Sunshine Preschool

In January 2023, woodland bug hunts and crafts with older neighbours shaped daily life at Sunshine Preschool. At its January 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated the preschool Good, judged safeguarding effective and found that staff supported children with special educational needs and/or disabilities effectively.

The preschool is based at Trinity Resource Centre in Margate. The children attending in January 2023 were aged two to four; the account of daily life below dates to that month.

In January 2023, children could choose between indoor and outdoor activities. The woodland area provided opportunities to search for insects, while garden obstacle courses and climbing equipment gave physical play a practical outlet. Choice extended to which activities children joined, allowing their interests to shape their play.

The early years foundation stage provides the framework for children's learning, development and care. In January 2023, this took concrete form through hands-on activities: younger children manipulated dough and small clothes pegs, while older children sorted insects and counted pretend treasure. These experiences connected hand control, problem-solving and early number work with play.

Community contact also had substance. In January 2023, children visited older people in a neighbouring building for crafts, singing and stories. This brought contact with another generation into their experiences of kindness and consideration.

In January 2023, children sought out their key person to play, and staff stayed nearby while newcomers settled. That gave children a familiar adult to turn to while becoming comfortable with the setting. Resources for managing emotions and staff training in wellbeing also received funding.

Support for additional needs included adapting activities and working with outside agencies in January 2023. Assessments helped staff identify learning gaps and plan what children would work on next, rather than simply repeating activities they already knew.

The address is Trinity Resource Centre, St. Marys Avenue, Margate CT9 3TN.

In January 2023, opening was term-time only: Mondays and Fridays, 9am to 1pm, and Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, 9am to 4pm. These were opening hours, with a shorter window at either end of the week.

In January 2023, the preschool received funding for free early education for children aged two, three and four. This describes its funding provision at that date.

• Language and stories. At the January 2023 inspection, Ofsted identified uneven staff skill in extending children's language and distractions that caused children to leave stories unfinished. Both concerns matter for families weighing how conversation and shared reading support learning.
• Attendance fit. The January 2023 timetable combined shorter Mondays and Fridays with longer opening on the other weekdays. Which attendance pattern, age range and funding arrangements would apply to your child now?

Sunshine Preschool's January 2023 picture suits families who value outdoor exploration, relationships with a key person and contact with older neighbours. The practical learning examples are memorable: insects, clothes pegs and pretend treasure gave children tangible things to investigate. The language and story-time concerns deserve equal weight. They qualify an otherwise positive inspection picture rather than disappearing behind the overall grade.