On this page: Information about daycare nurseries and pre-schools in the Borough of Swindon.
All of Swindon's pre-schools offer free funded early education places for three- and four-year-olds.
Some also offer sessions for two-year-olds.
They are generally open term time only, and during school hours.
Pre-schools offer children, including disabled children, the opportunity to learn, play with other children and get ready for school. All are registered and inspected by Ofsted and have qualified staff.
Services within Schools
Some Swindon infant and primary schools offer free funded early education either in the morning or afternoon within maintained nursery classes (i.e. run by the school). These benefit from having a qualified teacher to deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage.
Three- and four-year-olds at these schools learn through play. Maintained nursery classes are registered and inspected by Ofsted as part of the school as a whole.
School Admissions
Most infant and primary schools have well-established links with the pre-schools in their community. However, where a child attends pre-school, even if it is a maintained nursery class, it is not part of the admissions criteria for any Swindon school - a child does not automatically go to a particular school based on where they went to preschool.
Availability
Parents are advised to contact individual pre-schools to find out the times early education is available. There is a wide choice of services across Swindon. Some pre-schools and schools offer early education sessions only, some have developed their services to be more flexible to accommodate the needs of working parents, and some offer a combination of both.
Further Information
A leaflet is available as a downloadable PDF file:
Please see also Choosing Registered Childcare.
For a list of local provision please see Family Information Service.