South Nutfield Pre-School

Weekly Explorers walks, a playground children can use throughout the day and play resources rearranged for the children attending give South Nutfield Pre-School its character. This is a pack-away setting in South Nutfield Village Hall, with capacity for 26 children. Its appeal rests on village life and practical, hands-on learning: fields and allotments extend the day beyond the hall.

At its March 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated the pre-school Good and found safeguarding effective. The judgement comes with two clear teaching priorities: tailoring communication support more closely and making better use of learning opportunities in play.

Children generally start around 26 or 27 months, depending on the individual child and space, and can stay until the term before their fifth birthday. Attendance is term-time, with full days and shorter sessions serving different family routines.

Learning and Activities

EYFS provides the framework for learning, development and care, with children building skills through play. Here, communication, physical development and understanding feelings receive particular attention. Stories, rhymes and imaginary play create reasons to talk and listen; puzzles, threading and craft develop control of hands and fingers.

A cosy book area gives children somewhere to browse quietly or join a story, while the lending library lets families continue that interest at home. A puppet stage, dressing-up box and den-building materials support shared imaginary games.

Physical activity reaches indoors too. Climbing equipment, Mini yoga and play doh discos form part of the week, alongside sensory exploration with cornflour gloop, shaving foam and chalk. These activities sit within work on movement, balance and hand control.

Plan in the Moment means staff use observations, family conversations and children's interests to shape learning as play unfolds. At the March 2024 inspection, Ofsted identified inconsistent adaptation of language support to children's developmental stages and missed chances to extend individual learning during play. That is the important qualification to the approach: following an interest still needs purposeful adult support.

Outdoor and Community Life

The gated playground contains sandpits, mudkitchens and play houses, with tricycles, scooters and space for games. Children can choose to go outdoors throughout the day.

Explorers Club Walks take place on Tuesday afternoons, taking children into local outdoor spaces to notice seasonal changes. Visits to the allotments, collecting leaves and splashing in puddles connect learning with familiar village surroundings. Weekly Explorers walks also include neighbouring fields. For families choosing shorter sessions, the Tuesday afternoon timing is a meaningful part of the timetable.

Community connections include participation in Nutfield Advent Christmas Windows and visits from the Community Police Officer. These bring village events and people into children's experience. In March 2024, children also practised balancing on low beams and taking turns on small obstacle courses; staff prompted them to put toys down before attempting the equipment. Physical challenge was accompanied by simple thinking about risk.

Relationships and Communication

A key person is allocated before a child's first day. Home visits are offered before starting, giving staff an opportunity to meet children in familiar surroundings and learn about them from their families; taking part is optional. Children then begin with shorter settling sessions, building towards their booked hours when the child, family and pre-school are comfortable.

Termly summaries invite parental feedback, and family interest forms help shape subsequent play. Parents can participate through Stay & Play, group opportunities to spend time in the setting, or helper sessions. The final developmental summary is sent to the child's next school, so information gathered during the pre-school years travels with them.

In March 2024, children could identify their key person through photographs arranged on pictures of buses. Staff used the remaining seats as a counting activity. Other small responsibilities included moving the lunch-box trolley and carrying fruit to the kitchen. Relationships, number work and helping with the routine met in everyday tasks.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

The SENCO role supports a cycle called Assess, Plan, Do and Review: identifying needs, planning support, putting it into practice and reviewing what happens. Children attending before age three have a two-year Development Check, which can help identify areas needing additional support.

Children are encouraged to use their home language while receiving support to learn English through play. Where development is uneven, staff discuss the balance with parents. For example, a child showing early reading skills but less confidence socially may receive more help with interactions at pre-school while the family continues reading support at home.

In March 2024, children practised putting on their coats, managed tissues independently and served fruit and poured drinks at snack time. These small tasks gave them opportunities to act for themselves and request help when needed. At that visit, lunch boxes and fruit donated by parents formed part of the food routine.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is South Nutfield Village Hall, Mid Street, Redhill, RH1 4JJ. Opening hours are 9am to 3pm, Monday to Friday, during term time. Full days run within that window; shorter attendance offers collection before lunch at noon or after lunch at 1.30pm. Three-hour, four-and-a-half-hour and up-to-six-hour sessions are offered, with a minimum booking of two separate sessions each week.

An early drop-off at 8.30am is a paid service outside funded hours. Breakfast club can operate each day when enough children require it, and is also paid separately.

Enquiries go to info@southnutfieldpreschool.co.uk. The waiting list normally follows application date, with additional consideration for eligible two-year-old funding, looked-after children, children approaching Reception, families facing health-related crises and SEND requirements. Consideration of SEND requirements includes a risk assessment to establish whether the setting is suitable for the child. Leaving or reducing attendance requires written notice covering at least four term-time weeks; fees remain payable, or funding is claimed, through that period.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funding is accepted through FEET, Universal 15 hours for 3 and 4 year olds and Working Parent Entitlement for 2, 3 and 4 year olds, subject to the relevant eligibility rules. Funded attendance operates between 9am and 3pm on weekdays over 38 term-time weeks, rather than being stretched across the year. Applications for Working Parent Entitlement must be made in the preceding term.

Private hours are also offered, with attendance invoiced half-termly where funding does not cover it. For privately charged attendance, holidays and sickness absences remain payable. Families should obtain current prices in a written quotation; the fees and funding page explains the entitlement options.

Getting There

Parking is on nearby roads and Mid Street. The village-hall location sits beside Nutfield Church Primary School, which may help families coordinating a sibling's school day.

The pre-school describes links with Nutfield Church Primary School that include invitations to its Nativity dress rehearsal and a visit from its school leader before the summer term finishes. These introduce children to people and experiences associated with moving on. Attendance does not guarantee a Reception place: families still apply through the local authority admissions process.

• Teaching tailored to the child. The March 2024 priorities concerned language support at different developmental stages and extending learning through play. During a tour, ask how staff now adapt conversations and activities for your child's development.
• Tuesday afternoons outdoors. Explorers Club Walks sit in this part of the week. A morning-only pattern would miss this regular community activity, so the session choice affects the experience as well as childcare hours.
• Food and everyday supplies. What should families provide for meals and non-food consumables, and which items carry separate charges? Include this question when discussing the written quotation.
• Term-time commitments. Attendance has a two-session weekly minimum, and reducing it requires four weeks' written notice measured in term time. Those terms matter if family schedules are likely to change.

South Nutfield Pre-School suits families seeking village-based, term-time childcare through either full days or shorter morning and after-lunch collection patterns. The playground, weekly Explorers walks and family involvement give the offer substance. Home visits and gradual settling provide a practical starting point for new children.

The Good judgement is useful context, but the teaching priorities deserve attention alongside it. The strongest fit is a family that values outdoor exploration and community connections, can work within the session minimum and wants to take an active part in sharing a child's interests and development.