Stepping Stones is an 'Outstanding' pre-school according to Ofsted's latest inspection (July 2022).  Scroll down to read all about us.

Latest News! 

 The first term of 2023/24 at Stepping Stones has come to an end! It’s been a delight to see our new children settle in and start to develop really quickly.
We have had a fun filled term during which we have started to work with EYFS learning objectives through pre-school activities including role play, early writing skills,  stories such as Goldilocks and the Three Bears with visual aids, physical activities including balancing, ball play, music and movement and much more, both indoors and, when our weather has allowed us, in the Stepping Stones garden.

We have celebrated Harvest Festival by baking some bread, and other occasions such as Diwali and Remembrance, all through learning and having fun.
As the term came to an end the children performed their first Nativity with great confidence for their parents and grandparents, baked a mini Christmas cake for their families and enjoyed a Christmas party, watching a children’s entertainer, having party food and games and being treated to a fly-by from Father Christmas who delivered a present for each of them!
We are now looking forward to seeing everyone again in the New Year!
 If you are interested in further information about Stepping Stones for registering for next academic year for mornings, full days or a mixture of both, please contact Sue Spencer via sespencer@btinternet.com or 07973 938998.

About Us
Stepping Stones is held in St John's Hall at Knowle Parish Church, in the heart of Knowle. We provide a high standard of early years development for children in a safe, secure, stimulating and friendly environment. Our qualified staff offer nurturing support and care to the children, and all children have a specific key person who understands both them and the family. 

During their time at Stepping Stones, the children experience a wide range of activities where they learn through play. We follow the statutory Early Years Foundation Stage Framework and, as such, offer activities to help them learn and develop physically, emotionally and socially.  We take pride in the quality of care, learning and development we offer.
                                                
Children will experience:

• a specially tailored curriculum leading to approved learning outcomes
• individual care and attention made possible by the excellent adult:child ratios
• a key person who will show particular interest in your child and who will be happy to talk to you about how they have settled and how they are developing at Stepping Stones
• playing, exploring, growing and enjoying the outdoor garden
• making, painting, drawing, building, sticking and many more creative activities
• physical exercise and development through movement, dance, games and play
• support in social interaction with other children and adults as they develop emotionally and socially
• singing, talking, and role play to support their communication and language development
• number games, sorting, puzzles and more to support their developing understanding of numbers and shapes
• we pray with the children at the beginning of every session and look at a Bible story each term. Some of our songs will include Christian songs and we thoroughly enjoy the children's nativity play at Christmas

During their time at Stepping Stones, children will be supported in developing the skills necessary for entry into nursery or infant school. We have strong links with the local schools and work with them to ensure a smooth transition from Stepping Stones to school.

We are registered with Ofsted (registration number EY429354) and were rated as Outstanding in our last inspection in July 2022 - see our Ofsted report.                                     

The pre-school is open to children aged 2 and 3 years old.  In 2023/24 we are running the following sessions during term time:              

9am - 3pm on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays; and
9am - 3pm on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
Children attending the all-day sessions bring their own packed lunch.

The fees for academic year 2023/24 are £21 for each morning session and £42 for full-day sessions. We are currently not running afternoon-only sessions, but you can do a mixture of full-day and morning-only sessions.

Fees are made up of two components, one to cover childcare and the other a service charge to cover the cost of such things as materials, snack and other resources we use.  Children will be eligible for nursery vouchers which contribute to the cost of the sessions from the term after they turn 3 years old. We can talk to you about how this works. You can also read more about funding at Solihull Council Early Years and Childcare.

Download our latest brochure here. 

For further details and to enquire about places please contact Sue Spencer via the Parish Office or on the Stepping Stones number 07749 333056.