We are a small, charity run playgroup based in Old Town, founded in 1990. We welcome all families from the surrounding areas to join us and provide a safe, friendly environment for children aged 2 years 6 months-4 years old, to gain all of the skills they need to grow and develop.

About us

We pride ourselves on developing each individual child, providing potential to grow through curiosity, exploration, and fun.

We believe that children learn better when they are given the opportunity to be confident, independent, and creative.

Our “in the moment” approach gives the children the freedom to move freely between environments, choosing to play both inside and outdoors, allowing more independence in their development.

We follow the Early Years Foundation Stage guidance and provide a play-based curriculum to suit each child and their individual needs.

We believe all children must have the opportunity to grow, develop and learn. We value open communication with all our families and feel that working in partnership with parents provides the best possible experiences and outcomes for all children throughout their journey with us.

Opening hours

Monday - Friday: 9:00am-3:00pm (term time only).

This can be accessed as a whole day 9.00am-3.00pm or either 9.00am – 12.00pm or 12.00pm –3.00pm

Breakfast club: Monday - Friday, 8am - 9am at a charge of £6.25. This can be used by funding if applicable (term time only).

Your child’s journey with us starts here

Once your child has received notification of a space, you will receive an email inviting you for an induction visit.

This visit is extremely important for both us and your child. We will talk with you to gather vital information about you and your family to support a smooth transition into playgroup. This visit will also give you an opportunity to meet the staff and your child’s key worker as well as familiarizing your child with their new environment. Extra settling in visits can be arranged at this point for you and your child if you wish.

We will work with you to settle your child on their first day to ensure they are happy to start their journey with us.

Funding

All children are entitled to 15 hours of government funding the term after their 3rd birthday spread over 38 weeks per academic year.

We do offer the opportunity for your child to start once they have turned 3 years old, prior to their funding starting. You can choose up to 15 hours and we charge £6.00 per hour, charged at 3 hour sessions of £18.00. Once funded we claim the funding on your behalf.

Some families are eligible for 30-hour funding, this is usually if both parents work a minimum of 16 hours per week - to see if you are entitled, check out the Childcare Choices website

It is possible for you to share funding over two settings or with a childminder.

We now have provision for some 2 year old funding. We except children from 2 years 6 months old, to access sessions alongside our 3 and 4 year old children. 2 year funding is charged at £8.50 per hour, charged at 3 hour sessions of £25.50.

Sundries

As we are a charity, we do ask families for a voluntary contribution of £1 per session. Arrangements can be made if you wish to opt out of this.

The sundries fee covers:

Healthy snacks and drinks in both the morning and afternoon, hygiene products such as; spare wet wipes, nappies and suncream, extra curricular activity resources and resources for events and celebrations such as; parties, sports day T-shirts, Mothers and Fathers Day gifts and lots more.

This fee is invoiced every half term.

Sundries and fees charges

Staff

We are proud of the team that we have here at King William Playgroup. We have dedicated, experienced staff some of which have been here for more than 20 years.

Teresa Smith – Manager – NVQ Level 4 – DSL

Sharon Woods – Deputy Manager - SENCO - Diploma Level 3 – DDSL

Tracey McGunigall – NQV Level 3 – Health & Safety Officer

Helen Frijia – Senior Practitioner - BA Honours - PGCE Primary - DDSL

Hayley Richards – Diploma Level 3

Hannah Murphy – Childcare Practitioner & Administrator

Eileen Martin – NVQ Level 3

Committee and Communication

Committee:

Our playgroup is charity funded and managed by a parent and volunteer led committee, where all members are elected to govern the setting, provide advice and support to the manager and to act in the best interest of all children that attend the playgroup. Committee members are elected at our AGM. At regular meetings we will discuss finances, budgets and projects on our wish list and how best to fundraise.

To become a committee member you will be required to apply for a DBS and EY2. Support from our office is available for this. The roles and responsibilities are varied, whatever experience you have will make a huge impact on supporting your child’s learning as well as supporting our playgroup community.

View our Ofsted Report

Tapestry:

We use Tapestry to document your child’s learning journey. Tapestry is an app that you download, you can view your child’s observations and upload your own. Once you have completed your permission form, you will receive an email inviting you to create an account.

It is vital that you create your account as we also use Tapestry to communicate information, important dates and events that your child will be involved in.

Social Media:

We have a closed Facebook page that you can request to join by clicking the Facebook icon. We use this to communicate important dates, to show activities and the set up of the room for the week ahead.

Playgroup policies

All polices are available upon request, if you would like to see any of our policies, please email us and we will send it to you directly.

Sickness and Absence

If your child is unwell, please inform us by email: kingwilliamplaygroup@outlook.com or call 01793 527678

If they have sickness or diarrhoea, your child must stay at home for 48 hours after their last bout.

Absences are monitored inline with our policies and prolonged absence or continuous absence will affect your funding from Swindon Borough Council.

Applications

We are always happy to welcome you and your children into our playgroup. Please press the JOIN US button, fill in the application form below and we will contact you soon! Or you can download the application to join, fill it in and bring to our playgroup

Join us

Testimonials

“Care guidance and emotional help is fantastic. We are thrilled with his development and how much he is thriving at King William Playgroup” April 2025

“Contact with parents is amazing. Also you are always open for asking questions. Thank you for your hard work and being open for 35 years. Thank you for a brilliant job” April 2025

“Your expertise and manner with the children, your feedback about our child, a very professionally run pre-school” May 2025

“Person-centered approach towards children, arranging good productions/themed days and sharing constructive feedback about children” May 2025

“So happy with our sons time at KWP. A warm and nurturing environment that allows children to thrive” July 2025

“Thanks for everything! We honestly couldn’t have done it without you! The difference we see in our son is HUGE! Thank you, thank you, thank you!” July 2025

“It’s a really lovely setting and my daughter enjoyed it very well. The staff are also nice and friendly. We’ll highly recommend to other parents.” July 2025

Contact us

Address

King William Playgroup,

Eastcott Hall,

Savernake Street,

Swindon,

SN1 3LZ

Telephone

01793 527678

Email

kingwilliamplaygroup@outlook.com

Registered charity number: 1029486