The Scott Centre Pre-School

Play-based learning and a secure outdoor play area give The Scott Centre Pre-School a practical character: children explore their interests through hands-on activities, physical play and sensory experiences. Based at The Scott Centre in Andover, this term-time preschool combines indoor play with an enclosed outdoor area. Its emphasis is on children's interests, communication and increasing independence.

At its November 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated the setting Good, judged safeguarding effective and found strong support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. That gives families a positive inspection position, with a specific teaching improvement to weigh alongside it.

The preschool has 55 places in total for children aged two to five. Morning, afternoon and full-day attendance patterns give families different ways to build preschool into the week.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the framework for learning through play, including communication, physical development and early number skills. Here, activities follow children's interests and stages of development: recognising shapes, counting, solving problems and exploring early reading and writing sit alongside music, art and movement. These practical experiences support children's early learning.

Development Matters is used as supporting guidance for planning and reviewing children's development. Activities are tailored to each child's needs. The practical value is continuity: what a child can already do informs what they are helped to try next.

In November 2023, children worked out the bricks needed for a tower and considered how to keep it upright. Making play dough involved following a recipe and measuring ingredients. These examples bring number, sequence and problem-solving into an activity with a visible result. Small-group activities were also matched to children's stages of learning, giving staff another way to organise attention and participation.

The November 2023 inspection identified a need for staff to understand the purpose of the curriculum more clearly and use that understanding to plan individual learning more precisely. During some activities led by adults, the intended learning was insufficiently clear. For parents, the useful distinction is between an engaging activity and one designed around a particular next step for their child.

Outdoor and Community Life

Bright, spacious indoor areas are paired with a secure outdoor play area. Physical activities and sensory play extend the day beyond indoor tasks, while music and movement contribute to balance and coordination. The outdoor space is part of the preschool's everyday learning offer.

In November 2023, children planted daffodils together, climbed a slide and practised balancing on an obstacle course. Staff added counting and new vocabulary to outdoor activities. These were opportunities to combine movement with conversation and shared projects, rather than treating outdoor time as a separate pause in learning.

Relationships and Communication

A key person is allocated before a child starts. That allocation can change if the child forms a closer connection with another practitioner, allowing the relationship to respond to the child rather than remain fixed on paper. Parents can discuss progress with the key person or deputy preschool manager.

Tapestry, an online learning journal, shares children's activities and development with home. Parents can add their own photographs and comments as well as view the preschool's entries. That gives communication a concrete form: families can connect what happens at preschool with interests and experiences outside it.

Settling includes introductory sessions so children can become familiar with the staff and surroundings. The emphasis on familiarity matters for a child beginning group care, while the key-person arrangement gives parents a clear contact for discussing how the transition is going.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

A dedicated, trained member of staff supports special educational needs, helps with external assessments and adapts the curriculum. This provides a practical mechanism for discussing a child's needs and adjusting their activities. It is more useful to families than a broad promise of inclusion alone.

In November 2023, the special educational needs coordinator worked with parents and other professionals to set individual targets. Communication with families covered children's development and daily experiences, while links with health and education professionals supported coordinated work around children.

School preparation includes social skills, independence and confidence in learning. In November 2023, children practised washing their hands before snacks, clearing their plates and looking after shared toys. Staff also used stories to explore worries and personal safety, with children learning to seek help from an adult. These are everyday skills with a clear purpose beyond preschool.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is The Scott Centre, Mead Hedges, Andover, SP10 2LB. Preschool runs during term time, Monday to Friday, with morning sessions from 9am to noon and afternoon sessions from noon to 3pm. Full-day attendance is also offered, alongside an early drop-off option at 8.45am.

The minimum booking is two half days or one full day. That makes a modest weekly pattern possible while retaining repeated contact with children and staff. Lunch Club runs from noon to 1pm; children attending bring a packed lunch.

Enquiries can be made by telephone on 01264 332188. Joining involves completing the admission paperwork, agreeing terms and completing the relevant funding documents. The non-refundable administration charge includes a Youth Options T-shirt. Current prices come in the preschool's written quotation.

Funding and Paid Extras

The preschool accepts 15 hour and 30 hour government funding and operates on a term-time basis. Paid hours are also offered. Funded entitlement and any additional paid attendance should be kept separate when considering the family's booking pattern and budget.

Snacks and covered consumables carry a separate charge, which parents can decline by supplying the necessary snacks and items themselves; parents provide packed lunches for afternoon attendance. The preschool publishes a policy excluding nuts, including items labelled as potentially containing them.

The consumables charge also covers wipes, sun cream and activity resources, but parents bring nappies and wipes for children who are not toilet trained. Families apply sun cream before attendance and supply a labelled product if their child needs a particular one; staff reapply it at lunchtime. Spare clothes and suitable outdoor clothing belong in the child's bag.

• Term-time pattern. Morning, afternoon and full-day bookings serve different routines, but preschool closes for school holidays. Match the pattern to the care your family needs across the year.
• Full-day timing. Full-day start times conflict between the session descriptions. Before agreeing a full-day booking, confirm its start time and how early drop-off fits around it.
• Purposeful teaching. The November 2023 improvement concerned the precision of individual learning plans. On a visit, ask how staff choose the next step for your child and build it into activities.
• Lunch and personal care. Afternoon attendance requires a packed lunch, and the preschool's nut policy includes precautionary ingredient labels. Allergy-affected families should confirm current practice; discuss nappies, wipes and any specific sun cream alongside the consumables charge.

The Scott Centre suits families seeking term-time preschool through morning or afternoon sessions, as well as those wanting full-day attendance. Its practical appeal lies in play-based learning, indoor and outdoor space, a key person and Tapestry communication with home.

The Good judgement provides a positive inspection position, balanced by the need for more precise planning of individual learning. For parents, the strongest combination is the flexible session choice and clear ways to stay involved in a child's development. The holiday calendar, packed-lunch arrangement and personal-care supplies are equally important to the decision.