Our Pre-School
Marhamchurch Pre-School has more than 30 years experience in caring for young children. We are a registered charity providing day care and sessional care during term time for children aged between 2 and 4 years. We are registered with Ofsted to accommodate 20 children at any one time and are a non-profit making organisation managed by a parent committee.
We believe it is important to have close links with parents and offer home visits to help settle children into Pre-School. We also have strong links with the local Primary school to enable a smooth transition when children leave us.
We follow a topic-based curriculum often building on children’s interests with separate planning for our 2 year olds. Our setting has a free flow system where children decide for themselves whether they wish to play inside or out. Our inside environment is homely and comfortable to ensure a smooth transition to Pre-School and help the children feel safe and secure. We have a well-equipped outdoor area which includes; a stage, sandpit, climbing frame and slide, mud kitchen, gardening area with bug hotel, construction area, mark making/literacy/ numeracy/craft area, a small role play house, places to just sit and there is still space to run around! We have access to a large field which we use regularly and we also have a large Forest School which we use Wednesdays. Due to our high staff ratios, every child is given as much individual attention as they need in order for them to realise their full potential. We pride ourselves on being a very friendly and welcoming setting.
Useful Links
We are very proud of the achievements of our children, the standards of our pre-school and the quality of our staff.
- Experienced, qualified staff, all to at least NVQ level 3.
- SENCO
- Staff trained in first aid and safeguarding
- 1-8 Ratio and Key Person System
- New building with outside play area
- Early years foundation stage/freeflow
Please use the links on this page to find out more. You can access our prospectus, our Ofsted report, profiles of our staff and information regarding our management committee.
To find out more information you are very welcome to contact us to arrange a visit.
A typical day at Pre-School
Morning session
- Circle time to say ‘Good morning’ and introduce/revise our topic
- Choosing (inside and outside)
- Story time for younger children/Phonics in the school library for older children followed by a story
- Choosing (inside and outside)
- During the morning a café style snack is served
- Singing time
Lunchtime
- Afternoon session
- Choosing (inside and outside)
- Story time/Phonics
- Choosing (inside and outside)
- Yoga
- Singing time
- Home time
We also run 2 PE sessions in the school hall a week and a music therapy session once a week taught by specialists.
During the year we hold regular events like; Sports days, New Mills trip, visits to local farms and we celebrate local events like St. Piran’s day.
Our Team
Nicky - Manager
Nicky manages the setting and staff, working closely with the Parent Management Committee. Nicky has been with the pre-school since September 2007. She has a Level 4 in children's learning and development and has completed her degree in Learning and Teaching. Nicky is our Safeguarding Officer.
"Children learn through playing, exploring and experimenting, and creating the right environment to achieve this is vital for children's development. This is a fun and exciting part of my job and I love to see the children flourish and grow."
Carole – Deputy Manager
Carole is a qualified teacher with a Bachelor of Education degree and is our SENCO coordinator.
"After retiring from teaching, after over 30 years working in London, Devon and Cornwall, I decided I wanted to continue working with children but in a different, more exciting and child-centred environment. "
Louise - Practitioner
Louise has worked within the setting on a student placement during the two years she was studying at Duchy College. Louise is now fully qualified with a BTEC National Diploma Level 3 in Children's Care, Learning and Development.
"I enjoy working with friendly staff and seeing the children achieve."
Cilla Gilbert - Pre School volunteer
Cilla has worked for the NHS for many years and is now retired. Cilla volunteers at the PreSchool once or twice a week and loves coming in to see all the children and staff.
Leah – Practitioner
Leah has an NVQ Level 3 in Children’s Care, Learning and Development.
"I love to help children learn and grow. I really enjoy small group work like cooking and messy play, and taking children to forest school. I think that it’s really important that the children get to explore the world around them as well as learning in the classroom."
Rachel - Assistant
Rachel has been working as a musical leader for the last 4 years. Rachel has many years experience with groups of young children, running very popular musical sessions.
"I love being part of such an amazing team and find it very rewarding"
Our Policies
We have a range of policies and procedures covering how we operate as a pre-school. All are available in our pre-school reception area or please feel free to request a copy of a specific policy.
Our Latest Ofsted inspection. Click here to view the report
Early Help Hub
Early Help in Cornwall aims to ensure that services to support children, young people and their parents are there when they need them. Early Help is about identifying problems at an early stage and providing purposeful and effective help as soon as possible once they have been identified, working with families to solve those problems before they get worse. The Early Help Hub is the single point of access for professionals, families and young people to access Early Help Services in Cornwall.
Child Protection and Safeguarding Children
Our Safeguarding Officer is Nicky Rogers. Never keep concerns about children's safety to yourself. It doesn’t matter if you are a paid worker, a volunteer or a member of the community, you have a responsibility to act if you are worried about a child.
Management Committee
Marhamchurch Pre-School is run by a parent management committee essentially acting as a governing body, overseeing the finances, setting budgets and ensuring that all legal and educational responsibilities are met. On occasions, local people who are not parents of children at the pre-school are co-opted onto the committee.
The committee works very closely with the pre-school manager, Nicky Rogers, who is responsible for the day to day running of the pre-school. This includes the welfare of children, adherence to EYFS (Early Years Foundation Stage), educational guidance and staffing.
The management committee meets approximately twice a term and holds its AGM usually in October, at this meeting the committee is elected. We are always keen for parents to get involved behind the scenes and actively encourage them to join the committee.
Members can join the committee at any time during the year. All committee members will require a DBS check but this can be organised by pre-school.
Committee members are required to maintain confidentiality.
Current Committee Members
| Treasurer | Jodie Teague |
| Chair person | Genevieve Pearson |
| Secretary | Elly Hawkins |
| Other members | Jess Lacey |
Call us on 01288 361499 or click to contact