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Little Ray of Sunshine Daycare

Little Ray of Sunshine Daycare is a day nursery in Penistone for children aged 10 to 46, with 44 registered places. Ofsted report card, 25 August 2026: Strong standard in 2 areas, Expected standard in 4 areas; safeguarding standards met.

12-14 Mortimer Heights, Cubley, Penistone, S36 9UY

Key facts

Type
Day nursery (Full day care) (Ofsted childcare register, as at 30 June 2026)
Ages
10 to 46 (Ofsted childcare register, as at 30 June 2026)
Registered places
44 (Ofsted childcare register, as at 30 June 2026)
Registered
13 August 2025 (Ofsted childcare register, as at 30 June 2026)

Opening hours

Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 08:00 - 18:00

Source: Ofsted report, inspection on 25 August 2026

Latest inspection

  • Inclusion: Expected standard
  • Curriculum and teaching: Expected standard
  • Achievement: Expected standard
  • Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines: Strong standard
  • Children's welfare and wellbeing: Strong standard
  • Leadership and governance: Expected standard
  • Safeguarding standards met

Source: Ofsted, inspection on 25 August 2026. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

What it's like to be a child at this setting

Children experience a warm, caring and inclusive setting where personalised welcomes, sensitive interactions and well-established routines help them to feel safe, secure and valued. They form positive relationships with staff and other children and develop confidence and independence. Children learn to share, cooperate and work in groups. They are happy in their play and independently resolve any disputes with their friends. Children demonstrate resilience and persist in challenging activities. Children enjoy a language-rich environment, sharing stories, songs, conversations and focused activities which help to develop vocabulary, and their listening and attention skills. Children become increasingly independent in managing self-care tasks and taking part in the daily routines. Children enjoy social mealtimes together. They lay the tables, serve themselves and try new foods. Staff sit with children and use these opportunities to promote learning. Children access a well-resourced environment with opportunities to enjoy soft play and have daily access to the outdoors. Children become confident in their physical skills, developing strength and coordination as well as balance and spatial awareness. Activities that require pinching, grasping and handling improve their hand-eye coordination. Mathematical language is introduced through routines and planned activities. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those facing barriers to learning receive adapted support tailored to their specific needs. The setting has accessed funding to create a sensory area which promotes self-regulation and communication and learning. Children make good progress and are well prepared for the next stage of their education journey.

What Ofsted found in each area

Inclusion: Expected standard

Leaders have established an inclusive culture in which children's individual needs are identified through initial information from families, ongoing observations, developmental tracking, speech and language assessments and discussion with parents. Leaders adopt the graduated approach to assess emerging needs and adapt provision and routines to best support children. The use of visual prompts, calm spaces, sensory resources to reduce barriers to learning for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who face barriers to learning.

Leaders seek advice from the local authority and work with other external agencies to support best outcomes for children. This coordinated approach has helped children to make progress in communication, self-regulation and their ability to follow routines. Early years pupil premium and disability access funding are used purposefully to provide resources linked to children's needs and interests. These include sand, water and sensory play, and to strengthen staffing ratios. Leaders monitor the impact of this spending. Parents contribute to assessments and receive information through online communications and direct discussion. Leaders should strengthen the review of personalised targets so that all staff are aware of children's gaps and next steps, and teaching can be precisely adjusted for every child.

Curriculum and teaching: Expected standard

Leaders have designed a curriculum which demonstrates the knowledge and skills children need to achieve and be ready for their next step in education. It provides broad and balanced learning opportunities that support children's overall development. Staff prioritise communication and language, personal social and emotional development and physical development, to ensure strong foundations for future learning. Quality interactions support children's developing vocabulary, oral language and language comprehension. Leaders nurture children's literacy and language development and foster a love of books. Core books are used to model reading behaviours, which allows children to join in as they remember what happens. Focused activities allow children to develop listening and attention skills as they follow simple instructions. Babies enjoy the song basket which supports their language development, as well as strengthening the emotional connection to their key person.

Children develop their physical skills, confidence and coordination through accessing indoor soft play and the outdoor area. Fine-motor skills are practised through a range of activities, including play dough, mark making and using serving tongs and cutlery at mealtimes. Maths is interwoven throughout the daily routine. Planned opportunities focus on teaching children core mathematical concepts. Babies enjoy number rhymes. Staff combine explicit teaching with play opportunities so that children learn the intended curriculum. Daily routines promote independence, as children lay tables, hand out plates and cutlery, collect shoes, put on jackets and manage personal care. Leaders have the knowledge and strategies to adapt teaching to reduce barriers for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who face barriers to learning.

Achievement: Expected standard

Children make progress through the curriculum and develop secure foundations in communication and language, personal, social and emotional development and physical development. Regular stories, songs and meaningful interactions strengthen children's vocabulary, listening and understanding. Consequently, children communicate their ideas clearly and engage in meaningful conversations. Children develop confidence and independence throughout the day, for example, by serving themselves at mealtimes and attending to personal care. Leaders and staff develop secure relationships with children so that they feel safe, secure and can thrive.

Regular physical activity enables children to develop a positive attitude to exercise. Children have healthy home cooked foods and are introduced to a varied diet. Staff know their key children's next steps and share regular observations and assessments with parents. However, leaders should ensure that all staff are aware of all children's next steps and information that is shared across the staff team should be accurate, current and reflect sufficient challenge for individual children. Disadvantaged children, those with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those known to social care make secure progress from their starting points. Leaders work with parents and professionals to reduce barriers to children's learning.

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines: Strong standard

Leaders have embedded a respectful culture in which expectations for behaviour are clear, consistently modelled and understood. As a result, children are considerate, polite and cooperative. They confidently share resources, take turns and form positive relationships. Group activities strengthen children's ability to listen, follow instructions and regulate their feelings. Staff use praise effectively, helping children to develop confidence, resilience and consistently positive attitudes to learning. Warm, responsive relationships enable children to form secure attachments, settle quickly and transition throughout the day. The open-plan environment enables siblings to maintain close connections and share mealtimes, further strengthening children's sense of belonging. Well-established routines are highly effective in developing independence. Children make choices and serve themselves at snack time, use cutlery, lay the table and self-serve at lunchtime. They independently manage shoes, coats and personal care, according to their age and needs.

Leaders work closely with parents to promote punctuality and attendance. Communication is open and absences are followed up promptly. Leaders support parents in accessing funding to ensure that children receive the best early education offer that suits the child and their family's needs. This enables all children, including disadvantaged children, those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, and those facing barriers to learning, to establish positive routines, attend regularly and become well prepared for school.

Children's welfare and wellbeing: Strong standard

Leaders consistently prioritise children's welfare and wellbeing. Staff form positive, warm relationships with children, which enable them to settle well and feel emotionally safe and secure. Transitions are managed successfully, working at the child's pace to ensure these are seamless and without upset. Leaders have a very good knowledge of the setting's children and work with parents to respond to children's individual needs. Routines are effective and responsive. Secure relationships are established through the key-person system. Babies form strong attachments and seek comfort from familiar adults. Children are supported to develop an understanding of personal safety, health and wellbeing.

Children have access to the indoor soft-play area and the outdoors daily, for exercise. Children learn about hygiene through regular handwashing and personal-care routines. Children join for communal mealtimes and enjoy home-made healthy meals and a choice of snacks each day. Children make healthy choices and enjoy trying new foods. Staff use calm interactions and sensitive responses to help children recognise, express and manage their emotions. Sleeping, feeding and weaning routines are carefully adapted to meet children's individual needs. Staff work closely with parents to ensure continuity of care and respond to dietary requirements, allergies and preferences. As a result, children feel safe, settled and supported, enabling them to thrive and make positive progress in their development.

Leadership and governance: Expected standard

Leaders are reflective about the provision and identify strengths and areas that require improvement. They conduct regular staff supervision, monitor staff wellbeing and consider workload. Staff report that they feel valued, listened to and supported, which contributes to consistent care and learning for children. Leaders identify individual training needs and provide professional development. However, professional learning is not yet sufficiently strategic. Leaders should ensure that training is closely matched to improvement priorities and that its impact on staff practice and children's experiences is evaluated.

Leaders work closely with parents and external professionals to secure targeted support and access funding, make referrals and support the needs of all children, including those who face barriers to their learning, such as those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. They prioritise inclusion and take purposeful action to reduce barriers to learning. Parents receive information about their children's progress and next steps and describe warm, supportive relationships with staff. Leaders are developing their strategic vision for the provision. They should strengthen continuous improvement planning by using local information, extending community links and identifying clear priorities that improve the quality of provision and outcomes for all children.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

  • Leaders should continue to develop high-quality provision by aligning staff development with identified priorities and evaluating the impact on practice and children's outcomes.
  • Leaders should develop existing systems to ensure that all staff are fully aware of children's individual next steps to ensure all children achieve well from their individual starting points and receive sufficient challenge to excel in their learning.

Ofsted's words, from the report on the inspection on 25 August 2026. Read the full report on the Ofsted website. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Ofsted report cards (England, from November 2025)

Since 10 November 2025 Ofsted has graded nurseries and pre-schools on a report card. There is no single overall grade. Instead, each of six areas gets one of five grades: Exceptional, Strong standard, Expected standard, Needs attention, Urgent improvement.

The six areas are inclusion; curriculum and teaching; achievement; behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines; children's welfare and wellbeing; leadership and governance. Safeguarding is judged on its own, as met or not met.

Expected standard means the setting does what Ofsted expects of every setting. Strong standard and Exceptional are above that; Needs attention and Urgent improvement mean Ofsted found things the setting has to put right.

Source: Ofsted reports

Funded childcare hours in England

All 3 and 4 year olds in England can get 15 hours of free childcare a week, for 38 weeks of the year.

Working parents of children aged 9 months to 4 years old can get 30 hours of free childcare a week for 38 weeks of the year (Free Childcare for Working Parents), if they meet the earnings rules. You confirm your details every 3 months.

Some 2 year olds can get 15 hours a week when the family gets certain kinds of extra support.

The hours are used at a registered provider that offers them, so ask each nursery how it offers the funded hours.

Source: GOV.UK: Free Childcare for Working Parents, check if you're eligible · GOV.UK: Free childcare and education for 2 to 4 year olds (checked 31 October 2026)

Other nurseries nearby

  • Child's Play Day Nursery Penistone - Day nursery, Sheffield S36 9AW, ages 0 to 9, 57 places, 0.3 miles
    Ofsted, 3 October 2024: Outstanding overall; safeguarding is effective
  • Busy Bees Penistone - Day nursery, Sheffield S36 6AR, ages 0 to 4, 45 places, 0.9 miles
    Ofsted, 12 September 2022: Outstanding overall; safeguarding is effective
  • Rascalz - Day nursery, Sheffield S36 6HH, ages 0 to 11, 60 places, 1.0 miles
    Ofsted, 12 June 2025: Good overall; safeguarding is effective
  • Little Freddies Nursery School - Day nursery, Sheffield S36 6HD, ages 1 to 11, 73 places, 1.0 miles
    Ofsted, 23 July 2024: Good overall; safeguarding is effective
  • Daisy Chain Pre School - Day nursery, Sheffield S36 9RD, ages 2 to 11, 26 places, 1.3 miles
    Ofsted, 10 June 2024: Outstanding overall; safeguarding is effective

Schools nearby

Little Ray of Sunshine Daycare on the Ofsted website