Smiling Faces Pre-School

Smiling Faces Pre-School is a sessional childcare setting at Penge Congregational Church, 172 High Street, London SE20 7QS, with 23 places in total. Its latest full Ofsted inspection, in June 2021, judged it Good and found safeguarding effective.

The most persuasive detail is how settled children were during that visit. Children appeared comfortable with familiar adults and readily engaged with the activities around them. Older children helped younger children take turns, while conversations with staff showed enthusiasm and confidence. The combination matters: emotional security was visible in children's participation rather than treated as a separate promise.

This is dated evidence rather than a description of today's routine, but it gives families a useful picture of the practice behind the judgement. Ofsted's two improvement points also make the judgement easier to interpret. Staff needed to make better use of spontaneous opportunities to deepen learning, and parents needed more opportunities to help evaluate the setting and identify improvements.

In June 2021, staff followed a well-designed curriculum shaped around children's emerging needs and interests. Communication, early literacy and mathematics were woven through stories, songs, sound recognition, numerals and mathematical language in play. The approach sits within the Early Years Foundation Stage, the English framework that turns play and daily routines into progress across communication, physical development and wider early learning.

Physical play had real purpose. Children climbed, ran and raced bicycles and scooters, while staff helped them consider others and develop awareness of safety. Another observed activity involved using tweezers to pick up coloured animals and negotiating turns, combining fine-motor control with cooperative behaviour. These are inspection-day examples, not a current activity timetable, but they show how ordinary resources were used across more than one area of development.

Language ran through the day in June 2021. Skilled staff supported communication, children used stories and songs, and sound recognition built foundations for literacy. Numerals and mathematical words appeared during play rather than only in a formal activity. Staff training supported this curriculum, and the intended end point was clear: meeting emerging needs and preparing each child for the next stage.

Relationships were a clear strength in June 2021. Staff knew children well, and close work with families and other professionals gave children with SEND achievable targets for progress. Parents also received practical ideas supporting speech, reading and toilet training, connecting nursery learning with home. This gave families concrete ways to reinforce progress rather than relying only on a general update.

Safeguarding was effective at that inspection. Staff understood procedures, completed relevant training, checked for hazards and supervised children well, including communicating when children moved between rooms. Safer recruitment practice was also in place. Daily routines promoted healthy lifestyles, while the physical activity described above built confidence alongside safety awareness.

The inspection found that children behaved well and showed positive, respectful relationships. Staff's knowledge of individual needs supported that picture. For a family considering SEND provision, the most useful evidence is the joined-up method: staff, parents and other professionals worked together and set achievable targets, rather than support resting on goodwill alone.

The pre-school is based at Penge Congregational Church on High Street. The provider type is sessional day care. Families should ask whether current booking is organised as a morning session, an afternoon session or another pattern, then request accepted ages and a written quotation before deciding whether that model fits their week. The 23-place figure describes whole-setting capacity, not a room size.

• Inspection date. The detailed picture of learning, relationships and safeguarding comes from June 2021. Families should use a visit to understand how current practice compares.
• Attendance fit. Ask for the precise days, session times and minimum attendance pattern, then test these against the care your family needs.
• Everyday costs. Request the current written quotation and clarify how meals, snacks and non-food consumables are handled.

This is a small sessional setting whose strongest documented qualities are warm relationships, purposeful play and strong SEND support. The inspection detail is unusually practical: stories, scooters, tweezers and parent guidance show how the broad judgement was reached. It is best suited to families who value a 23-place preschool environment and can fit its current session pattern around their week. The age of the inspection makes a fresh conversation important, but the 2021 evidence gives that conversation unusually clear starting points.