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Welcome to
Ditton Church Pre-School
Learning. Wonder. Play
Welcome
At Ditton Church Pre-School we aim to provide the highest quality education and care for your children. We welcome each individual child and family, and provide a warm and caring environment for all children to learn and develop as they play.
Hello
At Ditton Church Pre-School, we believe in creating a welcoming atmosphere where young learners can thrive. Our dedicated team is committed to nurturing the curiosity and creativity of each child in our care.
Welcome
We offer a warm welcome for each individual child and family, and provide a caring environment for all children to learn and develop as they play. We are open Monday to Thursday, and offer morning sessions from 9am - 12.45pm, and all day sessions 9am - 3.30pm, during normal school term times.
Whilst we are a Church Pre-School, we welcome children from all backgrounds and beliefs. We celebrate the main Church of England festivals, some in the Church Building, and will inform parents in advance of these occasions. We are linked to St Peter's Church and Reverend Ross Terranova warmly welcomes all pre-school families. Ross is also the Chairperson of our Pre-School Committee. For more information about St Peter's Church please visit the website www.dittonchurch.org.uk. Other religions and festivals are recognised over the course of the year as part of our extensive Personal, Social and Emotional development curriculum.
Curriculum
At Ditton Church Pre School we follow the EYFS (Early Years Foundation Stage) curriculum. Children learn through play and we are guided by their current interests to inform our planning. After their initial starting points/age 2 check, we assess children's progress three times a year using the non-statutory guidance 'Birth to Five Matters'.
Our experienced staff team plan fun activities which encourage children to widen their knowledge in all areas of learning in a way that suits their individual stage of development and interests.
Throughout the year we incorporate a range of activities which teach the children how to keep themselves safe: All About Me/Body Awareness, Road Safety and Stranger Danger and Online Safety. These are taught in an age appropriate way using songs, stories and discussion and by inviting members of the wider community such as our local lollipop lady and the Community Warden.
The links below show some ‘learning pyramids’ we have put together to demonstrate examples of how children develop skills over their time with us and how we plan activities to support this.
This Term's Reflections
As some of you will be aware, we slightly revised our session times from September 2025 to ensure we could meet the expectations to deliver funded hours to parents claiming working parents funding entitlement and also offer a block of 15 Universal funded hours. Working parents can use their funding for any session. Universal funding can be used for morning sessions.
Due to the slight increase in length of morning session we decided to trial inviting all children to bring a packed lunch with them, rather than just ‘all day’ children as we have done in the past. We therefore had to start lunchtime at a time that would ensure some children are ready to go home at 12.45, but without rushing them when eating.
The impact of this is that we have found that the children have not been ready to eat their packed lunch, having had breakfast and a morning snack and several parents have commented that they are not finishing their packed lunch for this reason.
Additionally it is a requirement that we are able to sit face to face with children when eating, for safety reasons. Although we already do this we feel that we could provide greater support by reducing the number of children eating packed lunch.
From Term 4 (after February half term) we will therefore ask that children only attending morning sessions do not bring packed lunch with them. We will adapt the timing and amount of our morning snack to ensure children are not hungry, but equally are ready for their next meal. This will allow the children staying all day to eat at a more suitable time and at a relaxed pace.
Thank you all for your understanding. As always any changes are made after trial and evaluation and with the best interests of the children at heart.
