Puffin Pre-School Ltd

Puffin Pre-School Ltd

Unique reference number (URN): 2766361 Address: Great Dunmow Town Council, Foakes House, 47 Stortford Road, Dunmow, CM6 1DG Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registered with Ofsted: 15/12/2023 Registers: EYR Registered person: Puffin Pre-School Ltd

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Safeguarding standards met

The safeguarding standards are met. This means that leaders and/or those responsible for governance and oversight fulfil their specific responsibilities and have established an open culture in which safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and concerns are actively identified, acted upon and managed. As a result, children are made safer and feel safe.

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How we evaluate safeguarding

When we inspect settings for safeguarding, they can have the following outcomes:

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How we evaluate safeguarding

Met: The setting has an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not met: The setting has not created an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not all legal requirements are met.

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Achievement Strong standard

Children make rapid and sustained progress from their individual starting points. They take part in rich and purposeful learning experiences. Younger children confidently learn and use new words, such as 'pineapple' and 'kiwi', as they explore the textures of different fruit peels. Older children skilfully use scissors with increasing control. They design their own special cards and show high levels of independence. Children strengthen their fine motor skills, dexterity and hand–eye coordination. They experiment with a wide range of mark-making tools to create detailed pictures of bugs. Outdoors, children quickly develop an understanding of cause and effect. They roll cars down pipes, carefully watching what happens next. Children confidently combine a variety of materials during messy play, and show curiosity and fascination with the results of their exploration.

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Achievement Strong standard

Children's communication and language skills flourish through highly effective interactions with staff and their peers. They engage eagerly in meaningful conversations. For example, they discuss what happens at their homes during rubbish collection and share ideas about how they can help to look after the planet. Children who face barriers to learning also make swift and meaningful progress. They settle quickly and show enthusiasm and confidence to take part in all learning opportunities. All children develop the skills, knowledge and confidence they need to transition successfully and securely to the next stage of their education.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

Staff and leaders hold very high expectations for all children, who consistently rise to these challenges with confidence and ease. Daily routines are well established, which helps children develop a clear understanding of what happens next. For example, children patiently watch a sand timer before requesting access to the soft-play area. This demonstrates a robust understanding of the rules they are expected to follow. Staff also encourage children to share resources, take turns and work collaboratively. For instance, during a game of 'The Floor Is Lava', children wait patiently for their turn to step on the stones and climb over suitable equipment to avoid obstacles. These experiences support children in developing positive and respectful relationships with their peers.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

Staff are exemplary role models who communicate behaviour expectations clearly and in ways that are appropriate for children's ages and stages of development. They reinforce positive behaviour through explicit praise and consistent modelling. In addition, staff and leaders organise regular visits to a local care home, where children interact sensitively with older people and learn to show empathy and kindness. All children show positive attitudes. They behave extremely well and demonstrate high levels of respect and consideration towards both peers and adults.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

Leaders are committed to ensuring that children do not miss out on valuable learning opportunities and have robust systems in place to monitor attendance. This includes carrying out home visits when required. Leaders work closely with parents and carers to gain a deeper understanding of each family's circumstances. This enables them to offer appropriate guidance, advice and targeted support.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

Staff and leaders are caring, nurturing and excellent role models. They create a calm and welcoming environment where children form positive, trusting relationships with both staff and their peers. Routines such as mealtimes are carefully supervised, and staff thoughtfully guide children to make healthy choices while developing their independence. For example, children confidently choose their preferred snacks and safely cut their own bananas. They talk with ease and confidence about the foods they enjoy, further strengthening their language skills and understanding of healthy lifestyles.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

Staff actively promote a healthy and active lifestyle, which children embrace with enthusiasm and enjoyment. Children use climbing equipment safely and confidently, and develop a secure understanding of personal safety. For instance, they crawl through tunnels and skilfully balance on stepping stones as they engage happily with their peers during chosen games. Children are supported highly effectively by nurturing staff to understand, express and manage their feelings and emotions. Routines are securely embedded. Each day begins with children sharing how they are feeling and why, with additional support provided when needed. All children, including those who face barriers to learning, express themselves confidently and develop a secure sense of emotional wellbeing, security and resilience.

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Curriculum and teaching Strong standard

Leaders are highly experienced and knowledgeable and hold ambitious expectations for what children can achieve. They ensure learning is carefully aligned with children's individual needs, abilities and interests. Leaders design an inclusive, well-sequenced and ambitious curriculum that is embedded consistently across all areas of learning. This curriculum is thoughtfully adapted so that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, as well as those facing barriers to learning, benefit from rich and meaningful experiences. Staff and leaders implement the curriculum consistently and effectively. This gives them a clear and accurate understanding of what children know and can do.

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Curriculum and teaching Strong standard

Staff foster a secure love of reading from the earliest stages. For example, during a messy play activity, staff introduce a story about recycling. This provides meaningful opportunities for children to learn about caring for the environment. Children are encouraged to sort different types of 'rubbish' and place them into the correct bins. They are deeply engaged in this activity and work collaboratively with their peers, which supports their understanding of the world as well as sustained listening and attention. In addition, during mealtimes, nurturing staff encourage children to lift and carry food trays. This helps them develop an understanding of the mathematical concept of 'heavy'.

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Curriculum and teaching Strong standard

Staff and leaders place a high priority on supporting children's emotional development. They create a calm and nurturing environment where children learn to recognise, understand and express their feelings and emotions. Children also have opportunities to develop their gross motor skills, balance and coordination as they explore a wide range of climbing equipment. For instance, staff encourage children to collaborate with their peers and use large magnetic tiles to build dens and tunnels. Children laugh and giggle with excitement as they take part in physical games and confidently follow rules. These experiences further support children's problem-solving skills and emerging cognitive development.

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Inclusion Strong standard

Staff and leaders are highly skilled and experienced. They implement effective and innovative strategies to identify children's emerging needs and respond promptly. Secure partnerships with parents and carers, and a range of external professionals including speech and language therapists, ensure that children receive comprehensive support from the earliest stage. This helps to remove potential barriers to learning. For example, all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), are introduced to sign language during story sessions focused on feelings and emotions. This enhances children's communication and language development and aligns closely with individual intervention plans, which are carefully monitored by experienced leaders.

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Inclusion Strong standard

Leaders and staff demonstrate a clear and confident understanding of how to make precise, purposeful adaptations to meet individual needs. They engage in targeted professional development to keep their knowledge up to date, including training in supporting children who speak English as an additional language and autism awareness. Staff and leaders thoughtfully plan and organise meaningful activities tailored to the specific needs of children with SEND. They regularly review these to ensure children make sustained and relevant progress in their learning.

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Inclusion Strong standard

Leaders make effective use of additional funding. This ensures that children facing barriers to learning benefit from high-quality, tailored and enriching experiences. For instance, children have access to a calm, dedicated space equipped with climbing resources that support physical exploration and emotional self-regulation. In addition, staff and leaders consistently provide high levels of support, enabling all children to rapidly develop the skills and confidence required to become independent and motivated learners.

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Leadership and governance Strong standard

Leaders are highly ambitious and reflective. They are deeply committed to providing children with the best possible start to their early education. This vision is fully shared by all staff, who demonstrate pride, dedication and professionalism in their work. Leaders have a clear and accurate understanding of the setting's strengths. They actively promote a culture of continuous improvement to enhance children's learning experiences. For example, they organise daily visits to the local tennis court and vegetable allotment. This gives children rich, first-hand opportunities to explore nature and develop their understanding of the world around them. Leaders foster secure and meaningful partnerships with parents and carers and the wider community. Parents speak highly of the setting and particularly value the highly effective emphasis placed on developing children's emotional resilience. They report that their children thrive and express appreciation for the unique and enriching learning

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Leadership and governance Strong standard

experiences provided by staff and leaders.

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Leadership and governance Strong standard

Leaders place a high priority on staff wellbeing and professional development. They empower staff through tailored training opportunities and regular supervision meetings. This strengthens professional knowledge, enhances staff skills and builds on their confidence. All staff report high levels of job satisfaction. They experience clear opportunities for career growth, and develop increasing expertise in delivering high-quality care and education alongside inspirational leaders. Through their proactive and inclusive approach, leaders and staff ensure that all children, including those who may face barriers to learning, feel welcomed, valued and supported to thrive within this distinctive and inclusive setting.

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

Children are delighted by this unique and exquisite setting. They arrive each day smiling and eager to begin their learning journey. Children are warmly welcomed by nurturing staff who help them to settle quickly and engage confidently in activities of their choice. They attend regularly, supported by committed staff and leaders who work in close partnership with parents and carers to ensure that all children fully benefit from every learning opportunity. Children thoroughly enjoy exploring an environment that has been purposefully designed to reflect their individual needs, interests and abilities. They confidently make independent choices about what they would like to explore, with exemplary staff providing sensitive guidance and support. For instance, on arrival, children select their name tag and place it in a jar that represents their emotions. They then choose to explore the soft-play area or

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

engage in independent play alongside their peers. All children show they feel secure, valued and actively involved in their learning experiences.

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), as well as those who may face barriers to learning, are fully included in this inspirational environment. Staff thoughtfully adapt activities and interactions to ensure all children benefit and thrive. For example, during a group reading session focused on feelings and emotions, staff sensitively encourage children with SEND to participate. Children share what makes them feel happy or sad, listen attentively to the experiences of others and confidently contribute their own ideas. Deep-breathing exercises are also introduced, which helps children to regulate their emotions, build confidence and develop positive relationships with their peers. Children benefit from a wide range of stimulating activities that support the development of their communication and language skills. They show high levels of curiosity and enthusiasm for learning and quickly acquire new vocabulary, such as 'coconut'. All children confidently

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

engage in discussions about where items come from and their characteristics. They demonstrate secure progress from their individual starting points.

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

Children form warm, trusting relationships with staff who are caring, attentive and highly responsive to their needs. They feel safe and secure, demonstrate exemplary behaviour and show high levels of enthusiasm and energy. Children benefit from the expectation of regular

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Address:

Great Dunmow Town Council Foakes House, 47 Stortford Road Dunmow CM6 1DG

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Address:

Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises

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Address:

Registered person: Puffin Pre-School Ltd

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Address:

Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 08:30 - 15:15 attendance. This fosters a positive attitude to learning and supports the development of emotional resilience.

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Next steps

Leaders should ensure continued improvement in the setting's successful work to remove barriers to children who need extra help, to support a transformational impact on all children's achievement and wellbeing.

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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with leaders, staff, the special educational needs coordinator and children during the inspection.

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About this inspection

We carried out this inspection under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of provision that is registered on the Early Years Register. The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children's learning, development and care, known as the early years foundation stage. Local authority: Essex

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Facts and figures used on inspection

This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection.

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Exceptional

Practice is exceptional: of the highest standard nationally. Other settings can learn from it.

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Strong standard

The setting reaches a strong standard. Leaders are working above the standard expected of them.

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Expected standard

The setting is fulfilling the expected standard of education and/or care. This means they are following the standard set out in statutory and non ‑ statutory legislation and the professional standards expected of them.

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Needs attention

The expected standards are not met but leaders are likely able to make the necessary improvements.

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Urgent improvement

The setting needs to make urgent improvements to provide the expected standard of education and/or care. services providing education and skills for children and learners of all ages, and inspects and regulates services that care for children and young people.

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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