Beansheaf Community Pre-School
GoodTakes funded hoursBirth to 8+Open for decades
A pre-school in Reading for from 2 years up to school age, open 08:30 to 14:30, 5 days a week. £25.00 a session for between 2-3 years old, and they take the funded hours. Rated Good by Ofsted in April 2023. Open since 1993, with 35 places.
What it costs
Prices change without notice. Treat these as what to ask about, not a quote.
Term time only, 38 weeks a year.
| Age | Session | |
|---|---|---|
| Between 2-3 years old2y to 3y | £25.00Additional non funded hours | |
| 3/4 year olds3y to 4y | £20.00Additional non funded hours | |
| Over 3 years old3y to 5y | £20.00 |
Extras
Charged on top of the session rate.
- £2.50 a day Breakfast Clubvoluntary donation, includes a variety of food for breakfast
- £2.50 a day Lunch Clubvoluntary cost
Where this came from
The outlined line is the one the price was taken from.
Funded hours
15 Funded hours for eligible 2 year olds; 15 or 30 funded hours for eligible 3 and 4 year olds.
Worth knowing. Funded hours are Free at the point of delivery and the parents are not required to purchase any additional services to access their entitlement. Chargeable extras (optional): Breakfast Club (08.45 - 09.15) Voluntary fee £2.50 per day; Lunch Club (11.45-12.30) Voluntary cost £2.50 per day. Parents provide their own snacks, lunch, wipes, nappies.
What childcare usually costs in West Berkshire
This is not this setting's price. It is the median hourly fee across all providers in West Berkshire from the Department for Education's 2025 provider survey. No national data holds what an individual nursery charges, so ring and ask.
Places, hours and the day
Who they take, when they are open, and what a day there includes.
Where it is
RG31 7AWWhat the inspector found
One grade is one visit. A run of them tells you whether it has been good for years or has only just got there.
Ofsted inspector, 18 April 2023 · read the full report
What it is like to attend
Children happily enter this warm and welcoming pre-school, keen to explore and play. They demonstrate how much they enjoy attending with wide smiles and prolonged engagement in the activities on offer. Staff have formed strong, caring bonds with the children, who clearly trust and enjoy sharing time with the kind and nurturing staff. For example, children are confident to ask for help or resources when wanted, as well as seek out cuddles for reassurance from members of staff when needed.
Children demonstrate a positive attitude towards their learning. They are curious and confident when freely exploring the activities. Here, staff skilfully engage children in conversation and play, which helps support language development. For example, when children are bug hunting outside and spot a caterpillar, staff members discuss 'cocoons' and 'chrysalis' with the children to extend their understanding and learning, as well as their vocabulary.
Staff have high expectations for children's behaviour. Children are respectful to both staff and peers. Staff promote children's independence skills well. Children are expected to hang up their own coats and bags and to have a go for themselves before staff assist with more challenging tasks. For example, when children find zipping coats up tricky, staff encourage perseverance with lots of praise and encouragement. If needed, staff only help as much as is needed before asking children to complete the task for themselves. This helps children to become independent and resilient learners.
What Ofsted told them to improve
To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should:
- support and strengthen staff's skills in identifying what children will most benefit from learning next to promote best rates of progress.
- 18 April 2023Good
- 2 October 2017Good
- 11 June 2014Good
Rated Good or Outstanding at 3 of the last 3 graded inspections.
Still missing for Beansheaf Community Pre-School
- Waiting list
No dataset holds any of this. Two parents telling us the same thing puts it on the page for whoever looks next.
What to ask them
Some of this is above, from the setting or from parents, and it can go out of date. The rest is in no dataset anywhere. Either way it is worth ten minutes on the phone.
- Is £25.00 a session still the rate? What is on top: meals, nappies, late pick-up, and what happens if you are late.
- How do you apply my funded hours? Whether they stretch them over the year, and the minimum days you have to book.
- Do you have a place for a child of my age now? Baby rooms fill first and waiting lists are common.
- Who would my child's key person be? And how long have the staff been there. No dataset holds this and it matters more than anything above.
- Can I visit at a busy time? Mid-morning on a weekday tells you far more than an empty room after hours.
Pre-schools within a couple of miles
This one is first. Tick it and one or two others to see them side by side.