Hermitage Pre School Playgroup

A village-hall setting with a large garden and a clear emphasis on language gives Hermitage Pre School Playgroup its character. Play, conversation and growing independence shape the offer, with younger children and those approaching school following different learning stages rather than one undifferentiated programme.

At its January 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated the playgroup Good overall. It has 26 places in total, and its current offer caters for children aged 2–5. The setting operates from Hermitage Village Hall in Hermitage, with a bright main space for indoor play and a garden for outdoor activity.

Morning and full-day sessions run during term time. This is also a charity run by a voluntary committee, giving parents a practical route into supporting its organisation and fundraising.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the educational framework: children develop language, movement and relationships through play, alongside experiences with stories, numbers, nature and creative materials. Hermitage organises its learning into Explorers for younger children and Adventurers for children in their final preschool year. These are learning stages, rather than a reason to assume separate rooms.

Explorers emphasises sensory experiences, early communication, movement and playing alongside other children. Adventurers brings more puzzles and memory games, drawing and balancing, cooperative play, and early work with letters and numbers. The distinction gives families a useful picture of how activities change as children develop, while ongoing observation and assessment guide what comes next for each child.

Every Child a Talker, the local West Berkshire ECAT initiative, adds a specific strand of speech and language support. It involves the whole staff team, with a lead practitioner attending cluster meetings each term. Its aims include recognising children who may need language support, extending practitioners’ skills and helping parents understand speech development. The parent element matters: communication practice can continue beyond the preschool session.

Outdoor and Community Life

The large garden provides space for outdoor play, but the educational use of that space deserves attention. In January 2024, outdoor activities did not consistently offer enough breadth or purpose; strengthening this part of the curriculum was the improvement priority. A generous outdoor area and a well-planned outdoor learning experience are separate considerations.

Other January 2024 examples show how play connected different areas of learning. Children made binoculars, searched for birds and matched what they saw with pictures, combining making, observation and conversation. Counting with toy dinosaurs became more challenging when children were ready for higher numbers. Storytelling with Goldilocks and toy bears encouraged children to recall a familiar story and act it out.

Community contact includes occasional work-experience placements for young people from Mary Hare School. This is a visiting connection, rather than a claim about where preschool children will move on to school. Fundraising events also take place throughout the year, bringing the charity’s wider community into its work.

Each child has a key worker, giving families a consistent practitioner connection. The curriculum also uses a Key Person system to tailor attention to individual children. Observation and assessment sit alongside this relationship, so the learning plan can respond to the child rather than simply follow the same sequence for everyone.

At the January 2024 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and described successful support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), including cooperation between the special educational needs coordinator, staff, parents and schools. External advice and mentoring helped staff respond to individual needs at that time. These are dated findings, rather than a blanket promise about any future child’s support.

Daily independence was visible in January 2024 through snack preparation: children cut fruit and cheese with safe knives under close supervision, then helped wash and dry crockery. Physical play included a low slide and small climbing steps, while paint, sponges and marbles supported early mark-making. These examples show the practical content behind preparation for school: handling tools, persevering and taking responsibility, as well as beginning literacy and number work.

The manager holds the designated safeguarding lead role. The safeguarding arrangements also include employment checks and appropriate DBS checks for successful applicants. These procedures apply to recruitment and selection at the preschool.

Sessions and Attendance

Term-time attendance comes in two patterns, both offered Monday to Friday: morning sessions from 9.15am to 1.15pm, and full-day sessions from 9.15am to 3pm. The later finish gives families a different attendance option while retaining the same morning start.

The address is Hermitage Village Hall, Pinewood Crescent, Hermitage, RG18 9WL. Enquiries about enrolment can be made through the contact form, by email at hermitage.preschool@gmail.com or by telephone on 07444 421917.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered for three-year-olds and eligible two-year-olds, with eligible children receiving up to 30 hours of free entitlement each week. The entitlement can be shared with one other setting, and attendance here is term time only. Eligibility remains a condition of the funded offer.

Private attendance is charged by the hour. Fees are set by the committee and may change; childcare vouchers are also accepted. The fees and curriculum information explains the charge structure and learning approach.

Families supply a packed lunch, eaten after the morning session with no additional lunch charge; snacks have a separate voluntary charge per morning session. This distinction matters when comparing the cost and preparation involved in attendance.

• Outdoor learning. The January 2024 improvement priority concerned making outdoor play more purposeful. On a visit, ask how garden activities now connect with children’s learning and interests.
• Term-time timetable. Morning and full-day sessions share a 9.15am start, with the later option ending at 3pm. Families need an attendance pattern that fits these hours and the term-time calendar.
• Parent involvement. A voluntary committee runs the charity, meets each half term and oversees staffing, finances and fundraising. This offers a meaningful way to contribute for parents who want involvement beyond their child’s sessions.

Hermitage suits families seeking either a substantial morning session or a full preschool day during term time. Its strongest practical features are the key-worker relationship, differentiated learning stages and participation in Every Child a Talker, with a village-hall space and garden supporting the day.

The Good judgement from January 2024 provides a positive inspection position, balanced by a clear outdoor-learning improvement priority. For families whose timetable matches the sessions, the combination of language support, play-based learning and opportunities for parent involvement makes this a useful option to consider.