Between the ages of three and five, your child can attend a pre-school playgroup, where he/she will be able to play with other children under the supervision of both qualified staff and sometimes volunteer parents. Sessions tend to last between two and three hours. Often the number of sessions is increased gradually so that your child may start with two sessions a week and build up to four. There is usually a choice between morning and afternoons, though mornings tend to be more popular and have longer waiting lists. Playgroups must be registered and are regularly inspected by Ofsted. If they are providing early education they will have additional inspections and parents are entitled to a free, part-time place. If you are paying for a place, the cost varies a lot. You could pay between £3.50 and £6 per session, which you are likely to be asked to pay for half-termly in advance. There should be at least one member of staff for every eight children, and at least half of the staff should be trained to work with children. Quite often playgroups ask parents to come along and help too, so the numbers per group will be smaller. Playgroups are probably used less as a form of childcare and more as a play and social activity at a stage in your child's development when they are ready to spend more time playing outside the home. There is often a playhouse or shop and playdoh, train sets to play with and it's a great place for children to do messy painting where it can all be cleaned up for you! But because the sessions are relatively short, you would probably need
to make additional arrangements if you were going back to work.
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