Towerview Playschool

Woodland mornings and monthly library visits give Towerview Playschool a clear character: play extends beyond its Broadway base into books, village life and practical outdoor exploration. Forest School brings regular woodland learning, including making dens and gradually learning to handle tools with adult support. This is a setting where getting muddy has a place in the day.

Towerview operates at Apple Vale Childrens Centre on Lime Tree Avenue, Broadway, and has capacity for 24 children. Its current provision is for ages two to five. At its July 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated it Good and found safeguarding effective, with individual learning support helping children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

Attendance is term-time, with a morning option and a longer day ending in the afternoon. That makes the playschool's rhythm relevant to families arranging care around school terms, rather than year-round childcare.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage guides learning through play, with activities helping children develop communication, independence and other areas of learning. Free-choice play sits alongside activities led by adults. Children can pursue an interest while also taking part in shared games and stories.

A large, airy room and outdoor play spaces provide the main setting for that day. Morning activities lead into tidying and circle time, including language games; after lunch, quieter reading, songs and stories precede another period of chosen play. The change of pace gives the day a recognisable structure rather than making every activity a whole-group exercise.

In July 2022, language work included signing, listening games and songs, while outdoor chalk offered opportunities to practise writing names. Staff also extended a spontaneous building game by introducing measuring. These examples connect communication and early mathematics to something children already wanted to do.

Planned yoga was another part of the July 2022 day, with children practising balance and control while following movements together. However, some quieter children participated less readily, and staff needed to become more consistent in adjusting teaching to different ways of learning. Those points matter alongside the appealing activities: having a choice is useful only if a child receives the support to join in.

Outdoor and Community Life

Forest School means repeated learning in woodland, with children exploring nature and working together on practical problems. Towerview's sessions take place on Tuesday or Friday mornings. Activities include making leaf crowns and mud sculptures, building dens, tying knots and cooking over a fire; tool use is introduced gradually with close adult support.

The playschool supplies waterproof clothing for these sessions, while families provide suitable layers and boots. Covered arms and legs are required even in summer, and children need the appropriate kit to participate. Outdoor learning therefore comes with a concrete preparation task for parents.

A library visit takes place once a month. Regular village walks also include the park, fire station, hairdressers and high street shops, bringing everyday places into children's learning. A summer Forest School trip and a Christmas party add seasonal events to that routine.

In July 2022, staff helped children settle and used a visual timetable so they could understand the day's sequence. Circle time reinforced considerate behaviour, and adults listened to children's ideas. Predictable routines and opportunities to express a view were part of everyday care.

Ofsted's July 2022 inspection found that children made good developmental progress and that those with special educational needs and/or disabilities benefited from education plans and targeted sessions. The improvement priorities concerned greater help for quieter children and further staff development to adapt teaching more consistently.

The playschool has trained SENDCO roles and maintains contact with the health visitor. Parents and staff sign accident and incident entries, while collection arrangements include a password and advance notification when someone different will collect a child. These are specific mechanisms for sharing information and managing care, rather than a general promise about support.

Six childcare staff were employed in July 2022. At that time, children practised independence through handwashing, using the bathroom and helping clear away after snacks under supervision. The practical emphasis was on doing manageable tasks for themselves.

Lunch is a packed meal from home, with chilled items placed in a separate named bag for refrigerator storage; snacks are supplied by the playschool with a requested contribution. Families provide spare nappies when a child is toilet training and apply sunscreen before attendance in summer.

Sessions and Attendance

Morning attendance runs from 9am to noon, with the longer term-time day running from 9am to 3pm. Sessions operate five days a week. The afternoon routine finishes at 3pm, following lunch, reading and further play.

The address is Apple Vale Childrens Centre, Lime Tree Avenue, Broadway, WR12 7BD. Enquiries can be made through the contact form, by telephone on 079220 25902 or by email at broadwaytowerview@gmail.com.

Monthly fees are payable in advance, and absences remain payable. Leaving the group or making a permanent change to sessions requires one month's notice, so an ongoing booking carries obligations beyond the days a child attends.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded sessions are offered, with children potentially eligible for 15 hours during term time. Eligibility is conditional. Private attendance is also supported through paid fees; families should obtain current prices in a written quotation.

Food arrangements combine lunch supplied by parents with a requested contribution towards playschool snacks. Nappies for toilet training come from home, and sunscreen is applied by parents before summer attendance. These items need to be planned alongside the session booking.

• Support for a quieter child. The July 2022 improvement priorities included helping less vocal children participate and adapting teaching more consistently. During a visit, ask how staff now draw a hesitant child into group activities and follow their progress.
• Woodland preparation. Tuesday or Friday morning Forest School requires suitable layers, covered limbs and boots, even though waterproofs are supplied. Participation depends on appropriate kit, so this is a recurring part of family preparation.
• Term-time commitments. Morning attendance and the longer day both follow school terms; absences are payable and permanent changes require one month's notice. Families need a holiday-care plan and should weigh that notice period against changing work arrangements.

Towerview suits families seeking either a term-time morning or a longer day from 9am to 3pm, with woodland activity and regular village experiences woven into play. Monthly library visits and practical Forest School tasks give parents something concrete to assess beyond a general promise of learning through play.

The July 2022 Good judgement provides a dated quality benchmark. Its improvement priorities deserve attention, especially for a child who tends to watch rather than join in. The strongest fit is a family comfortable with outdoor preparation, packed lunches and a school-term attendance pattern.