occasional parent helpers.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

Support for special educational needs and disabilities starts with information from families, previous settings and relevant professionals. The key person and SENCO use observations and one-page profiles to plan next steps with parents, review targets and bring in further advice where needed. Referrals require parental permission. This gives families a defined process for discussing a concern and following the support that results.

The Graduated Approach means assessing a child's needs, planning support, putting it into practice and reviewing it. Visual timetables, picture cards and British Sign Language are among the communication strategies used. The building, toilets and inside and outside areas are on one level, with wheelchair access to the building and toilets. Accessibility therefore includes both the physical setting and ways of helping children understand routines.

All staff have paediatric first-aid training, and the team includes a designated safeguarding lead. In March 2024, pictures helped children anticipate changes in the day, with a bell giving advance notice of a transition; speech and language therapists had also helped staff develop listening and understanding strategies. Those examples show how predictable routines and professional advice were used in daily practice at that time.

Moving on to school involves visits to the child's new school, with incoming teachers encouraged to meet children at preschool and speak with their key person and SENCO. The emphasis is on sharing understanding of the child before the change of setting.

Sessions and Attendance

Brookside is based at Scout H Q, Church Road, Gatley, Cheadle, SK8 4EY. The enquiry form asks for preferred days or sessions and a potential start date, and submitting it adds a child to the waiting list. Its admissions policy uses guidance from Stockport Council and the Department of Education to manage that list fairly.

For 2026-27, morning sessions run from 9am to noon and afternoons from 12.15pm to 3.15pm. All Day runs from 9am to 3.15pm, while All Day (funded) finishes at 3pm. Breakfast Club runs from 8.30am to 9am. The different all-day finishing times are a useful detail when planning collection.

In March 2024, the preschool operated Monday to Friday during term time. Invoices are issued each half term, with payment due within two weeks of the invoice date. Families should obtain a current written quotation covering their chosen attendance pattern and extras.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded attendance and privately paid sessions are offered. In March 2024, funded early education covered two-, three- and four-year-olds; the current session options include an all-day funded pattern. Eligibility remains a separate question from choosing the preschool or a session.

Snacks and consumables carry a separate charge per three-hour session. The charge structure therefore matters alongside the attendance pattern, including when using funding. The fees and funding page sets out the session options and invoicing arrangements.

• Ideas and problem-solving. The March 2024 improvement priority was to give children more chances to develop their own answers and consider alternatives. At a visit, ask how adults now extend a child's investigation while leaving room for the child's thinking.
• Outdoor kit and everyday clothes. Wellingtons are needed, clothes should be easy for children to manage, and winter indoor shoes or slippers are required. Daily paint and glue make washable, practical clothing a sensible choice.
• Funded collection times. All Day (funded) ends at 3pm, compared with 3.15pm for All Day. That distinction needs to fit the family's collection arrangements.
• Term-time planning. The March 2024 operating pattern was term time. How does the current calendar fit your family's need for care during school holidays?

Brookside suits families choosing morning or afternoon sessions as well as those wanting an all-day preschool pattern, especially when outdoor learning and parent participation matter. Forest School, the allotment and community experiences give its nature-led approach concrete substance, while the key-person and SENCO arrangements provide clear routes for sharing information and planning support.

The March 2024 Good judgement is balanced by a specific teaching priority: helping children explore their own solutions more fully. For families comfortable with practical outdoor clothing and the collection times, this is a preschool with a recognisable character and several ways to take part.