Little Gems Pre-School

An open-plan building in Wigmore Primary School’s grounds gives Little Gems Pre-School a clear physical identity: purpose-built indoor space alongside an outdoor area, with play and growing independence shaping its approach. This committee-run charity serves children from two to four years and eleven months and has capacity for 38 children. Its setting is preschool rather than baby care.

At its June 2025 inspection, Ofsted rated Little Gems Good and found safeguarding effective, with children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), developing confidence and a sense of wellbeing. There was also a specific improvement point: staff needed to give children better opportunities to develop conversation during activities and play.

Attendance is term-time, with morning and afternoon sessions and full days for older children; two-year-olds attend afternoons only. That age distinction matters as much as the opening hours.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage sets the framework for children’s learning, development and care: here, play, stories, practical exploration and opportunities to make choices give children ways to learn. Little Gems encourages children to express ideas and feelings, think independently and make decisions. The emphasis is on developing at their own pace, rather than expecting every child to approach an activity in the same way.

At the June 2025 inspection, Ofsted found that planned learning took account of children’s development and interests, and that work in smaller groups was benefiting learning. This gives parents a useful picture of the educational approach: activities had a purpose, while children’s interests helped determine how that purpose was pursued.

In June 2025, superhero interests became a starting point for activities about playing cooperatively. Craft work also provided opportunities for children to help each other with aprons and share materials. These are practical examples of social learning, with friendship and cooperation exercised through things children wanted to do.

Nature provided another connected thread that June. Children planted seedlings, discussed the water and sunlight they needed, then examined flowers before drawing or painting them. Pictures and discussion helped explain growth and decay, linking hands-on activity with new ideas and vocabulary. Sand exploration offered another kind of practical discovery, including making sandcastles with a bucket.

Language deserves close attention. In June 2025, children used new vocabulary to explain ideas about ants and their nests, but staff sometimes delivered information too rapidly or in quantities that made responding difficult. The improvement point was about making those exchanges more accessible. For families, the useful distinction is between adults talking to children and children having enough time and space to answer.

Outdoor and Community Life

The outdoor area complements the open-plan building, giving the setting both indoor and outside space for children’s experiences. The calendar also includes a Halloween Party, a Christmas Party and a Christmas Carol Concert, with dates provisionally placed in October and December 2026. These add shared occasions to the term, though their dates remain to be confirmed.

Relationships and Communication

In June 2025, staff used pictures and stories to help children recognise feelings, and responded calmly when children became upset. Reassurance and redirection helped them return to play. Children were encouraged to choose activities and manage aspects of their own care, so emotional support sat alongside opportunities to become more independent.

Communication with home was concrete that June: parents received individual daily updates about their child’s experiences, while books, resources and activity ideas went home to extend learning. This made the exchange more useful than a general account of what the whole group had done. Families could connect their child’s day with something to discuss or try together later.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

The team includes a SEN Lead role with maternity cover, as well as designated safeguarding officer and deputy safeguarding officer roles. Those responsibilities provide identifiable routes for discussing additional needs or raising concerns. They are roles within the team, rather than a substitute for understanding how support will work for an individual child.

Healthy habits featured in June 2025 through songs and discussion before toothbrushing. This brought an everyday care routine into children’s learning, giving them a practical activity alongside conversations about looking after themselves.

Sessions and Attendance

Little Gems operates at Wigmore Primary School, Twyford Drive, Luton, LU2 9TB. Opening hours are 9.10am to 3.10pm, Monday to Friday, during term time.

The AM Session runs from 9.10am to 12.10pm; the PM Session runs from 12.40pm to 3.10pm. Between them is a lunch session from 12.10pm to 12.40pm. Two-year-olds can attend afternoons only, with mornings or full days generally possible once a child turns three. The restriction is therefore age-related, and families planning a change of attendance should account for that birthday threshold.

Non-funded sessions are paid in advance at the beginning of each half term. Enquiries can be made by telephone on 01582 418127 or through the contact form, and completed registration forms are returned by email to the manager.

Funding and Paid Extras

Term-time funded childcare includes 15 hours for eligible two-year-olds from the term after they turn two, and 15/30 hours for three- and four-year-olds, subject to the relevant eligibility conditions. Eligible children receive 30-hour funding from the term after their third birthday. Chargeable sessions are also offered for non-funded children. Current prices come in the nursery’s written quotation.

School dinners are charged separately, while snacks carry a voluntary additional contribution. Non-food consumables, including supplies for craft, hygiene and cleaning, are charged separately through a voluntary additional contribution.

For funded attendance, the lunch session is not charged to children receiving 30 hours or where lunch falls within the child’s funded session; otherwise it is chargeable. School dinners remain a separate charge, and the voluntary snack and consumables contributions are listed alongside session charges. Funded childcare and the cost of food therefore need to be understood separately.

Little Gems occupies a site within Wigmore Primary School’s grounds. Attendance does not guarantee a Reception place: families still use the local authority admissions process for a state school place.

• Afternoons at age two. Two-year-olds attend afternoon sessions only, while mornings and full days can generally be added from age three. On a visit, discuss how that change would fit your child’s routine and your working hours.
• Time to talk. The June 2025 improvement point concerned conversational opportunities, including the pace and quantity of adult speech. Ask how staff now give children time to respond during play and group activities.
• Term-time care. Opening follows a term-time pattern and finishes at 3.10pm. Families needing care through school holidays or later in the day should weigh those boundaries against their regular commitments.

Little Gems suits families seeking afternoon preschool care for a two-year-old, or morning sessions and full days during term time for an older child. Its open-plan setting, outdoor area and emphasis on children making choices give it a clear practical character. The June 2025 findings support that picture, while the conversation improvement point deserves attention. The decision rests on both the child’s experience and whether the age-based session pattern fits family life.