New Pre-School opening at St Francis

Nestled in the hills above Goosnargh, you will find St. Francis’ Catholic Primary School. It has been described as a ‘hidden gem’ by many as it is surrounded by rolling countryside and all of nature’s beauty.

Staff, parents and the whole school community are looking forward to the opening of their new Pre-School. St.Francis’ are extending their school age range to accommodate 2 year olds and provide a Monday-Friday wrap around provision. Breakfast Club and After School Club runs from 7.45am-8.55am and 3.20pm-6.00pm and is set a beautiful home from home cottage, which is attached to school. The Pre-School will be opened by the Mayor of Preston on Monday 18th July at 10.00am but visitors are most welcome to come in and see the Pre-School from Monday 11th July for informal drop ins and conversations with staff. Anybody who is interested in seeing the Pre-School or sending their child in September can contact school for an information pack.

Head teacher, Sarah Deakin, has been at the school since September 2015 and is delighted that a new Pre-School is fast approaching. As an Early Years Foundation Stage specialist herself, she cannot wait to teach in the Pre School:  “The earlier stages in learning have always been a passion of mine as this is the time when the fundamental building blocks to learning are established and there are so many wonderful moments to capture and treasure forever. At St. Francis’ we offer so many incredible learning experiences within our school and we are excited to share these with our Pre-School children. It will add another dimension to our school family.”

Alongside Miss Deakin, there will be two of the school’s highly experienced teaching assistants as key workers and another experienced teacher.

“We are so lucky that we could put our vision into reality as we had flexibility to reconfigure a couple of the classrooms in order to accommodate a Pre-School.”

The pre-school itself will be in one of the classrooms and it will soon have its own outdoor area with new resources. The children will share the school hall for lunch time and will have access to all facilities including the ‘Millennium Walk,’ which is a woodland area belonging to the school. It has a fire pit, tyre swings and a math’s trail. The children enjoy forest school activities, den building and orienteering there.  Behaviour is described as outstanding by Ofsted and the children currently in the school are looking forward to welcoming new pre-school children.

For more information, you can contact school on 01772 865369 or visit the school website: www.stfranciscatholicprimaryschool.co.uk There you will find information about the school and can see how much St.Francis’ has to offer.