Little Wellies Day Nursery

A converted stone barn, woodland and a working farm give Little Wellies Day Nursery its character. Outdoor learning has a physical setting here: children can move between the barn, garden and farmland, with a petting farm and purpose-built play equipment adding different ways to explore. For families who want countryside experiences woven into childcare, that is the central attraction.

Ofsted rated the nursery Outstanding at its inspection on 10 February 2025. At that visit, children were aged 0 to 4; the nursery has 89 places in total. Its address is Oundle Lodge, Stoke Road, Oundle, Peterborough, PE8 5TN.

Full Day, Morning, Afternoon and School Day sessions give families several attendance patterns. The farm setting is the reason to look closely; the session choice makes it relevant to different working routines.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage sets the requirements for children's learning, development and care. Here, the February 2025 examples show what that can mean in everyday play: measuring ingredients, sharing books, talking through a problem and taking familiar stories outdoors.

Baking connected several kinds of learning. In February 2025, children located their equipment, referred to a recipe and matched its numbers to the weighing scales. When syrup spilled beyond a spoon, staff invited them to consider a different approach. The practical task gave children something concrete to think about, rather than making number work a separate exercise.

Books also travelled beyond story time. In February 2025, babies and toddlers brought books to adults and explored animal pictures and sounds together. Older children used words encountered during baking, while children took props into the woodland to act out favourite stories. Wooden paw shapes and teddy bears helped turn an interest in a book into imaginative outdoor play.

Outdoor and Community Life

Forest School has woodland space on the farm, adding outdoor activities alongside the nursery's everyday learning. The barn's connection to the garden and farmland matters too: outdoor play is built into the layout rather than dependent entirely on a separate excursion. Meadows, livestock and ponds give the setting a countryside character, while the attached petting farm brings animals into its immediate surroundings.

In February 2025, children followed oats through planting, growth and harvesting. Time with the farmer connected the crop eaten by cows with the ingredient used in their flapjacks. That made food production tangible: something growing on the farm became something children could handle and cook with.

Outdoor experiences extended to younger children. In February 2025, babies took countryside walks and watched rain from indoors while adults talked about trees and the sky. Toddlers also practised thinking about safety: when they found long sticks in the woodland, staff explained how pointing them down helped protect others. Exploration and learning to handle equipment went together.

At its February 2025 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and praised the responsive support children received, including help with emotions and close relationships with staff. The detail beneath that judgement is useful for parents choosing care for a young child.

In February 2025, babies and toddlers sought comfort from adults, who responded with cuddles. Staff used books and fictional characters to help children put feelings into words, and children were encouraged to seek help when they needed it. These examples describe care through ordinary interactions: reassurance during play and language for feelings that can be difficult to express.

Communication with families had practical substance. In February 2025, staff spoke with parents at collection and drop-off, shared individual information about care routines, and sent photographs and learning updates during the day. Families also received ideas for continuing activities at home. When children could not attend, photographs helped maintain their connection with nursery life.

The nursery's current approach emphasises consistent care and regular contact with families. Parents can raise worries by telephone or speak with staff, giving them a direct route for discussing how their child is getting on.

Sessions and Attendance

The attendance choices are clearly separated. Full Day runs from 8am to 5.45pm, Morning from 8am to 1pm, and Afternoon from 1pm to 5.45pm. School Day runs from 9am to 3pm. The shorter choices matter for families whose childcare needs do not fill the longest day.

The funded offer includes an all-year stretched arrangement. In February 2025, the nursery operated Monday to Friday over 48 weeks; that is the dated operating pattern, rather than a promise about every future year's calendar.

Little Wellies is at Oundle Lodge on Stoke Road in Oundle, Peterborough, PE8 5TN. Enquiries can be made by telephone on 01832 770324 or by email to info@littlewelliesdaynursery.co.uk.

Funding and Paid Extras

The April 2025 funding arrangements cover 15 universal term-time hours for children aged 3 and 4, beginning in the term after their third birthday, and 30 extended hours subject to eligibility. They also describe 15 term-time funded hours for eligible working families with children aged 9 months and over, including 2-year-olds. These younger-child hours require an application and are not universal.

For children attending throughout the year, the stretched arrangement spreads 15 hours into 12 hours a week and 30 hours into 24 hours a week. Those are the April 2025 arrangements; entitlement and the nursery's delivery pattern are separate parts of the decision.

Funded childcare hours carry no charge, but meals and non-food consumables sit within a separately charged, optional benefits package. That package also covers kitchen and chef costs, resources, Famly App access, farm trips, Forest School and Tractor and Trailer rides; families can decline the package and its benefits. Famly App access is one of the package's services, while Tractor and Trailer rides add a farm-based activity.

The funding and fees page explains the structure. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation, allowing families to distinguish childcare hours from the optional additions.

• Farm experiences. Woodland, livestock and ponds are part of this setting's surroundings. On a visit, ask how outdoor activities are adapted for your child's age and confidence.
• Optional funded-session package. Meals, consumables, app access and several farm activities are grouped within optional charges. Consider which benefits you want and how declining the package would shape your child's day.
• Attendance pattern. A 9am to 3pm School Day sits alongside morning, afternoon and full-day choices. Compare those actual session boundaries with your work and collection arrangements.

Little Wellies suits families drawn to a working-farm setting, with woodland, animals and a barn designed to connect indoor and outdoor play. The February 2025 examples give that setting educational substance: children followed crops, cooked with ingredients and carried stories into the woods.

Morning or Afternoon sessions suit shorter childcare needs, while School Day and Full Day offer different lengths of attendance. The optional funded-session package deserves careful attention because it affects meals, consumables and access to several activities. For parents who value countryside learning and want a choice of session lengths, this is a nursery with a clear identity.