About Potley Hill Preschool and Forest School

Potley Hill Preschool and Forest School:

Potley Hill Community Preschool began in 1979 and has grown and developed beyond recognition during that time.   The preschool is a registered charity,  managed by a committee.  Located on the Frogmore Community Campus on Reading Road, we are easily accessible for families living in Yateley, Blackwater, Sandhurst, Hawley and the surrounding areas. There is plenty of on-site parking to help with drop off and pick up.

Children from 2 years to school age can attend our safe, secure and stimulating environment in which your child can learn and develop.   Our keycarer and co-keycarer family system makes sure all the children/parents have a familiar ‘go to’ adult (or adults).

Using the Curiosity Approach, our setting is set up with authentic resources and provocations to spark and encourage imaginative play.  As well as our calm and airy preschool room, enclosed outdoor play area and eco garden, we have an onsite Forest School where children, once toilet trained, spend whole sessions.  ‘In the moment’ planning allows us to explore all the different directions the children’s play can take and we have visitors whenever possible, like family, the fire brigade  and dentist !

Use of the whole campus grounds (including woodland for our Forest School) and collaboration with the other groups on site mean we have lots of adventures and opportunities to make friendships:  Potley Hill Primary school – we take the children over to see the Reception childrens’ Christmas production; Frogmore College – we take the children to the library where older children read to them; Frogmore Care and Wellbeing Centre  – we visit our older friends for games and songs.

We are term time and accept government funded children for 38 weeks of the year, tax free childcare and voucher payments.

We do so much for the children, too much to list here – so please fill in our Enquiry form and come and visit us!

Contact Us

Fees and Funding

The hourly fee is £7.60 (or funded if eligible for government funding subsidy) plus our Parent Plus charge of 90p per hour for all hours attended*, payable in advance, termly or by monthly instalments, or by Tax Free Childcare payments / Childcare Vouchers.

A 2-course hot lunch may be booked for £3.95.

(Fees are subject to change from time to time when reviewed by the Committee).

*Additional charge for the Parent Plus Programme

The high practitioner to child ratio ensures that we are not only always compliant with statutory requirements but we are able to provide excellent levels of attention to the children. Fees continue to be payable even if the child is absent. This is because staffing rotas have to be organised termly and will not be altered if a child is absent.

Every child’s place at Preschool is conditional upon continued payment of any necessary fees. If a child is withdrawn for whatever reason from the Preschool, or session changes are requested, 4 weeks written notice is required and fees are payable during this notice period.

The Preschool offers Government Funded Subsidy – please refer to the option ‘Government Funding’

Opening hours at Potley Hill Preschool

Admission and Opening Hrs

We accept children from 2 years to school age.  We ask parents on application to specify preferences, however, we are unable to guarantee preferences being available straight away but they are kept on file and parents are contacted the term before the child is due to start to confirm the sessions we are able to offer.

Preschool is open 7:30 am to 5:30 pm, term time with the following start and end times:

Breakfast Club:    7:30 am          –                 8:30 am         (1 hour)

Mornings:             8:30 am          –                 11:30 am         (3 hours)

Lunch Club:         11:30 am          –                 12:30 pm        (1 hour)

Afternoons:          12:30 pm         –                 3:30 pm          (3 hours)

Extended hours:    3:30 pm        –                 5:30 pm          (bookable in half hour chunks to suit your requirements)

All our offered hours can be included in government funding alongside the Parent Plus programme.

Government Funding

Eligible parents are able to access the full 30 funded hours with our setting.    You can check your eligibility at https://beststartinlife.gov.uk/

2, 3 and 4 Year Old Funding

Potley Hill Preschool is registered as a provider for 2, 3 and 4 year old funded children.  There is an online eligibility checker at https://beststartinlife.gov.uk/, or please ask if you are unsure what to do.

2 Year Early Learning Funding

For children of families receiving additional support

Universal Funding

Universal 15 hours Government funded subsidy is available for every child from the term after they turn 3 years old for 38 weeks of the academic year

Autumn Term: your child must be 3 before 31st August
Spring Term: your child must be 3 before 31st December
Summer Term: your child must be 3  before 31st March

Working family funding

Qualifying 2 year olds are eligible for up to 30 hours government funded subsidy per week for 38 weeks of the academic year.

Qualifying 3 year olds are eligible for an additional 15 Extended hours to the Universal funding (up to a maximum of 30 hours) for 38 weeks of the academic year.

Additional funding options such as Early Years Pupil Premium and Disability Access Funding which help childcare settings cater for your child’s needs are available for qualifying parents—check your eligibility here:  https://www.hants.gov.uk/socialcareandhealth/childrenandfamilies/childcare/paying-for-childcare/earlyyearspupilpremium

Government Funding

Parent Plus Programme

Parents will automatically be enrolled in our Parent Plus Programme which gives lots of additional help to parents.  Potley Hill Preschool is not just about childcare and following the Early Years Foundation Stage framework. We understand that parenting is a complex issue and children do not come with a ‘How to’ manual. What we provide is a Parent Plus service which is designed to give parents and children  added support and flexibility.

Our Parent Plus Programme covers:

  • session allocation in our Forest School which has a high adult: child ratio
  • the ability to book additional, chargeable Ad Hoc sessions (subject to availability) so that your child can attend one off sessions to cope with unexpected childcare issues or just to give parents the opportunity of a ‘child free’ few hours to shop, attend appointments or just have a quiet cuppa!
  • 2 x face to face parent consultation appointments per year with your child’s keycarer
  • if you are claiming the government funded subsidy, to be able to include breakfast club and extended hours in government funded subsidy hours. These sessions would otherwise be charged at our normal session rate.
  • cereals if your child attends the breakfast club, a nutritional snack for each morning and afternoon session, and if your child attends extended hours, toast is included.
  • the ability to book a regular catered hot lunch or one off Ad Hoc
  • being able to add additional sessions to  your regular booking pattern eg once funding is received or if work hours change, (subject to availability)
  • Parent Plus also covers the cost of additional consumables and higher ratio services including trips on and off campus, visits to the Daycentre, Primary School, College library, college pond and fields; ingredients for weekly cooking and taste testing; balsa and softwood for woodworking activities

Parents may opt out of Parent Plus.  If opting out, parents will not have access to all the above benefits of Parent Plus  and will specifically need to provide food from home for breakfast, morning and afternoon snacks, packed lunch, and bread for toast for extended sessions. 

The signing of an opt out agreement will be required. 

Whilst we are all on hand to talk to parents at drop off times and pick up times, we also understand some working parents, or partners, may find it hard to get to preschool.  We address this by trying to engage in other ways;

Our online app provides a comprehensive service for two-way communication between parents and the setting, accessing your child’s information, photos, sessions and finances.

Our website is at www.potleyhill-preschool.co.uk and we aim to keep it up to date with useful information. Do let us know if you have any feedback on information you would like to see on the website!

We have a Facebook page to show what’s going on at preschool and a Parents Facebook page so you can exchange ideas, events and information

and our Facebook page is linked to our Twitter and Instagram accounts.

We produce newsletters which give updates on preschool events and reminders about forthcoming activities. These are emailed home and are also on our website.

We actively seek your involvement in the preschool and welcome parents to our half termly committee meetings.  Skills such as IT, finance, business, childcare, fundraising, PR are especially welcome !!

ANY QUESTIONS

Please drop us a line and we will get back to you!

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