Little Wombatz

Soham Library gives Little Wombatz a recognisable home, while messy play, miniature story worlds and listening games give its preschool day character. This is a setting where children can experiment with materials and invent their own stories, rather than work towards matching finished pictures. Its practical appeal extends beyond preschool through breakfast, after-school and holiday care.

At its March 2022 inspection, Ofsted judged the provision Good and safeguarding effective, with strengths in communication, relationships and individual learning, alongside improvements needed in early reading, mathematics and staff learning from colleagues. That judgement is dated. Later safeguarding action, including a repeated premises-security issue, also matters to a family's decision and is addressed below.

Preschool caters for children aged 2 to 4 years 11 months, while extended care serves ages 2 to 11. Little Wombatz has 40 places in total; that is a whole-setting figure, rather than the number sharing a particular activity or room. Preschool attendance follows a recurring term-time pattern, with a minimum booking of 2.5 hours each week.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage guides learning through play, conversation, movement and exploration. Children choose some activities; adults guide others. This combines children's interests with planned teaching.

Letters and Sounds adds a specific approach to early phonics. In their final preschool year, children begin its first phase and encounter some letter sounds from the second phase. Listening games explore sounds in the environment, rhythm, rhyme and voices; older children's circle time provides a separate opportunity to practise these skills. The emphasis is on hearing and using sounds before expecting fluent reading.

Messy Play encourages exploration through touch and manipulation, rather than making a finished object. Gloop's changing consistency gives children something to investigate and discuss. Expect experimentation rather than tidy artwork.

Small World Play brings storytelling into physical play through Happyland scenes, vehicles and miniature people. Natural wood blocks and coconut bark have become animal homes, giving children materials for inventing their own stories.

In March 2022, a flower activity linked sensory exploration with new vocabulary: children investigated scent and colour while learning about stems and water. The same visit identified a weaker balance elsewhere. Children choosing outdoor play had fewer opportunities to enjoy stories, and mathematical learning needed more deliberate attention both outside and indoors. The phonics programme therefore needs to be read alongside that dated improvement point, rather than treated as proof that early reading was already consistently strong.

Outdoor and Community Life

Toys and activities go outside during the preschool routine, with further outdoor play possible later. Outings to shops, the park and the library connect learning with familiar everyday places.

Younger and older children have separate circle activities. Books and small toys provide quiet play after lunch while others finish eating; individual rest needs are accommodated throughout the day.

Relationships and Communication

Parents and the key person use information about a child's interests and achievements at home to plan their next learning steps. Home experiences help shape preschool activities.

Tapestry, the online learning journal, holds observations, photographs and planned next steps, and parents receive access to it. Alongside daily conversations, the key person discusses next steps with families twice a year. Parents can add information to the journal themselves, making communication a shared record rather than a stream of updates in one direction.

Flexible settling visits and a home visit prepare children for starting. Meeting at home lets staff gather dietary, health and developmental information in familiar surroundings.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

SEND support has identifiable routes. Families can raise concerns with the key person or manager, with further assessment and support discussed through the SENCO role. With parental permission, the setting can involve the Early Support team or Area SENCO, and draw on the Early Years Specialist Teaching team, Portage and Home Start. Speech and social communication activities can form part of a child's support.

The premises are on one floor, with a broad path to the entrance and an accessible toilet. These are practical details for families considering mobility and access. A trained first aider is on site, and medication can be given with signed parental authorisation; these are arrangements, rather than a judgement about their effectiveness.

On 22 April 2026, Ofsted issued a welfare requirements notice after a child had been able to leave the setting, covering safeguarding reporting, induction, supervision, records and risks at the door leading to the car park and road; at the follow-up on 27 May 2026, it confirmed the actions had been met. A premises-security action had also been met following a response on 31 March 2025. Because security recurred, families should consider the sequence alongside the recorded resolution, rather than rely solely on the earlier Good judgement.

School transition includes welcoming visits from future teachers and sending children's learning journals to their Reception teacher. Information can also be shared with another setting with parental consent. These arrangements support continuity as children move on.

Sessions and Attendance

Little Wombatz is based at The Library, 7 Clay St, Soham, Ely CB7 5HJ. Preschool opens Monday to Friday, from 9am to 3pm. Families choose their hours and days, with the same days and sessions repeated during term time and a weekly minimum of 2.5 hours. This gives flexibility within a regular weekly routine, rather than unrestricted changes from week to week.

Breakfast club runs from 7.30am to 9am. Afterschool care starts at 3pm, with collection options at 4pm, 5pm, 5.30pm or 6pm. A pick-up service covers The Shade, St Andrews Primary and The Weatherall’s Primary schools, making the school connection a practical collection arrangement.

Holiday Club operates during school holidays apart from Christmas week. Large holiday trip days are for children in their preschool year or older. Holiday bookings are released at least four weeks beforehand, so they follow a different booking timetable from the recurring preschool pattern.

Preschool, after-school and holiday bookings use an online registration and booking system, with payment made when booking. Families can enquire by telephone or email. Preschool fees are invoiced monthly in advance; booked hours remain payable when a child is absent through illness or holidays. A sibling reduction applies when siblings are cared for together.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded preschool attendance includes up to 15 hours a week for children from the term after their third birthday, with extended term-time funding also offered. The preschool fees page describes eligible families receiving up to 30 hours and funding for some two-year-olds, with funded hours spread across three to five days. Eligibility wording differs elsewhere, so the precise entitlement needs resolving before a funded booking is agreed.

Parents supply a healthy packed lunch for preschool. The snack bar allows children to choose when to have a snack during its opening period, adding a small opportunity to manage their own routine. Current prices should come in the nursery's written quotation, considered alongside the hours booked and the payment terms.

• Repeated premises security. Security action was met in March 2025, but a child leaving the setting led to further action in April 2026, met at the May follow-up. At a visit, ask how the door towards the car park and road is controlled throughout the day.
• Reading and mathematics. In March 2022, outdoor story opportunities and mathematical teaching needed attention, alongside opportunities for staff to learn from colleagues. Ask to see how stories and number play now extend across indoor and outdoor activities.
• Funding wording. The funding information gives different descriptions of eligibility for extended hours, including two-year-old funding. Resolve which entitlement applies to your child and how it fits the recurring weekly booking before agreeing attendance.
• Packed lunches and other supplies. Preschool lunch comes from home. Which non-food consumables should your family supply, and which are covered by private or funded attendance?

Little Wombatz suits families seeking flexible term-time preschool hours and those using breakfast or after-school care linked to the named collection schools. Messy materials, miniature storytelling resources and Letters and Sounds give parents concrete ways to understand the learning offer, while Tapestry and planned conversations provide routes into their child's progress.

The decision also carries a clear caution. The March 2022 Good judgement sits alongside later, repeated security concerns whose required actions were subsequently met. Families should weigh those dated outcomes together and give day-to-day premises security proper attention when considering the setting.