We are a Nursery and Pre-Preparatory school for children aged two to seven. We have a long-standing reputation in our community for providing the very best in early years education. Our dedicated and experienced team strives to ensure that all children in our care flourish within a happy and nurturing environment, giving a firm foundation to the start of their educational journey.
Set within two beautiful Victorian houses, The Villa retains the feel of a family home and is welcoming, light, bright, and specifically designed for children. Our outdoor space is unique for the area and gives children the freedom to play and run around, greatly enriching their learning experience.
Our aim is for The Villa to be a ‘home from home for the children in our care and this is particularly true in the Nursery where many of our children are learning to separate from their families for the first time.
Children at The Villa learn through play and activities which stimulate their natural curiosity in an atmosphere of encouragement and praise.
The Villa Nursery has been rated Outstanding by Ofsted and our curriculum is carefully planned to meet the guidelines of the Early Years Foundation Stage. We nurture an enthusiasm for knowledge and aim to develop each child’s confidence in their ability to become successful learners.
Each child has a designated key worker who, in partnership with parents, responds to the needs of each child. They learn how to solve problems, make decisions, experiment, predict, plan, and question in a range of contexts.
The Nursery provides the ideal preparation for school as children are encouraged to explore their creativity and imagination, make friends and share in a fun and caring environment.
This area is fundamental to successful learning. Children are provided with different situations where they can follow instructions and communicate effectively with each other, within a stimulating and language-rich environment.
Listening to stories and rhymes is an important part of every day. The children learn to sit quietly and discuss the stories afterward, re-telling them in their own words and talking about their experiences.
Our Values:
- Caring & friendly environment
- Self-esteem & confidence
- Good behavior
- Education & care
- Encouragement & praise
- Personal Development
- Communication
Our pre-school children also have the opportunity to participate in French and Spanish lessons. This allows the children to explore the use of different languages and cultures.
The Villa Pre-Prep is a small and friendly school with children joining us for Reception, Year One and Year Two. We believe that school should be a positive, happy, and stimulating experience where the needs of each child are respected.
We recognize that the early years at nursery and school are a crucial period of development in childhood and as a result, our guiding ethos is one of support and care. At the same time, we equip children with all the tools they need educationally, emotionally, and socially as they prepare to leave us at age seven.
Children at The Villa benefit from our high teacher-pupil ratio which gives us the freedom to extend and enrich the curriculum and study topics in greater depth, with a key focus on pastoral care. Every child is treated as an individual, and we have an open and honest approach to communication with parents.
We achieve excellent results by remaining true to our beliefs and supporting every child to develop talents and passions to excel in the classroom and their future learning journey.
Pre-Preparatory Scholl Values:
- Meeting potential
- Excellent teaching
- Self-confidence & independence
- Enthusiasm for learning
Reception builds upon the curriculum covered in the Nursery and is the final year of the Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum. We take a cross-curricular approach to inspire the children and promote deep and memorable learning. We use a themed approach, with key texts at the heart of our themes and with outings to inspire and motivate learning.
We have a creative approach to learning in Year 1 and 2 whilst also covering the skills of the National Curriculum. With small class sizes, we can provide the children with broader learning experiences that promote curiosity and enthusiasm.
The Villa opened in 1997 as a small nursery with just ten children on the ground floor of Studley Villa, as it was originally known. Increasing numbers gradually led to the conversion of the first floor into nursery classrooms and in 2001 The Villa expanded further upwards and the Pre-Preparatory school was born.
In 2012, in a bid to meet the growing local demand for nursery places, The Villa expanded to include our adjacent property at 56 Lyndhurst Grove, thereby doubling the number of places available. The building underwent a huge modernization. Architect-designed, the building retains only its original façade with purpose-built, ultra-modern, well-lit, spacious classroom facilities at the rear. Our team in the Nursery now cares for 124 children daily and we teach approximately 48 children in the Prep-Prep.
The Villa attracts many families from the local area, mainly through word of mouth. Demand for places at The Villa continues to be exceptionally high which is testimony to our success in supporting pupils as they take their first steps in their early year's education.
