A Tribute to Sherington Pre-School

 Three months ago I moved with my family to North Crawley. We were keen to exchange the planes, cars, pollution and general madness of life in London for the fresh air, tranquility and beauty of life in the countryside. When I read the Ofsted report and visited the village school I was sold but what, I asked myself was I going to do about pre school. I duly visited some of the local pre-schools and found the excellent Olney nursery from which I gratefully accepted a place and budgeted for the annual fee. I was used to paying over £300 per term on top of the government grant for my daughter's privately run morning nursery in Richmond. Then I was told that my daughter could only attend for three mornings per week, instead of the five she had become accustomed to and so I began my search again.

 This time I found the Sherington Pre-School. I visited one morning at the end of the summer term and found a small group of children happily occupied in a very pleasant village hall. The outside play area was set within an attractive and tranquil children's play park. The hall was on a quiet road. The children were quiet and focused. The leadership was calm, intelligent and very professional. I was ready, once again to get out my cheque book when I was informed that this was entirely unnecessary. The pre-school is free to children who are eligible for the government grant. It operates entirely within the limited government fee scheme and any fund raising efforts which can be achieved by its committee.

 Surprised, and more than impressed, I rashly offered to join the committee once we had moved here. It was then that I realized just what the pre-school is really being run on; the hard work, commitment and love given by the small community of pre­school and first school teachers and parents who really care that their village children receive the best possible educational and social start in their lives. I was amazed by the motivation and the professionalism with which the committee work with the staff to support the running of the pre-school. I was also amazed by the amount of unpaid extra work which was being done by the teachers and mothers to ensure that the pre-school is striving for and achieving its best possible potential.

A couple of days ago Paula Noble, Jackie Rogers and I spent all morning wrapping up presents for a lucky dip fund raiser. When we had finished we calculated that we would raise £25 if all our prizes were bought for 50 pence each. It made me laugh that we had spent so much time in preparation to raise such little money but it also highlighted to me the fact that being on the committee is not just about supporting the pre-school. It's about making friends, having fun and feeling that being a full time Mum can be more than just being at home with the children.

A recent Ofsted report on North Crawley School suggests that a few parents may not know just how fortunate they and their children are. I am writing this because I do know how lucky I am, both to have the Sherington Pre-School and one of the small local village schools for my children. Having suffered from bad state education as a child, before moving here I looked at some expensive London providers. They weren't a patch on what is being offered here for free. Thank you to all those of you who over the years have made so much effort so that now my children and their friends will have such an excellent start to their lives.