Caterpillar Pre School

Independent snack-time tasks, movement games and indoor and outdoor choices gave Caterpillar Pre School’s March 2024 inspection picture a practical character. Based at Mountsorrel Methodist Church Centre on Church Hill Road in Mountsorrel (LE12 7JB), it has 30 places in total and accepts children aged two to five.

At its 7 March 2024 inspection, Ofsted rated the provision Good, found safeguarding effective and judged that children were progressing well, with physical development a strength. The everyday examples make that judgement useful: children practised balance, joined movement activities and tackled small tasks for themselves.

The early years foundation stage is the framework for learning and care: here, its inspection-time examples included play, conversation, movement and growing independence.

In March 2024, children chose between activities inside and outside. A pretend kitchen supported imaginative play and conversations with other children. Outdoors, filling buckets and concealing shapes in sand brought handling skills and shape recognition into play. Balancing activities gave children opportunities to test their coordination with an adult nearby.

Visits to shops and the library also featured in March 2024. These extended learning beyond the setting into familiar community places. School preparation included concentrating in groups, putting on coats and peeling fruit, giving independence a concrete place in the day.

Movement had a deliberate place in the March 2024 routine. After welcome time, staff led an activity combining music with movement, drawing on training about physical development and its connection with concentration. Children copied the adults’ actions. This gave the group a shared physical activity before moving into further learning, rather than leaving movement solely to outdoor play.

Children also sustained their attention during activities they had selected, including mark-making. That matters alongside the inspection’s improvement point: the issue was how adults extended learning during absorbing play. Choosing an activity and remaining interested were already evident; the next step was for practitioners to recognise an opening for a useful question or further challenge.

The March 2024 examples put school preparation into ordinary routines. Managing a coat and preparing fruit involved doing things for oneself, while time in groups involved sustained attention alongside other children. For parents, these are concrete examples of what preparation meant in that inspection picture.

At the March 2024 inspection, Ofsted praised the key-person arrangements, linking staff’s knowledge of individual children with strong relationships and a sense of security. A familiar adult was an important part of children’s experience.

In March 2024, staff encouraged turn-taking, listening and sharing, using praise to reinforce considerate behaviour. Families also received ideas for activities at home, connecting learning in the setting with time together outside it.

Group expectations were made explicit in March 2024. Children repeated reminders about sitting and listening during group activities, and used polite language with others. Adults modelled the behaviour they expected. These examples show how expectations were explained and practised during the day, giving children something concrete to follow when playing or learning together.

The key-person arrangements also had a practical purpose in that inspection picture. Knowing a child closely helped staff decide how to support them, while access to a familiar adult gave the child someone to turn to. This connected individual care with participation in the wider group: relationships supported the children as they explored, played and spent time with their friends.

In March 2024, opening hours were 9am to 1pm on Monday and 9am to 2.30pm from Tuesday to Friday, during term time. This was a daytime, term-time arrangement, so the shorter Monday mattered when planning a working week.

Funded early education for children aged two, three and four was provided in March 2024. Families considering that arrangement need to weigh the attendance window alongside the school-holiday closure pattern.

• Adult input during play. In March 2024, staff sometimes missed opportunities to extend children’s learning while they pursued their own interests. During a visit, ask how practitioners now decide when to join an activity and introduce the next challenge.
• Planning the week. The March 2024 timetable had an earlier finish on Monday and operated during term time. What attendance pattern and holiday arrangements would fit your family now?

Caterpillar’s March 2024 picture suits families seeking play-led preschool experiences, opportunities to practise independence and a familiar key person. Its practical appeal lies in the small details: coats, fruit, balance and shared play. The improvement point is equally concrete, making the quality of adult interaction during child-chosen activities a useful priority when assessing the setting.