Perins Preschool

A gardening hub, weekly nature learning and monthly visits to Bailey House give Perins Preschool a clear identity: children learn about their surroundings by taking part in them. Growing food and spending time with older residents turn the natural world and the local community into practical experiences. This is a preschool with plenty happening beyond its playrooms.

Based at Sun Hill Junior School on Sun Lane in Alresford, it takes children from age two until school age and has 36 places in total. At its August 2025 inspection, Ofsted rated the provision Good, found safeguarding effective and judged that children progressed well towards their next stage of learning. That positive assessment came with two specific priorities: keeping younger children involved during changes in the daily routine, and improving coaching so staff could stretch older and more able children.

Morning, afternoon and full-day sessions provide different ways to use the setting. Its year-round opening and term-time funding arrangements need to be considered separately when planning attendance.

Rooms and Ages

Children share the same spaces rather than moving through separately named age-band rooms. The purpose-built setting contains two large playrooms alongside a sensory and quiet room. Low furniture and accessible storage let children choose equipment themselves, making independence part of ordinary play rather than a separate exercise.

The sensory and quiet room offers books, resting space, bubble tubes and fibre optic lights. The single-level building has a wheelchair-accessible entrance; the enclosed garden has both gate and step access.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the framework for learning and care: children develop language, movement, relationships and early skills through play and planned experiences. Perins adds a strong emphasis on gardening, nature and community contact. Its curriculum approach connects those experiences with what children are learning, rather than treating outdoor time as a break from it.

Weekly Nature Learning involves observing seasonal changes, recognising wildlife and using materials found outdoors to solve creative problems. Our Gardening Hub takes children through planting, caring for crops and harvesting them. That gives counting, measuring and small hand movements a practical purpose, while helping children understand how food reaches their plate.

Adult-led activities sit alongside children's own discoveries, with plans adapted to their interests and favourites repeated for practice. Filling mud-kitchen containers introduces quantity; outdoor drawing and writing bring learning into the garden.

Outdoor and Community Life

The connected garden has a sandpit, playhouse, mud kitchen and growing area, with outdoor play continuing in wet weather. Woodland lessons extend wildlife observation and material gathering beyond it.

Access to Sun Hill Junior School's grounds extends the physical offer: the preschool uses its playing fields and sports hall. Walks to the local duck pond add another setting for exploring the community. For children needing individual support on an outing, the inclusion arrangements provide for one-to-one help and personal plans, with parental permission sought for community walks.

Monthly Bailey House visits build relationships with older residents through biscuit decorating and stories. Towards the summer term's end, Pre-School Graduation Day marks the move to school with a family party and entertainment.

Relationships and Communication

Settling is adaptable. Free introductory sessions are arranged over a two-to-three-week period before a child starts, with further sessions possible when needed. The first usually lasts an hour with a parent staying; later sessions are shaped around the child and family. A key person takes responsibility for getting to know the child's interests, routines and needs, using information from the family to help bridge home and preschool.

Tapestry, an online learning journal, shares observations, photographs and videos, with parents contributing learning from home. Daily feedback, termly summaries and three parent evenings a year combine everyday updates with fuller progress discussions.

A lending library, home learning bags and toilet-training topic bags support families at home; stay and play sessions involve them in activities. A sustainability lead supports the emphasis on caring for nature.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

SEND support has a defined route. The key person and SENCO work with parents on an Individual Educational Plan, setting targets around the child's interests and needs. Activities may involve individual work, small groups or play, and observations are used to review progress. Outside support can include Portage, speech and language therapists and the local Inclusion Support Officer.

Visual routines, now and next boards and picture-based communication are among the available strategies. A makaton sign of the week introduces a recurring signing activity, while stories, games and mood bears help children recognise and discuss feelings. These resources support communication and emotional understanding.

For children with health conditions, the key person develops a health care plan with parents; staff have paediatric first aid certificates. Hungry Monsters supplies freshly prepared hot lunches on a rotating three-week menu, with packed lunches an alternative. The allergy policy passes dietary information to the caterer and uses red plates for children with confirmed allergies or undergoing allergy testing.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Sun Hill Junior School, Sun Lane, Alresford, SO24 9NB. Opening hours are 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, across the year, with closures on bank holidays, at Christmas and for three INSET days; reopening after Christmas is in January. Registration involves completing a form and returning it to admin@perins-preschool.net; telephone enquiries can be made on 01962 737286.

Morning sessions run from 8am to 1pm, afternoon sessions from 1pm to 6pm, and full days from 8am to 6pm. Full-time and part-time attendance are offered.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered for eligible children, including universal funding of 15 hours a week for three- and four-year-olds, beginning the term after their third birthday subject to the term cut-off dates, and an additional 15 hours for those meeting the extended-hours criteria. Two-year-olds can access 30 funded hours a week with a valid eligibility code. Funding is delivered during term time over 38 weeks, while additional private attendance is charged separately.

The 30-hour arrangement must start at the beginning of a term. Five non-funded days fall in the summer term, with attendance on those dates charged at the normal rate. Year-round attendance therefore needs private care alongside funded weeks.

Hot lunches carry a separate charge, or parents can send a packed lunch. Families supply nappies, wipes and nappy cream where applicable, together with sun cream in warm weather. A refundable administration fee applies to all ages, and enrichment charges were replaced by a voluntary contribution towards running costs from September 2025. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation; the sessions and fees page explains the charging structure.

Moving on to School

Reception teachers visit during the summer months, and children have activities such as dressing games and stories about starting school. Children also visit Sun Hill Infants for a play session. Attendance does not guarantee a school place: families still apply through the local authority admissions process. Transition meetings and information sharing support the change of setting, rather than conferring an admissions advantage.

• Waiting and challenge. The August 2025 priorities concerned younger children's engagement during routine changes and extending older, more able children's learning. During a visit, ask how lunch-time transitions now work and how staff adapt activities for children ready for a harder task.
• Funding across the year. Funded hours cover 38 term-time weeks, and five summer-term days are charged separately. Match the funded calendar and private attendance to the care pattern your family needs.
• Allergy arrangements. Dietary details go to Hungry Monsters, and the red-plate policy applies to confirmed allergies and children undergoing testing. Allergy-affected families should confirm current practice for their child's needs.

Perins Preschool suits families seeking either morning or afternoon sessions as well as full-day attendance, with gardening and community experiences woven into the week. Weekly nature learning, monthly Bailey House visits and a quieter sensory space give its offer substance. The August 2025 Good judgement supports that picture, while the priorities around younger children's waiting time and greater challenge for older children deserve attention. For families using funding, the term-time calendar is a central practical consideration alongside the year-round opening pattern.