Puffins in the City

Puffins in the City

Unique reference number (URN): 2848939 Address: 1 West Street, Exeter, EX1 1BB Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registered with Ofsted: 25/06/2025 Registers: EYR Registered person: Puffins of Exeter 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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Inclusion Expected standard

Leaders build effective partnerships that generally support children with barriers to their learning and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) to thrive and achieve. Leaders are proactive in contacting and working with external professionals to enhance outcomes for all children. This partnership working enables children's progress to be monitored and reviewed regularly, and adaptations to be put in place to support the learning and development of children with barriers to their learning. Leaders listen carefully to parents and typically build respectful bonds that help reduce barriers that children face to their learning and/or wellbeing. Leaders adapt staffing and teaching methods, as needed, to promote children's motivation to learn. Leaders are passionate, knowledgeable and committed to their roles and responsibilities in strengthening the learning experiences and outcomes for children with SEND.

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Inclusion Expected standard

Leaders use any additional funding appropriately to support individual children's learning and development well. They provide targeted communication interventions and specialised resources such as wobble cushions, a sensory tent and Makaton training for staff. This helps children eligible for funding to develop their communication skills, regulate their emotions and engage well in learning experiences and daily activities.

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Inclusion Expected standard

Leaders support children transitioning to school well. Leaders contact school staff and hold additional meetings. This helps to support school staff with strategies and teaching methods that are already in place and working well in supporting children with SEND to engage with learning. This promotes consistency in care.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The leadership of the setting has recently changed. However, leaders have long-standing experience, and their understanding of the setting, and the children and families it serves, has been fundamental in this period of change. Leaders recognise that there have been many staff changes recently and this has impacted on consistency in care and teaching. They are proactive in putting support in place to help staff to fulfil their roles and responsibilities. Leaders run a wealth of in-house training, and many members of staff are booked on training that is well targeted to build their confidence and skills.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Leaders are reflective and responsive and have quickly strengthened communication between parents and the setting to promote consistency in care. Leaders are passionate about supporting the whole family unit, and many parents speak of the positive impact that this has on the wellbeing of every member of their families. Leaders have identified raising the standard of teaching, so that all children receive high-quality learning experiences, as a priority. They recognise the need to develop daily routines and transitions so that they meet children's needs and promote positive attitudes to learning.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Leaders prioritise the safety of children. They follow safe recruitment practices, and risk assessments are suitable. When on outings, children are safe; however, leaders recognise

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Needs attention

that staff do not consistently adopt processes in place to ensure all children have their needs met at all times.

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Achievement Needs attention

Children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, disadvantaged children and those with other barriers to learning, make progress from their starting points. However, this is not consistent for all children. Children generally develop social skills as they play with friends. However, some children do not build positive relationships with others because some staff are not consistent in their expectations or the setting's routines. Children in pre-school and the baby room are particularly confident, independent and resilient, and staff promote these skills well. However, toddlers are not as self-confident or as settled and this results in fleeting engagement with activities.

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Achievement Needs attention

Children demonstrate an increasing understanding of the world around them, and this helps prepare them for future learning. Their frequent outings help children to develop their knowledge of libraries, bridges and types of music, as children enjoy passing buskers and recognising songs. Children build their sense of self as they learn to regulate in rapidly changing environments, such as a busy city centre with a rich range of sounds, sights and smells.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Needs attention

Children enjoy playing with their friends and are familiar with the setting's routines. Most children show trust and comfort in their relationships with staff. However, at times, routines do not meet children's needs and children wait for extended periods. This happens as children prepare for outings, as children wait for lunch and as children queue to use the toilet and wash their hands. These transitions are not well managed and result in children becoming unsettled or displaying unwanted behaviours.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Needs attention

At other times, children typically behave well. Most staff encourage positive behaviour, but they are not consistent in their approach to this. Strategies are in place to support children who benefit from additional help with managing their feelings and/or behaviours. However, teaching does not always consider the ages and stages of children. For example, as toddlers make play dough, staff do not teach turn-taking, patience and sharing. This results in unwanted behaviours, and staff do not promote children's kindness, care and positive behaviours for one another.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Needs attention

Leaders monitor attendance well and are swift to contact parents if a child does not arrive as planned. This promotes a shared understanding of the importance of regular attendance and helps support parents to return their children to the setting following a period of absence.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Needs attention

Leaders build care routines with children in mind, but they are mixed in effectiveness. During outings, children's experiences vary greatly. All children have sun cream applied. Some staff support some children to develop sun safety. Children wear sun hats and staff offer them water to drink with their picnic snack, but this practice is not consistent, and this means that not all children's wellbeing is best supported. Staff do not consistently follow policies and procedures in place for outings to promote consistency in care. Staff monitor and support sleeping children effectively to promote wellbeing and welfare. They complete accident, incident and administration of medication records and share these with parents and families as they need.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Needs attention

Staff teach children healthy habits, such as trying a range of fruits and vegetables at snack time, enjoying time outside in fresh air and washing their hands prior to eating. During mealtimes, staff support children to develop safer eating practices, such as remaining seated when eating and not trying to speak when they have food in their mouths. However, children do not all experience mealtimes that are social experiences. Toddlers are served their lunches a few at a time and eat at tables with little chatter. In contrast, pre-schoolers and babies enjoy mealtimes full of chatter and communication.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Needs attention

Children develop knowledge and skills to keep themselves healthy. They learn about healthy foods and balanced diets and are offered meals that follow government guidance. Children enjoy accessing an outdoor space that is timetabled to support all children to have access to fresh air regularly and enjoy activities that promote coordination, control and strength, such as balance trails and playing with large hoops.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

Leaders have clear curriculum intent in regard to what they want children to learn, but this is not yet consistently taught. Children in different age groups experience varying standards of teaching. For example, although older children engage in a wide range of learning activities and staff frequently interact with babies, toddlers do not routinely receive teaching that best meets their needs. Inconsistencies in teaching and support mean that children do not always make the progress of which they are capable. Leaders are aware of the inconsistencies in staff's knowledge and skills and are providing training to help develop staff's confidence and practice, to best support children's progress. Despite the variable quality of teaching, children with barriers to learning receive targeted support and make good progress.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

Staff working with babies model language well for children to copy and practise with as they play. For example, as babies enjoy snacks, staff ask if they would like more. Children beam with excitement as they say 'more'. Staff in the pre-school room ask many questions as children play, and use a wide range of vocabulary with them. For example, as children play a movement game that promotes physical skills, staff use words in context, with visual examples of their meaning to aid children's understanding. Staff instruct children to walk slowly, run on the spot, jump with their feet together, hop on one leg, crouch down and stretch up.

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

Children are greeted warmly on arrival and they generally settle quickly into activities of their choosing, playing happily with friends. However, children who need support to transition into the setting do not always receive the interactions or teaching they need to achieve this. Children's daily experiences and opportunities for learning vary greatly in the setting, and not all children receive high-quality teaching. Children do not all have the opportunities they need to develop their skills and knowledge in order to build well on what they already know and can do.

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

Children enjoy many outings. They experience a wealth of learning opportunities in the local community. Children visit the library and cathedral greens, enjoy walks on the quay and visit the animal statue trails around the city centre. Children are excited to take part in the different daily outings, and staff help them prepare by applying sun cream. Staff revise expectations for the walk to promote road safety and the importance of listening carefully to instructions. However, policies and procedures for outings are not consistently applied by staff and do not consistently meet children's needs. Despite this, children's physical development and wellbeing benefit from daily fresh air and exercise.

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

Children develop independence as they play with others. Older children enjoy the responsibility of changing their own library book and storing it safely in their book bag to share when at home. Babies independently explore their play space, selecting toys to play with. They enjoy crawling and stepping from one object of interest to another. They sit looking at board books for a long time, turning the pages and feeling the textures in the pictures.

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Next steps

To meet the requirements of the Early years foundation stage the provider must take the following actions by the assigned date:

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Action Completion Date

implement a curriculum that supports the development of all children and meets their individual needs 14/08/2026

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Address:

Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises

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Address:

Registered person: Puffins of Exeter Ltd

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Address:

Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:30 - 18:00

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Action Completion Date

ensure that all staff follow procedures in place for the planning and organisation of trips to make sure children's needs are met at all times 07/08/2026

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Action Completion Date

ensure that routines are effective in meeting children's individual needs and help them to develop positive relationships and attitudes to learning 21/08/2026

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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with leaders, practitioners, the special educational needs coordinator, apprentices, parents 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: Devon

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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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