Lechlade Little Learners

In February 2025, chickens, home-grown produce and a garden obstacle course gave Lechlade Little Learners a practical, outdoor character. This parent-governed preschool on Wharf Lane combines child-led play with adult guidance, allowing children to choose resources and pursue interests across its indoor and outdoor spaces.

At its February 2025 inspection, Ofsted rated the provision Outstanding, judged safeguarding effective and found that children made exceptionally strong progress. The detail behind that judgement matters: children explored sounds with instruments, investigated changes in foam and used binoculars to observe wildlife. Learning had something tangible to work on.

The current age range is 24 to 60 months. Attendance is term-time only, with morning, afternoon and full-day bookings rather than a single attendance pattern.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage provides the shared framework for learning and care: children develop language, physical skills, relationships and broader knowledge through play indoors and outside. Here, free flow gives children choices about where to play and which materials to use, while staff prepare invitations to explore and draw on their knowledge of individual interests. That makes choice part of the session rather than something reserved for its end.

Birth to 5 Matters is the additional guidance used to support planning around children's development. A December 2021 account explained how observations, practitioners' knowledge and parents' contributions informed next steps, with at least two summative assessments in an academic year and a minimum of three individual focus-child weeks. Those weeks were a way to examine one child's learning more closely, rather than relying solely on a general account of the group.

The approach draws on Reggio and Montessori rather than adopting one pedagogy throughout. The concrete offer is easier to judge than those labels: children can select toys themselves, follow their interests and explore materials that staff have prepared to prompt curiosity. Families who value choice within an adult-supported day have a clear reason to consider it.

In February 2025, everyday play included counting people, recognising shapes and talking about position and size. Staff extended conversations with questions and new vocabulary, alongside books, singing and rhymes. These examples connect early mathematics and language to things children were already doing, rather than presenting them as separate lessons.

World Nursery Rhyme Week brought a concentrated example of that approach in November 2024. Each day centred on a different rhyme, with activities built around it and further rhymes explored alongside. It was a dated themed week, not a promise of an annual event. Books also extend beyond preschool: families can borrow them for home, making shared reading possible without buying a new title each time.

Outdoor and Community Life

In February 2025, the garden supported climbing, sliding, digging and balancing along an obstacle course. Binoculars gave children a tool for looking more closely at birds and insects. The outdoor space was used for both movement and investigation, so an energetic child could find more to do than simply run around.

Growing fruit and vegetables, feeding chickens and using collected eggs in baking connected food with its origins. Regular visits to a local charity shop added another practical experience: children used money to buy toys and encountered the idea of helping others. These were experiences documented in February 2025, and their value lies in giving children real things to handle, discuss and understand.

At the February 2025 inspection, Ofsted found that staff included children across activities, used visual cues and simple signing to support communication, and sought specialist help promptly when needed. These are useful mechanisms for families considering how a child with additional needs might participate in the day.

A SENCO role and a designated safeguarding lead role sit within the current staff structure. The preschool is charity-run, with volunteer trustees involved in its organisation. FOLLies is the fundraising group supporting the preschool's running costs and activities, giving the parent-governed model a practical community dimension.

In February 2025, staff encouraged children to manage tasks such as putting on their own coats and responded when feelings or frustration interrupted play. Independence was practised through ordinary routines. These independence skills supported children's preparation for school.

The attendance request supports continuity: children are asked to attend at least two sessions each week to help them settle. This is a request, not a stated compulsory minimum. For a child starting preschool, it makes the frequency of contact with staff an important part of the family's decision.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Wharf Lane, Lechlade, Gloucestershire, GL7 3AU. Opening hours are 8.45am to 3pm, Monday to Friday, across 38 weeks of the year. The preschool operates during term time.

Morning bookings run from 9am to noon or from 9am to 1pm. Afternoon sessions are noon to 3pm, while full days run from 9am to 3pm. An early-start booking covers 8.45am to 9am and sits outside funded hours. The difference matters for families whose preferred handover time precedes the main sessions.

An enquiry form provides the joining route. Bookings depend on session availability, and a waiting list may operate for some sessions. The request for two sessions weekly should be considered alongside the choice between shorter mornings, afternoons and full days.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded childcare is offered for up to 30 hours weekly over 38 weeks, delivered term-time rather than stretched across the year. Funding begins in the school term after the child's second or third birthday, rather than immediately on their birthday. Parents applying for extended or working-family funding are responsible for applying in the preceding term and reconfirming eligibility every three months. Additional private sessions can also be booked.

For funded hours, morning and afternoon snacks carry a separate, non-mandatory charge; this does not apply to paid sessions or to families receiving the specified means-tested support. Paid sessions therefore have no separate snack charge. Families should obtain a current written quotation for their chosen pattern, using the admissions and funding page to understand the charge structure.

Invoices arrive through eyworks, where balances are displayed. Payment is due by the invoice deadline, with possible late-payment charges. Tax-free Childcare and the main workplace voucher schemes are accepted, offering more than one payment route for eligible families.

• Term-time timetable. The 38-week calendar and 3pm closing time define the offer. Families needing care during school holidays or later afternoons should weigh that fit before choosing their sessions.
• Settling through continuity. The request for at least two sessions weekly is intended to help children settle. On a visit, ask how those sessions would be introduced for your child and how home routines would be shared with staff.
• Funded-session extras. Early starts fall outside funded hours, while funded snacks have a non-mandatory charge with specified exemptions. A written quotation should distinguish these from any additional private attendance.
• Outdoor participation. The February 2025 activities included chickens, growing food and an obstacle course. A visit is a useful opportunity to discuss how your child would take part in those experiences.

Lechlade Little Learners suits families seeking term-time preschool with a choice of morning or afternoon sessions as well as full days. Child-selected resources, free flow and practical outdoor learning give that offer substance. The February 2025 Outstanding judgement adds a strong inspection position, while the timetable remains the decisive practical boundary: this is an option for families whose needs fit a preschool day and school-term calendar.