About Little Pippins

We were inspected by Ofsted on 21st March 2025 and were again judged to be a ‘Good’ early years provision – “Children are friendly, confident and settled at this inclusive and nurturing pre-school. Their emotional well-being is given a high priority by leaders and staff. This helps children to form close bonds and feel safe and secure.”   “Staff are good role models and work together to share clear and consistent expectations for children’s behaviour” “Relationships with parents are strong and trusted”

RESPECTING EACH CHILD’S INDIVIDUALITY

Little Pippins Pre-school (established in 1970), is based in a purpose built building securely set within the idyllic Freeman Orchard in Harwell village.

Please visit the Ofsted website for previous reports.

Little Pippins is a voluntary managed charity and company limited by guarantee, registered by Ofsted on the Early Years Childcare Register (URN 133726), and an accredited member of the Early Years Alliance.

Little Pippins Pre-school is open Monday to Friday, 38 weeks each year, providing pre-school care and education for children between the ages of 2½ & 5 yrs.

Tailoring activities to fit individual interests

Little Pippins recognises that each child is an individual with their own particular needs and learning styles. We therefore endeavour to promote learning and development through a well-planned play-based curriculum which includes differentiation and either support or extension activities. Our Key Person system has been developed to maintain this ethos. Children and their Key Person belong to one of three small nurture groups which is led by a senior member of staff.

All our play-based activities are designed to make sure children become confident and independent learners. We promote practical learning and celebrate ‘have a go’ mark-making and mathematical experiences that have a purpose both inside and out.

Little Pippins focuses on making sure children have a good and balanced grasp of the Prime Areas of the EYFS, recognising these as pre-requisites for accessing the rest of the curriculum and preparing children for school. We consider ourselves to be teachers in the broadest and most valuable sense of the word and espouse teaching that takes into account age/stage and learning styles. This is reflected in our balance of teacher led/directed and child initiated activities. Our children play, explore and are active learners and are challenged to be creative and think critically.

We offer small group sessions to our children at Little Pippins to enhance and elevate their own development and their passion for learning. Our staff have identified areas of support and interest and created new and innovative ways to engage with the children to build confidence and independence. A quick explanation of the groups we offer are below…

Spirals

PSE, Communication and Language, Maths,

A group to support communication and language. The sessions run for 12 weeks offering a familiar weekly routine structure using Bear as our opening and closing activity. We notice the rhyming words in familiar rhymes and provide activities that focus on prepositions (under, over, on top and behind)Activities that involve listening, turn taking and following direction.

Tale’s toolkit

Literacy, Maths, PSE, Communication and Language, Physical, EAD, Technology and the World

Takes toolkit is a literacy-based group where the children become familiar with understanding the structure of a story using props.Using the structured bags of character, setting, problem and solution the children listen to the ideas of others and share their ideas as they create their own stories using songs and actions. 

Super Subs

Maths, PSE, Communication and Language, Technology and the World 

Super Subs is a maths-based group where the children use their natural subitising skills to recognise quantities of 1-3.Through repetitive activities the children develop and understanding of how amounts can be split into parts as well as a whole. The activities are focused on the children using their noticing skills as well as using loose parts to create objects. 

Numberland

Maths, PSE, Communication and Language, Technology and the World 

Numberland is another Maths based group. The children express their ideas of how we can get to Numberland as it’s a long way away. Each session we focus on a new number starting with number 1 and working up to 10.We work together to make our number bridge where we order numbers 1-10 so our number can get across. We meet our number and count their dots whilst learning something about them such as their age or favourite colour. This group encourages 1-1 correspondence and counting where the children add objects to create a home for that number, choosing the correct number of objects to go in the numbers garden such as one of each object in number ones garden, 2 of each object in number 2s garden etc.

Teddy Tales –

PSE, Communication and Language, Physical Development, Literacy, Maths, The World, EAD.

In small groups the children will share adventures of what ‘Bear’ has got up to as he spends time with each of the children and their families. Each week, a child will take it in turns to take ‘Bear’ home. Sharing the photos from Bears time with the family, Sydney will discuss these pictures with the children in their small group , and then we will play a game with Bear. The game may be linked to something he has experienced that week or something focused around a prompt from the conversations their uploads create. The game or activity will support building relationships as well as tailoring it support the children in the groups needs and interests. (Also, a great way of working in partnership with parents!)

Forest School / Outdoor Learning

PSE, Communication and Language, Physical Development, Literacy, Maths, The World, EAD.

This group is so beneficial to all, we will work through all the children so everyone has the opportunity, however in particular children who may need to build confidence, relationships, may need sensory processing support and also covering CoEL areas too. All weathers!

Pips Planters

PSE, Communication and Language, Physical Development, Literacy, Maths, The World, EAD.

After the huge success of last year and popularity of it, we are continuing the gardening group. Children who are on EYPP will benefit immensely – providing a range of opportunities and experiences. We are also looking into how we can involve the larger community with our gardening groups, to extend our passion.

One to one groups –

(Activity Box and Colourful Semantics) PSE, Communication and Language, Literacy.

Activity box: Is a group aimed to provide support with following routines and boundaries. It’s important to continue with consistency and an outcome for the child to be able to follow a sequence with boundaries.

Colourful Semantics: Is a group aimed at children to build their language skills, speech clarity and extending their vocabulary.

Phonics –

–Literacy, PSE, EAD, Communication and Language.

Phonics groups is initially based on supporting the child’s listening and concentration skills, it can also support the children who are showing signs of interest in forming words and sounds. School use phonics phase one which we can adapt to make age and stage appropriate for Pippins. (Silly Soup etc)

Cooking  –

PSE, Communication and Language, Physical Development, Literacy, Maths, The World, EAD.

Cooking covers a wide range of development. EYPP children would benefit as well as the funded two-year-olds. Taking note of interests from children in other areas of play, being aware of cultures and religions and celebrating new ingredients.

Travelling Ted –

PSE, Communication and Language, Literacy, Maths, The World, EAD

This is a group based on celebrating our children’s cultures. In small groups we invite families to take the bear home with them for the week. We ask that they share some family traditions, traditional food and dress all to go on Tapestry to share in the group. We will focus activities that week on listening to music from that country with instruments, exploring the flag and learning how to say Hello in another language.