'Little Thinkers' at New Horizons Portsmouth

'Little Thinkers' at New Horizons Portsmouth
Unique reference number (URN): EY295936
Address: Wymering Road, North End, Portsmouth, Hampshire, PO2 7HX
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registered with Ofsted: 30/09/2004
Registers: EYR
Registered person: Little Thinkers Pre-School & Nursery
Inspection report: 16 June 2026
Exceptional
Strong standard
Expected standard
Needs attention
Urgent improvement
Safeguarding standards met
The safeguarding standards are met. This means that leaders and/or those responsible for
governance and oversight fulfil their specific responsibilities and have established an open
culture in which safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and concerns are actively
identified, acted upon and managed. As a result, children are made safer and feel safe.
How we evaluate safeguarding
When we inspect settings for safeguarding, they can have the following outcomes:
Met: The setting has an open and positive culture of safeguarding.
Not met: The setting has not created an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not all
legal requirements are met.

Strong standard
Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard
Leaders and staff consistently place children's welfare and wellbeing at the centre of their
care and education. They maintain robust oversight of all children as individuals and tailor
support, care and interventions to meet children's needs both within and beyond the setting.
For example, leaders work closely with key persons to share information, provide
appropriate challenge and monitor children's progress. Leaders and staff advocate for
children well, which has a significantly positive impact on their overall wellbeing.
Leaders and staff are highly responsive to children and their families' circumstances and
ensure that children consistently receive the support they need. For instance, they work with
families to remove barriers for children claiming additional funding, which improves
children's experiences. They rapidly share information with other professionals and
proactively request information from professionals to ensure children's safety. Children with
special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who face other barriers to learning
and/or wellbeing are well understood and show enjoyment in play. Staff provide children with
well-structured predictable routines that help them feel safe and secure.
Leaders proactively review and adjust policies and procedures to ensure children's safety
and wellbeing. They ensure that staff are well trained in any changes they make. For
instance, they have recently enhanced their safe sleeping practices. Leaders ensure that all
children receive healthy meals while in attendance and are taught manners and hygiene
practices well during mealtimes. Leaders have strengthened key-person procedures to
ensure that all children are supported by warm, trusted adults who know them well. These
improvements positively impact children's sense of security and enable them to thrive in the
welcoming learning environment.
Leadership and governance Strong standard
Leaders have made excellent improvements since the last inspection. Those responsible for
governance have worked closely with leaders to proactively assess strengths and identify
areas for further development. This has led to many improvements that have a highly
positive impact on children and staff. For example, leaders have adapted how staff receive
feedback to strengthen support and drive further improvement. They have also enhanced
the key-person system to support children better in the absence of their main key person
and during transitions between rooms. This helps children to feel safe and secure.
Leaders are committed to supporting staff wellbeing. For example, staff report that they feel
comfortable talking with leaders and that their ideas are valued. Leaders invest in staff's
professional development, with some staff completing training to support children with
special educational needs and/or disabilities as well as those who face other barriers to
learning and wellbeing. This helps staff feel empowered and confident in supporting
individual children and improving outcomes. Leaders are also undertaking qualifications and
training to further support apprentices in their development. This commitment is inspiring
and has a positive impact on staff morale.

Expected standard
Leaders are highly effective when engaging with parents, including those harder to reach.
They break down barriers and form professional partnerships that support children's overall
health and development. The welcoming and supportive relationships help children to have
a sense of belonging and thrive. For instance, leaders support families when completing
documentation for external support for children. They work sensitively with families that
require additional help and guidance, and this support is hugely valued by families.
Achievement Expected standard
Children develop well across all areas of development. Children's foundational skills in
physical development, communication and language, and personal and social development
are a particular strength. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND)
and those who face other barriers to learning are provided with the required support and
interventions to ensure that they receive the right support at the right time. Children are
active learners and show high levels of curiosity in their play. They demonstrate good
independence skills. The youngest babies self-select toys, while older children self-serve
during mealtimes. They develop healthy habits, including washing their hands before meals
and maintaining good hydration throughout the day. Children behave well and demonstrate
a secure understanding of rules and boundaries. They build age- and stage-appropriate
friendships and seek friends to enjoy experiences.
Children are well prepared for the next stage of their learning. Children receive robust
transitions from room to room and to school. This helps their learning to continue during
times of change. Children with SEND receive tailored support through transitions as leaders
and staff work closely with their local feeder school.
Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard
Leaders and staff have high expectations of children's behaviour. Children are supported to
develop positive attitudes to learning and thrive with the well-established routines. For
example, they eagerly take part in the range of activities on offer, both indoors and outdoors.
Staff use calm language and gentle reminders to guide children when required. Children that
need additional support to regulate their emotions are supported well, which enables them
to continue to participate in activities of interest. Children build warm and trusting
relationships with their key persons and familiar adults, who are positive role models.
Children demonstrate kindness to one another and show enjoyment in being around one
another.
Children are treated with respect. Staff seek their consent and value their responses during
nappy changing and sleep times. The youngest children are soothed to sleep with lullabies
and the comfort of their familiar adults. Children play collaboratively with their peers and
often invite staff into their play. They demonstrate they feel safe and secure.
Leaders are proactive with monitoring attendance to keep children safe. They support
individual families to make adaptations to children's attendance patterns when required so

that children continue to access their early years education. This helps break down barriers
for families. Leaders and staff demonstrate a commitment to gathering information from
other settings that children have attended prior to joining. However, this is not yet consistent
practice. As a result, key persons do not always have a comprehensive understanding of
children's prior learning to enable them to be fully prepared before children start.
Curriculum and teaching Expected standard
Leaders consider the context of their setting and design a curriculum that supports all
children well. Leaders and staff ensure that children have enriched learning experiences, all
of which have a focus on children's vocabulary and communication and language. For
instance, children join in with group games, where they are excited to pick objects out of a
box that match familiar stories. Staff ensure that their range of books is inclusive and
accessible for children to take home and share with their families. They provide dual
language books so that all families can enjoy story times together. This helps children
develop a love of books and supports their social interactions well.
Staff understand the development of the children they teach. They work with families to
understand children's homes and backgrounds and use this information well to inform
learning experiences they provide, including plenty of access to the outdoors. Those
working with the youngest babies offer nurturing interactions that support children's
personal, social and emotional development well. Children smile and enjoy back-and-forth
communication as they explore water play, settle comfortably on staff's laps for stories and
sing their favourite nursery rhymes. Staff provide regular movement and dancing
opportunities that strengthen children's large muscles. Children make wide, sweeping arm
movements as they join in, helping to build their upper body strength and coordination. This
supports early literacy by improving large physical movement for confident mark-making.
Typically, staff weave mathematical ideas into children's play. For example, older children
confidently explore colours, counting and shapes during some activities. However, this
practice is not yet consistent across the whole staff team, meaning children's exposure to
early mathematical concepts varies.
Inclusion Expected standard
Leaders and staff are swift to identify and assess children's needs. This enables children to
get the right support at the right time. For instance, the nursery works with many other
professionals to ensure that children receive expertise in areas including speech and
language. Leaders and staff ensure that they routinely implement strategies provided by
other professionals so that children receive consistent high levels of intervention. This has a
positive impact on the progress that children make. However, at times, staff do not consider
the most appropriate space for early intervention sessions to take place, such as attention
and listening activities. For example, movement through the environment during sessions
can distract children and staff, reducing their effectiveness.
Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who face other barriers
to learning and/or wellbeing are supported well by highly trained and supportive staff.
Leaders and staff work sensitively with parents to break down barriers to children's overall
wellbeing and learning. For example, they make suitable adjustments to aid children coming

into the setting and ensure that particular times of the day feel more manageable, such as
mealtimes. This has a positive impact on how children settle and enables them to feel safe
and secure. Staff are well supported by leaders. They receive tailored training so that they
can successfully meet the needs of their key children. This empowers staff to teach
confidently, which has a positive impact on children's experiences.
What it's like to be a child at this setting
Children develop positive attitudes to learning, show enjoyment and thrive in the setting.
They settle quickly on arrival to their chosen activities. Older children join in with circle time
in the secure and calm atmosphere, where children focus and participate confidently and
are supported by positive interactions from staff. Children engage positively in discussions
about the weather, day and month. Children respond well to secure routines and develop
confidence in speaking and listening.
Babies form close attachments and strong bonds with familiar staff, which enables them to
explore their surroundings with confidence. They crawl in and out of ball pools and show
enjoyment through positive interactions, such as playing peek-a-boo. Children are active
learners and show an interest in the enriching activities on offer. They play with play dough,
using their fingers and hands to squeeze, roll and shape the dough. This strengthens their
fine motor control and hand muscles, supporting early writing. Children play parachute
games, where they explore colours, counting and the shapes on the parachute. They are
supported to extend their knowledge by staff encouraging them to throw laminated words
into the parachute, introducing print linked to their interest in superheroes.
Children are supported well during mealtimes, with staff facing them as they enjoy their
nutritious meals. They develop good levels of independence skills. Younger children show
delight as they prepare for lunch by finding their own cups and seats. Older children
confidently find their own name to help them understand where they are sitting. This
strengthens their early reading skills, supports independence and reinforces familiar
routines.
Children play cooperatively and show consistent kind behaviours, such as noticing when the
water bottles have run out and refilling them for others. They work together to transport and
pour water together, demonstrating teamwork and problem-solving. Children show
enjoyment in completing puzzles. They work out where pieces fit, test out possibilities and
celebrate their successes. Staff role model taking turns and encourage perseverance.

Inspectors:
Hayley Doncom
Kelli Wiseman
About this setting
Unique reference number (URN): EY295936
Address:
Wymering Road
North End
Portsmouth
Hampshire
PO2 7HX
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registration date: 30/09/2004
Registered person: Little Thinkers Pre-School & Nursery
Register(s): EYR
Next steps
Leaders should strengthen how specific learning interventions are delivered so that
children focus consistently and achieve their skills more readily.
Leaders should extend staff teaching of mathematical concepts, weaving these into more
aspects of practice.
Leaders should strengthen information gathered prior to children starting to support a
smooth settling-in and to establish children's starting points.
About this inspection
The inspectors spoke with children, the leaders, designated safeguarding lead, special
educational needs coordinator, staff and parents during the inspection.
We carried out this inspection under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the
quality and standards of provision that is registered on the Early Years Register. The
registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for
children's learning, development and care, known as the early years foundation stage.

Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:30 - 18:00
Local authority: Portsmouth
Facts and figures used on inspection
This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection.
This data is from 16 June 2026
Children numbers
Age range of children at the time of inspection
1 to 4
Total number of places
87
Our grades explained
Exceptional
Practice is exceptional: of the highest standard nationally. Other settings can learn from it.
Strong standard
The setting reaches a strong standard. Leaders are working above the standard expected of
them.
Expected standard
The setting is fulfilling the expected standard of education and/or care. This means they are
following the standard set out in statutory and non ‑ statutory legislation and the professional
standards expected of them.
Needs attention
The expected standards are not met but leaders are likely able to make the necessary
improvements.
Urgent improvement

The setting needs to make urgent improvements to provide the expected standard of
education and/or care.
The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) inspects
services providing education and skills for children and learners of all ages, and inspects
and regulates services that care for children and young people.
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