Peter Pan Pre-School

A parent-run committee and a gradual start give Peter Pan Pre-School its character. This Chatteris setting brings families into its organisation as well as their children's learning: past and present parents run the charity's committee, while individual settling sessions help children become familiar with preschool at their own pace.

At its 7 December 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated the setting Good overall. Its strongest practical attractions are the links between home and preschool, an emphasis on independence, and a settling process that allows extra time when a child needs it. There is also a clear teaching point to weigh: in December 2022, staff sometimes needed to stretch children's learning further during activities.

Peter Pan welcomes children aged two to five and has 26 places in total. Attendance is term-time, with full-time and part-time patterns. That makes the setting's calendar an important part of the family decision, alongside its approach to helping children manage everyday tasks and build relationships.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage shapes learning through play, covering children's communication, physical development, relationships, early literacy and mathematics, creativity and understanding of the world. At Peter Pan, planned activities sit alongside small-group work and individual support. The practical value is a day in which learning can happen through conversation and handling materials, rather than only through an adult-led task.

Stories, music, dance and role-play feature in the curriculum. Children are encouraged to express ideas through art and materials, while mathematical language includes talking about shapes, quantities and size. Independence is another emphasis: dressing, toileting and personal hygiene belong alongside the more recognisable early learning activities. These everyday skills matter when children begin managing more of their own day.

In December 2022, children made play dough by following a recipe, measuring ingredients and deciding when the mixture needed more flour. This gave counting and measurement a practical purpose. During the same period, children counted bricks while constructing towers and joined in familiar parts of stories. Books and construction supplied different routes into language and number.

The limitation was the next step in those activities. In December 2022, adults sometimes missed opportunities to add knowledge or ask questions that would extend children's thinking, including during play in the mud kitchen. For a child ready for a harder task, the useful distinction is between being happily occupied and being challenged to think further.

Outdoor and Community Life

In December 2022, the garden included balance beams and cars that children manoeuvred themselves. Those examples show outdoor play involving both balance and control, with children making physical decisions as they moved. They also give a concrete picture of the preschool's inspection-era outdoor experience.

Occasional walks and trips take children into different surroundings, subject to written parental consent. Their frequency is occasional, so these are additions to the preschool day rather than a weekly attendance feature. Community involvement also has an organisational form here: the parent committee gives families a role in the setting beyond receiving updates about their own child.

Relationships and Communication

The Key Worker system gives each child an adult who gets to know them and supports their learning. Settling is individualised, and additional introductory sessions can be arranged without charge when needed. For children who need time to become comfortable away from a parent, that approach allows familiarity to develop gradually.

Tapestry, the online learning journal, connects preschool observations with home. Staff can record photographs, notes and videos; parents can view them and contribute comments and photographs of their own. That creates a practical way to share a newly mastered skill or an interest that staff can pick up during the preschool day.

Parent meetings take place three times a year, providing another opportunity to discuss progress and raise ideas. The combination matters: an online journal supplies ongoing detail, while a meeting gives families time for a fuller conversation. Neither requires parents to rely only on a brief exchange at the end of a session.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the December 2022 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and SEND support well coordinated through work with parents and other professionals. Current arrangements include two special educational needs coordinators, activities adapted to include children with additional needs, and specific groups shaped around individual children. These are concrete support mechanisms for families to discuss, rather than a general promise that every need will be met in the same way.

In December 2022, staff used individual language sessions when children needed extra help with communication. Children also practised handwashing, discussed food choices and used dentist role-play to explore toothbrushing. Care and learning overlapped in ordinary routines, making health topics part of something children could do and understand.

Parents supply nappies and wipes for children who use them, and each child needs labelled spare clothing kept at preschool. Prescribed medication can be administered with written consent and a completed permission form. These arrangements put some daily preparation firmly with the family.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is King Edward Centre Annexe, King Edward Road, Chatteris, PE16 6NG. Opening hours are 9am to 3.30pm, Monday to Friday, during term time, across 38 weeks of the year. Full-time and part-time attendance are offered; the opening window should be considered alongside the family's preferred attendance pattern.

Fees are billed half-termly, with payment accepted by bank transfer, cash, childcare vouchers or Tax-Free Childcare. Charges remain payable when a child is absent through illness or a holiday. For families planning time away during term, that is a useful distinction between paying for attendance and paying for the booked place.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare includes term-time claims of 15 hours per week or 30 hours per week, subject to eligibility and starting only from the term after the child reaches the relevant age. Funding is delivered over 38 weeks, and additional attendance beyond a child's entitlement is charged. The funding terms cover two-year-old and three- to four-year-old funding, so the applicable entitlement needs to match the child's circumstances.

A registration charge applies when registering. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation. Parents provide nappies and wipes; those supplies therefore remain part of the family's own preparation and spending. The curriculum and parent information also sets out the learning approach, communication arrangements and attendance terms.

• A term-time calendar. Peter Pan opens for 38 weeks, with a weekday window of 9am to 3.30pm. Families needing care during school holidays should weigh that calendar against their working arrangements.
• A gradual start. Introductory visits include several one-hour sessions, with a short separation encouraged on the second visit and extra settling sessions free when needed. At a visit, discuss how that sequence would work for your child's confidence and your own schedule.
• Challenge beyond participation. In December 2022, some activities needed stronger questioning and extension from adults. Ask how staff now build on an activity when a child has already understood the basic task.
• Food arrangements. How are lunch and snacks arranged, and how are any related charges handled alongside funded hours? This is worth settling before choosing an attendance pattern.

Peter Pan suits families seeking either full-time or part-time preschool attendance within a term-time calendar, with a parent committee and regular links between home and the setting. Tapestry and scheduled parent meetings provide two different ways to follow a child's development, while gradual settling gives the start a clear structure.

The December 2022 Good judgement provides a dated quality benchmark. The more useful decision is whether the combination of independence-building, individual support and family involvement fits the child, and whether the weekday opening window fits the household. For children ready to move quickly through activities, the question about extending their thinking deserves particular attention.