Chandlings Prep Nursery

Weekly woodland learning, drama in the Auditorium and swimming from age three give Chandlings Nursery a day that reaches well beyond its own rooms. This is the school’s nursery for children aged two to four, within a 60-acre Oxfordshire site. Families can choose attendance during school terms or an all-year-round option covering 50 weeks.

At the May 2026 inspection, 63 nursery children were organised into three classes. That is an attendance figure, rather than a limit on places. The nursery combines its own room-based staff with access to specialist teachers and school facilities, bringing different experiences into these first years.

Play and adult-directed activities share the day. In May 2026, ISI found that early-years teaching balanced these approaches effectively and that staff adjusted activities through regular discussion of children’s progress. The Early Years Foundation Stage covers practical foundations: communicating, moving, building relationships and developing early reading, writing and mathematical understanding.

Those foundations have concrete expression. Across the early years, children made cards for celebrations to practise writing, compared objects and talked about shapes while designing structures. Construction club, little explorers and craft activities gave children opportunities to cooperate and develop their communication. Learning involves doing things together.

Specialist experiences extend the nursery week. Outdoor Learning takes children into the grounds and woods to investigate plants and wildlife in different weather. PE and Games use the Astro, Main Hall or playing fields. Weekly swimming is included for three- and four-year-olds, giving water confidence its own regular place in the timetable.

The library provides stories and opportunities to choose books; drama takes place in the Auditorium, alongside opportunities to experiment with instruments. Visiting teachers introduce languages including French several times a month. Older nursery children also have weekly music sessions with a professional singer. These are distinct encounters with movement, language and creative expression, alongside the nursery’s early phonics and number work.

Room leaders, nursery assistants and key persons make up the nursery team. Before joining, children can attend gentle taster sessions to meet staff and other children. A minimum of three sessions on different days supports settling and adjustment. In May 2026, early-years staff combined assessment with conversations involving parents to understand children’s interests and needs.

Hot lunches and morning snacks are provided, with Thomas Franks handling catering. Dietary arrangements accommodate allergies and religious preferences; nuts and sesame are excluded. Morning sessions include lunch. In May 2026, early-years children were closely supervised while eating, staffing ratios were appropriate and all early-years staff undertook paediatric first-aid training.

SEND support starts with observation, including the progress check between ages two and three, and follows an assess, plan, do and review cycle. Parents and specialists contribute, with individual or group intervention when needed. Support needs. Facilities for children with severe disabilities are limited, so families should discuss their child’s needs with the SENCO before entry to establish suitable adjustments.

Nursery attendance alone should not be treated as an unconditional guarantee of Reception entry. Chandlings has a specific reservation arrangement: a deposit on nursery admission secures the child’s Reception place, and nursery offers typically secure later entry. The deposit is retained if the child does not continue into Reception. Admission remains discretionary, and continued attendance depends on the school being able to meet the child’s needs.

This is an independent-school arrangement. Families should distinguish accepting that reservation from simply attending nursery, especially when choosing funded-only provision, for which the nursery deposit does not apply.

Morning sessions run from 8:30am to 12:30pm, including lunch; afternoon sessions run from 12:40pm to 3:40pm. Sessions require advance booking, with alterations taking effect at the start of a term or at half term. Nursery welcomes children from 8am. After School Care stays in the Nursery Rooms until 5pm at no extra charge, then moves to the Inner Hall until 6pm with an additional charge.

Eligible children receive 15 funded hours weekly from the term after their third birthday until Reception entry, restricted to afternoons. For the all-year-round option, funding covers 38 of its 50 weeks. Ask the school for current charges.

Uniform centres on red tops with navy bottoms. Keep waterproof trousers, wellingtons and spare clothes at school. Enquiries go to office@chandlings.org.uk or 01865 730771; personal tours last an hour during term time.