Penhill Playgroup

A puppet helps organise tidying, while older children venture beyond the hall for afternoon outings. Penhill Playgroup combines a recognisable preschool routine with opportunities to practise independence in the wider community. Its base is Guide Hall in Lancing, and it welcomes children aged two and a half to five, with capacity for 30 children overall.

At its July 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated Penhill Good and judged safeguarding effective, while identifying improvements needed in children's thinking time during conversations and privacy during nappy changes. Those practical concerns matter alongside the positive judgement.

Term-time mornings are the main attendance pattern, with Thursday afternoon outings offered to children approaching school age. A separate Stay and Play group lets parents and carers share activities with their children.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage provides the framework for children's learning and care: play develops communication, movement, early number skills and the ability to work with others. At Penhill, children have a Learning Journal containing examples of their work and development, and parents can contribute. This connects everyday activities with a record of each child's progress.

Mornings begin with children identifying themselves as present, settling and talking together about news or the day's theme. A longer period of indoor and outdoor play follows. Children choose activities, while staff move between the areas being used and usually lead an activity too. That balance gives children scope to pursue an interest while receiving adult help.

Painting, playdough and water play sit alongside imaginative play in the home corner. Its setting changes with children's interests, becoming, for example, a shop or post office. Books extend beyond the book corner into other activities, so a pretend café can include cookery books. Daily stories and rhymes make language part of the routine rather than a separate lesson.

Percussion instruments give children another way to explore sound. Later in the morning, Mr Tidy Up, a puppet, encourages everyone to help put things away; shared singing, stories or parachute games follow. The sequence makes clearing up a participatory activity and gives the session a recognisable ending.

Outdoor and Community Life

Outdoor equipment includes a slide, stepping stones, tricycles and a trampoline, with water, paint and mud also used outside. These offer different kinds of movement and messy exploration. Practical clothing matters here: coats that can be washed and shoes suitable for climbing fit the activities better than clothes that need careful protection.

During children's final two terms before school, outings usually take place on Thursday afternoons. They start with nearby destinations such as the sensory garden and expand to the beach, parks, shops and journeys by public transport. The gradual extension gives children experience of their community beyond the familiar playgroup space.

Previous destinations include Worthing Museum and Shoreham Lifeboat Station, while a past beach litter pick involved Keep Lancing Lovely. These are examples of earlier visits, rather than a promised itinerary. Some Thursday afternoons remain at the hall for visitors or activities involving phonics, numbers and physical skills.

Summer Sports Day adds team games and races, including carrying trays and dressing up. It gives the older children's afternoon programme another form of shared activity, alongside trips and school preparation.

Relationships and Communication

Parents can arrange discussions with their child's key person and add to the Learning Journal. When attending an appointment is difficult, the journal can usually be taken home. That gives families a practical way to share achievements and concerns beyond a brief conversation at collection.

A monthly newsletter covers themes, events and term dates, with paper copies as well as email. A daily blackboard describes activities children have tried, providing useful starting points for conversation at home. Penhill also aims to hold an open session each term, allowing parents to spend time alongside their child and discuss development with staff.

Stay and Play offers another way to become familiar with the setting. Children remain their parent or carer's responsibility during these sessions, which can include painting, puzzles, sand and ride-on toys. It is a shared family activity, rather than childcare while an adult is elsewhere.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

Observation records help staff identify additional needs and seek professional input. At the July 2024 inspection, Ofsted found that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities participated in learning and that additional funding supported resources and experiences, but some adult questioning moved too quickly for children to formulate answers and nappy-changing routines sometimes lacked privacy. These findings give families specific practices to discuss, rather than relying on a broad assurance about support.

In July 2024, children used sand timers to help manage turns, and practical dressing activities included fastening shoes and coats. These examples show how social skills and self-care were incorporated into play at that time.

Snacks include milk or water and fruit or vegetables, with adult help for children preparing food and spreading toast or crackers. Families are asked to communicate dietary requirements and allergies; children staying for the Thursday outings day bring their own packed lunch.

Sessions and Attendance

Penhill operates during term time, with morning sessions from 9am to noon; the July 2024 attendance pattern was Monday to Friday. The morning timetable still follows that start and finish, moving from settling and discussion through play to group activities and collection.

Older children in their final two terms are invited to the Thursday afternoon outings programme, and most attend the whole Thursday with a packed lunch. This is a different arrangement from the ordinary morning session, tied to the period before starting school.

The separate Stay and Play group runs on Tuesdays and Fridays from 12.30pm to 2.30pm during term time. Families can attend without booking, and a charge applies. An accompanying adult retains responsibility for their child.

Getting There

The address is Guide Hall, 5 Penhill Road, Lancing, West Sussex BN15 8HA. Families can contact the playgroup by telephone on 01903 767513 or mobile on 07305 061428.

Funding and Paid Extras

Free Entitlement (Early Years Provision) is offered for two-, three- and four-year-olds within this term-time setting. Private attendance also carries fees, which remain payable during a child's absence; current prices come in the playgroup's written quotation.

Penhill supplies session snacks and drinks without additional charges for its playgroup provision; families supply nappies and wipes where needed and are asked to contribute snack items each week. Packed lunches for the Thursday outings day come from home. A contribution towards travel costs is voluntary for older children attending outings, and non-payment does not exclude a child.

Visits to Seaside Primary School aim to familiarise children with Reception rooms and play spaces, including children planning to attend elsewhere. These are preparation visits and confer no school-place guarantee; families apply for state-school places through the local authority admissions process.

• Thinking time and personal care. July 2024 improvement points concerned time to answer questions and privacy during nappy changes. During a visit, ask how staff now manage both practices, especially if your child needs longer to respond or still wears nappies.
• Thursday's different purpose. Afternoon outings are intended for children in their final two terms before school, with most attending the whole Thursday. Consider how that later attendance pattern would fit your family's week.
• Food from home. Families provide nappies and wipes, contribute snack items and supply Thursday packed lunches. For a child with allergies, confirm how shared snacks and packed lunches are managed in current practice.

Penhill suits families seeking term-time preschool mornings, with an additional Thursday outings day as school approaches. Its appeal lies in concrete experiences: imaginative play that changes with children's interests, a Learning Journal families can contribute to, and trips that gradually extend beyond the hall.

Stay and Play also suits adults who want to participate alongside their children. The Good judgement from July 2024 offers a useful quality reference, balanced by specific questions about conversational pacing and personal-care privacy. Those are the priorities to explore when deciding whether Penhill fits your child.