Wembury Preschool

An orchard story tree, allotment visits and room to build dens give Wembury Preschool its character. Based in the Allsorts Building within Wembury Primary School’s grounds, this is a preschool where the surroundings become part of the learning: children investigate growing things, use natural materials and take their play beyond the building.

At its 27 January 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated the preschool Good overall and judged safeguarding effective. That judgement comes with two practical reservations: adult-directed activities needed better adjustment for different children, and lunchtime routines needed to preserve more opportunities for learning.

There are 26 places in total. Children can join from the term in which they turn 2½ and stay until they begin primary school. Morning, afternoon and all-day attendance are offered during term time, with breakfast and after-school options extending the day.

Learning and Activities

The early years foundation stage sets the requirements for children’s learning, development and care. In everyday terms, that means supporting language, movement, relationships and early understanding through play as well as guided activities.

Staff combine planned activities with in-the-moment planning, extending an activity when children remain absorbed in it. Creative work, construction and pretend play sit alongside sand, water and messy materials.

Language receives sustained attention. Fiction and information books are available for children to explore, with adult reading, daily singing and rhyming adding different ways to hear and use words. Staff also write down children’s invented stories.

Read, Write Inc. – Set 1 is used for phonics alongside rhyming and sound games, including Silly Soup. Small-group phonics and mathematics sessions give staff opportunities to observe development. Elsewhere, children compare quantities using water, mud and sand, arrange pebbles and notice patterns during nature walks.

The Argyle Community Trust Sports Activity Session provides a weekly hour of sport, free for children attending the core session when it takes place. Movement also runs through ordinary play: the climbing frame and large construction resources support balancing, climbing and building obstacle courses.

Outdoor and Community Life

The story tree stands in the orchard, alongside a digging patch. Children visit allotments and talk with gardeners about their crops; a wooded part of the school grounds provides space for climbing and den building.

Forest School Sessions, offering outdoor learning at the preschool’s site within Wembury Primary School’s grounds, take place on an ad-hoc basis and are free within the relevant core session. Afternoon activities can include visits to the park, school field, allotments and story tree.

Caring for tortoises and growing food add living things to the curriculum. Creative activities include music, cooking, painting and yoga. The curriculum overview gives the detail of these activities.

Annual fundraising events include Sponsored Walk, Halloween Fun and Christmas Raffle. They help pay for equipment, making family participation part of how the preschool develops its facilities.

Relationships and Communication

Each child has a WOW! Book recording development through play. Parents receive a progress report each term and can meet their child’s key worker to discuss concerns; a termly newsletter covers preschool news.

Staff are available for conversations under an open-door policy. Children also receive practical support with independence, including managing coats, using cutlery and developing hygiene habits.

Feelings and friendships are part of the curriculum. Staff talk with children about disagreements, managing emotions and being considerate towards others, with individual conversations when needed.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

A SENDCo and deputy SENDCo role sit within the team, alongside safeguarding lead and deputy safeguarding officer roles. At the January 2022 inspection, Ofsted found that staff worked with other professionals and used manageable individual goals to support children with SEND, while parents received useful guidance about progress and learning at home.

In January 2022, staff used counts before and after outings, and access to the building was controlled by a staff keypad.

Sessions and Attendance

The address is Allsorts Building, Wembury Primary School, Knighton Road, Wembury, Plymouth, PL9 0EB. The preschool operates during term time, opening at 8am and closing at 5pm from Monday to Thursday, with a 4pm finish on Friday.

Morning sessions run from 9am to 11.30am; afternoon sessions run from 12.30pm to 3pm. All-day sessions are also offered. Breakfast Club runs from 8am to 9am, and After School Club runs from 3pm to 5pm Monday to Thursday, subject to uptake, or from 3pm to 4pm on Friday.

Lunch Session bookings are divided into 11.30am to noon and noon to 12.30pm slots. Agreed attendance goes into a Parent/Provider Contract. An 8am breakfast start needs booking with 48 hours’ notice and email confirmation; the 8.30am start can be used ad hoc. Confirmed club bookings are charged and cannot be cancelled, so occasional early starts still need planning.

Telephone enquiries go through 01752 863472. The uniform comprises a logo T-shirt, sweatshirt and book bag. It is requested to help staff identify children during off-site activities, making clothing part of the practical preparation for attending.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded entitlement is offered term-time only. For three- and four-year-olds, this includes universal funding of 15 hours a week from the term after their third birthday and an additional 15-hour Working Entitlement where eligibility criteria are met; two-year-old Working Entitlement funding of 15 hours starts in the term after their second birthday and targeted two-year-old funding are also offered subject to their respective eligibility conditions.

Funding can cover the allocated sessions, up to 9 hours daily, with no gaps when split across the day. It is applied to the hours booked before additional private hours are charged. Booked absences still use the allocated funding, and private fees remain payable. Families should obtain current prices in the preschool’s written quotation; the fees and funding information explains the entitlement options.

Breakfast and snacks are included without a separate charge, including during funded sessions; lunch is either supplied from home or bought through school-dinner tickets, with meals provided by Aspen’s under its contract with Wembury Primary School. Food brought from home must meet the preschool’s allergen guidelines.

Parents supply nappies, barrier cream and suncream when needed, while other consumables are supplied without charge; this applies to funded attendance too. Organised trips are optional, require parental consent and carry a charge covering entry and any applicable travel costs.

Children make regular final-term visits to Wembury Primary School through Induction Days, meeting teachers and experiencing school life. Transition information passes to the school, including children’s preferences, strengths and challenges. Attendance at the preschool does not guarantee a Reception place: families still apply through the local authority admissions process.

• Activities matched to the child. In January 2022, older children sometimes needed greater challenge and younger children needed more help during adult-directed activities. On a visit, ask how the small learning groups now accommodate those differences.
• The middle of the day. In January 2022, collections, washing up and staff breaks reduced engagement after lunch. Ask how lunch and the change between morning and afternoon sessions now work for children staying across both.
• Term-time attendance and club commitments. After-school provision from Monday to Thursday is subject to uptake, and confirmed club bookings cannot be cancelled. Consider these terms alongside the hours your family needs throughout the year.
• Food and personal supplies. Lunch needs either a packed meal or purchased dinner tickets, and families bring specified care consumables. If allergies affect your child, confirm the current food-handling arrangements and how the allergen guidelines apply to their lunch.

Wembury suits families seeking morning or afternoon preschool sessions, as well as those combining all-day attendance with breakfast or after-school care during term time. Its appeal is specific: an orchard story tree, allotments, den-building space and a weekly sports session give children several ways to learn through movement and exploration.

Termly reporting and WOW! Books make communication tangible, while school visits prepare children for the next stage. The January 2022 reservations about guided activities and lunchtime routines temper an appealing outdoor offer.