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Brookmans Bears Preschool

Brookmans Bears Preschool is a pre-school in Hatfield for children aged 2 to 4, with 26 registered places. Ofsted report card, 25 March 2026: Expected standard in 6 areas; safeguarding standards met.

Brookmans Park United Reformed Church, Oaklands Avenue, Brookmans Park, Hatfield, AL9 7UJ

Key facts

Type
Pre-school (Sessional day care) (Ofsted childcare register, as at 30 June 2026)
Ages
2 to 4 (Ofsted childcare register, as at 30 June 2026)
Registered places
26 (Ofsted childcare register, as at 30 June 2026)
Registered
10 October 2023 (Ofsted childcare register, as at 30 June 2026)

Opening hours

Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 09:00 - 15:00

Source: Ofsted report, inspection on 25 March 2026

Who runs it

Brookmans Bears Preschool is run by Brookmans Bears Preschool Ltd (Ofsted register).

Latest inspection

  • Inclusion: Expected standard
  • Curriculum and teaching: Expected standard
  • Achievement: Expected standard
  • Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines: Expected standard
  • Children's welfare and wellbeing: Expected standard
  • Leadership and governance: Expected standard
  • Safeguarding standards met

Source: Ofsted, inspection on 25 March 2026. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

What it's like to be a child at this setting

Children arrive confidently. Staff welcome children into a calm and homely environment, where children settle quickly and feel safe. Children know the daily routines, and this consistency helps them to feel secure and ready to begin their day. Children form warm relationships with staff, seeking them out for reassurance and comfort and to share their ideas. This supports children's emotional wellbeing and sense of belonging.

Children enjoy their learning and are motivated to take part in a range of experiences. They choose from arts and crafts activities, explore the garden and take part in whole-group sessions. Children show curiosity as they search for minibeasts using magnifying glasses. They talk about what they can see and use tools, such as pipettes and scissors, with increasing control. Children play alongside their peers and receive support to be kind and respectful to one another and look after resources.

Children make progress from their starting points and develop confidence and independence over time. Staff identify those children who need additional support. They help these children to access activities so they can join in and build their skills. Children become more independent in their play and self-care. They are developing the skills they need for their next stage.

Children feel valued and listened to. Staff take time to respond to them, offer choices and support them to explore their own interests. Children are able to select resources independently and follow their own ideas. This helps them to develop a sense of identity and confidence as they explore the world around them in a way that is meaningful and enjoyable.

What Ofsted found in each area

Inclusion: Expected standard

Leaders have established an inclusive culture where they identify children's individual needs. Staff know children well. They use observations and tracking to understand what children know and can do. Staff make adaptations to the environment, routines and activities, along with strategies such as small-group work, to support children's communication, confidence and engagement. Staff know children well and swiftly identify any barriers to their learning.

Leaders monitor children's progress and review the support. They have secure knowledge and understanding of how to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Staff work closely with families to share information and children's next steps in learning. They seek advice from external professionals if needed. Staff use additional funding thoughtfully. For example, they use it to provide broader curriculum experiences, such as gymnastics sessions and small groups, which helps disadvantaged children to access learning and make progress.

Staff receive training to support their understanding of children's needs and stages of development. Recent baby room training has allowed staff to implement more focused strategies that support children's learning. Overall, children, including those who face barriers to learning, receive support to make steady progress from their starting points. However, leaders have not ensured interventions and targeted support are more sharply focused and consistently implemented. This means that gaps in children's learning are not narrowed more effectively over time.

Curriculum and teaching: Expected standard

Leaders demonstrate an understanding of their curriculum and are developing this through ongoing reflection and training. They plan a broad range of experiences that reflect children's interests and starting points. Leaders ensure the curriculum covers all areas of learning and is adapted so all children can access learning. Staff prioritise children's personal, social and emotional development. They praise children's efforts and achievements, which helps them to build confidence and supports them to feel valued and form positive relationships. They are beginning to strengthen teaching through professional development and modelling. However, training is not yet consistently embedded to improve practice and teaching across the team.

Teaching supports children's communication and language development. Staff model vocabulary, repeat key words and use questioning to encourage children to respond and join in. They plan activities, such as play dough, music sessions and bug hunts, to provide opportunities for children to learn new words and develop their understanding. Children sort insects that do and do not have wings, create repeating patterns using coloured dough and count claps to the beat. Staff introduce early mathematical concepts through motivating experiences.

The curriculum places an emphasis on children's physical development. Staff provide children with regular opportunities for outdoor play and an engaging outdoor space. Children use pipettes to fill and empty containers and scissors to snip stems of daffodils for 'bug food'. Children show developing control and coordination. Staff support children's independence and plan experiences that broaden their learning and support positive attitudes for future success.

Achievement: Expected standard

Children make steady progress from their starting points across the areas of learning. They develop their communication and language through regular interactions. Children learn new vocabulary and begin to use it in their play, and they are becoming confident communicators.

All children, including those with barriers to learning, make progress. They engage in themes, topics and familiar activities based on their interests, which helps them revisit and practise skills so their knowledge becomes more secure over time. However, as this approach is not yet fully embedded across the team, some children do not benefit from targeted interventions to make even more progress.

Children develop the knowledge and skills needed for their next stage. They become increasingly independent and confident. Children benefit from experiences that encourage attentive listening and doing things for themselves to prepare them for school. Links with local schools support smooth transitions, helping children to move on with familiarity and readiness for future learning.

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines: Expected standard

Leaders have created a calm and nurturing environment where children feel safe and supported. Relationships between staff and children are warm and positive. This helps children to settle, feel secure and begin to engage in learning. Children seek reassurance from staff, who are encouraging and responsive. There is a homely feel across the setting. Children show enjoyment through smiles, laughter and willingness to take part.

Children are beginning to understand some expectations around their behaviour. For example, staff remind them to use 'kind hands'. Staff model respectful relationships and support children to play alongside and with their peers. Children receive encouragement to share and take part in group experiences. They benefit from knowing what is happening next, and this helps them to feel secure and ready to learn.

However, strategies to manage children's behaviour are not always consistent. Staff's explanations about turn-taking and waiting are not always clear enough, which does not support all children's understanding. Leaders recognise this and need to strengthen systems and provide further support, so staff have the skills and confidence to apply consistent approaches. Children attend nursery regularly. Staff follow up on any absences to support consistent routines and continuity in children's learning and care.

Children's welfare and wellbeing: Expected standard

Staff support children's welfare and wellbeing through warm and nurturing care routines and positive relationships. Staff know their key children well and respond to their individual needs. This helps children to feel safe, settled and secure. The key-person system is effective. Staff complete daily diaries that share information about children's care, routines and experiences. This ensures communication with parents and carers is clear. It also supports staff to reflect on and meet children's individual needs.

Children receive support to begin to understand and manage their emotions. Leaders are reflective and have taken meaningful action to strengthen this area. For example, they are introducing strategies to help children to express their feelings and regulate their behaviour.

Children learn about healthy lifestyles through planned topics and themes. They explore healthy eating and oral health and take part in physical experiences that support their development. Staff plan regular opportunities for movement, including outdoor play and the use of equipment. This helps children to develop their coordination and confidence. Children benefit from calm mealtimes, which promote their social skills and positive manners.

Leadership and governance: Expected standard

Leaders are dedicated and reflective, acting as positive role models for practice and interactions. They have a clear vision for the curriculum and understand their children and families well. Leaders develop a positive and inclusive culture across the setting so all children can thrive.

Leaders have an accurate understanding of the setting's strengths and areas for development. They identify priorities, such as strengthening outdoor learning, behaviour management and supporting children's emotional regulation. They are beginning to implement strategies to address these and drive improvements forward. However, while leaders support staff through modelling and guidance, this is not yet fully embedded and practice is not always consistent across the team. Leaders recognise the need to further develop staff's skills so the curriculum and expectations for children's behaviour are delivered more consistently.

Professional development is prioritised. Staff benefit from regular meetings, supervision sessions and training. Leaders are beginning to consider how this impacts on practice. They are mindful of staff's wellbeing and provide ongoing support. Partnerships with parents and carers are well established. Communication is clear through regular updates, emails and questionnaires, which leaders use to reflect and make improvements.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

  • Leaders should provide further training to staff on supporting children's behaviour, particularly around turn-taking and expectations, to develop staff's knowledge and skills so children understand boundaries and make the most of learning opportunities.
  • Leaders should guide staff further to plan and deliver more precisely targeted interventions based on children's next steps, to help close gaps in children's development and accelerate their progress.

Ofsted's words, from the report on the inspection on 25 March 2026. Read the full report on the Ofsted website. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Inspection history

  • 25 March 2026: Full inspection, report card: Expected standard in 6

Ofsted report cards (England, from November 2025)

Since 10 November 2025 Ofsted has graded nurseries and pre-schools on a report card. There is no single overall grade. Instead, each of six areas gets one of five grades: Exceptional, Strong standard, Expected standard, Needs attention, Urgent improvement.

The six areas are inclusion; curriculum and teaching; achievement; behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines; children's welfare and wellbeing; leadership and governance. Safeguarding is judged on its own, as met or not met.

Expected standard means the setting does what Ofsted expects of every setting. Strong standard and Exceptional are above that; Needs attention and Urgent improvement mean Ofsted found things the setting has to put right.

Source: Ofsted reports

Funded childcare hours in England

All 3 and 4 year olds in England can get 15 hours of free childcare a week, for 38 weeks of the year.

Working parents of children aged 9 months to 4 years old can get 30 hours of free childcare a week for 38 weeks of the year (Free Childcare for Working Parents), if they meet the earnings rules. You confirm your details every 3 months.

Some 2 year olds can get 15 hours a week when the family gets certain kinds of extra support.

The hours are used at a registered provider that offers them, so ask each nursery how it offers the funded hours.

Source: GOV.UK: Free Childcare for Working Parents, check if you're eligible · GOV.UK: Free childcare and education for 2 to 4 year olds (checked 31 October 2026)

Other nurseries nearby

  • Brookmans Bears Day Nursery - Pre-school, Hatfield AL9 7PF, 32 places, 0.9 miles
  • Brooklands Cove - Day nursery, Potters Bar EN6 3BN, ages 1 to 4, 20 places, 1.2 miles
    Ofsted report card, 8 May 2026: Strong standard in 4 areas, Expected standard in 2 areas; safeguarding standards met
  • Willowbrook Nursery - Day nursery, Hatfield AL9 7EE, ages 1 to 4, 40 places, 1.2 miles
    Ofsted report card, 13 May 2026: Expected standard in 6 areas; safeguarding standards met
  • Starjumps Nursery, Creche and Out of School Provision - Day nursery, Potters Bar EN6 3BW, ages 1 to 4, 44 places, 1.3 miles
    Ofsted, 11 December 2024: Good overall; safeguarding is effective
  • Tilbury Nursery - Pre-school, Potters Bar EN6 1BZ, ages 2 to 4, 35 places, 1.3 miles
    Ofsted, 10 September 2025: Good overall; safeguarding is effective

Schools nearby

Brookmans Bears Preschool on the Ofsted website