About Us

St. Michaels Pre-school first opened in the late sixties based at St Michaels Village Hall.

In September 2014 the pre-school moved to a mobile classroom on the site of St Michaels C of E Primary School. This was replaced by new brick building in September 2025.  The Pre-school has its own entrance on the public foot path running from the A28 to Marshalls Land. Whilst building on the strong links with the primary school this does not exclude children who will be applying to other schools in our area. Each year we successfully support transitions to many of the surrounding primary schools.

St Michaels Pre- School has been part of The Tenterden Schools Trust since August 2021. 

There are 10 members of staff, some of which have over 20 years each of experience in Early Years. We pride ourselves on continuous reflection towards our practice. We are members of the Learning Alliance (previously know as The Pre-school Learning Alliance) keeping us abreast of changes in policy, procedure and legislation. Being a member of a 'Collaboration' has given us the opportunity to network with other settings, share good practice and access affordable training. 

We create a safe environment that encourages independent learning and sustained sharing thinking.

The outside area supports children in their physical development with space to run around as well as small risk taking on our hilly area. We are able to create opportunities to observe plant life and mini beasts with our garden troughs. Through the seasons the children can gain understanding of the passage of time.

During the session we run a ‘rolling’ snack time which enables the children to choose when they wish to interrupt their play for a drink and snack. It is a time to build on independence, healthy eating and social skills. 

Local walks to the Church, regular visits to the Mobile Library and trips to the Post Office are planned to encourage the children to think about their extending world. We also visit a local Residential Care home so the children can sing nursery rhymes/Christmas songs. 

One of our strengths is our Partnership with Parents. With an embedded keyperson system, we enjoy strong bonds with our key children and their families. Using an 'online' assessment tool has ensured Parents and carers can be involved at every stage of their child's development. This ensures that we gain a true picture of the individual child.

We are closely involved with children's transitions to school. Whilst we feed into more than one school, we have extremely smooth transitions at St Michaels. During the academic year we spend time in Reception for shared learning. The exposure to different adults, personal care facilities, and environment is invaluable when building on children's resilience and confidence.