Wendens Ambo Pre-School

A garden that children can use for much of the day, a teddy called Scruffy Bear who takes turns visiting families, and a village-hall base give Wendens Ambo Pre-School its character. Play and growing independence shape the offer. Children can choose resources, spend time outdoors and, as school approaches, practise the everyday skills that make that next step less daunting.

At its November 2023 inspection, Ofsted rated the pre-school Good and found that children made good progress, with effective support for speech and language. The improvement priorities were specific: activities needed to stretch children's thinking more consistently, and books needed a stronger place in their learning.

The pre-school has capacity for 24 children, accepting ages 2 to 5, at the Village Hall in Wendens Ambo. Attendance is term-time, with separately bookable morning, lunch and afternoon periods. That gives families a choice between shorter visits and combining sessions across the day.

Learning and Activities

The Early Years Foundation Stage shapes learning across areas such as communication, physical development and mathematics. Here, children explore those areas through play, creative work, stories and activities led by adults, rather than a day built entirely around formal instruction.

A play kitchen, creative and maths areas, role play and a book corner provide different ways to play or rest. Choosing books let children request equipment and influence their activities.

Water, collage, paint and sand feature in creative activities, alongside puzzles and construction toys. Storytelling, movement and music provide other ways to join in. The pre-school aims to include a structured activity in each session, with children's work contributing to changing displays. Afternoons also include cooking and crafts, so practical making sits alongside imaginative play.

School Readiness adds activities for children due to start school the next September. Longer group discussions explore stories and characters, while word games introduce rhyme and syllables; simple phonics comes in when children are ready. There is no expectation that children should already read or write before starting school. The emphasis is on listening, conversation and beginning to notice sounds.

Scruffy Bear, the pre-school's teddy, goes home with a different child each Thursday, accompanied by a notebook. Families can add photographs and describe his adventures before he returns the following Thursday. Sharing those experiences with other children connects home life with speaking and remembering at pre-school. It also gives a child something personal to contribute to a group discussion.

Outdoor and Community Life

Children can move between indoor play and the garden for much of the day. Outdoor play continues in most weather, with indoor movement, music or games taking its place when temperatures are too high or low. Easy-to-change shoes and wellies kept at pre-school support that routine. Outdoor time is part of the ordinary day, rather than reserved for an occasional outing.

The Tudwick Foundation has awarded a grant towards creating a dedicated reading space. That is a concrete investment in books, although it should not be read as proof that the earlier improvement priority has been completed. For parents, the useful distinction is between having somewhere to read and how adults help children use it.

Relationships and Communication

Each child has a key person and a backup key person. The main key person works with the family on the child's interests and needs, helps with settling and remains a familiar contact throughout their time at pre-school. The backup arrangement gives that relationship some continuity when the main contact is away.

Settling sessions and shorter days are adjusted to each child, with additional short visits where needed. Families can build attendance gradually as their child becomes comfortable.

Parents are encouraged to speak with their key person about concerns. The management committee also welcomes parents, grandparents and people from the wider community, with volunteering time left to the individual. Families who want a practical role in the setting can participate in its organisation as well as their own child's learning.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the November 2023 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and judged that the special educational needs coordinator worked effectively with families and other agencies to support children's progress. A SENCO role remains part of the current team structure, while safeguarding responsibilities include lead, deputy and officer roles.

The April 2020 Local Offer explains a graduated cycle of assessment, planning, action and review, involving parents, the key person and SENCO in agreeing personalised support. It also describes seeking outside advice with parental agreement. These are concrete mechanisms for discussing an individual child's needs, rather than a general promise of inclusion.

Preparing for school includes encouraging children to manage coats, shoes and toileting, with help when needed. Maths learning includes counting, sorting and recognising shapes through activities and play. The pre-school liaises with each child's destination school, so preparation combines practical independence with communication about the next setting.

Sessions and Attendance

Opening hours are 9am to 3pm from Monday to Thursday and 9am to 2.30pm on Friday. Morning sessions run from 9am to noon each weekday, lunch from noon to 1pm, and afternoons from 1pm to 3pm Monday to Thursday or 1pm to 2.30pm Friday. Families may book individual periods or combine them on a day, subject to the nursery's booking arrangements.

The pre-school normally closes for Essex school holidays, with occasional variations. Interest is registered through an enquiry form; an offered place requires a registration form and a non-refundable deposit. When the setting reaches capacity, its waiting list is reconsidered each half term.

Getting There

The address is Village Hall, Royston Road, Wendens Ambo, Saffron Walden, CB11 4JX. Audley End train station is nearby, as are the village green, playground and church.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded early education is offered over 38 weeks: qualifying children may receive up to 15 hours weekly after their second birthday or up to 30 after their third, beginning in the following January, April or September. The 30-hour offer is discretionary for qualifying families and may be withdrawn if increased uptake affects the pre-school's finances. Private hours can supplement funded attendance.

The Fair Funding and Consumables Supplement is a separate voluntary contribution covering funded and private hours, except for children who qualify for Early Years Pupil Premium. It contributes towards snacks, non-food enrichment consumables and enrichment activities. Those consumables therefore sit outside the basic hourly fee, with support requested through the voluntary supplement rather than presented as included.

Snacks are supplied by the pre-school and supported by that supplement, while families provide a packed lunch and drink for children staying at lunchtime. The pre-school has a no-nut policy; allergy-affected families should confirm current arrangements for both supplied food and food brought from home.

Invoices arrive each half term and are payable within 28 days unless another arrangement is agreed with the treasurer; fees remain payable during absence. Current prices come in the nursery's written quotation, with the charge structure explained on its fees and payment page.

Families apply for primary places through Essex County Council. Liaison with a destination school supports transition; attending this pre-school does not guarantee a primary-school place.

• Challenge and books. In November 2023, activities did not consistently extend children's existing knowledge, and staff needed to encourage greater use of books. During a visit, ask how more confident learners are stretched and how the reading-space project is being used.
• Term-time timetable. Morning and afternoon sessions can be combined, but the week finishes earlier on Friday and the pre-school normally closes for school holidays. Compare those boundaries with the care your family needs across the year.
• Funded attendance and extras. The 30-hour arrangement is discretionary, the supplement is voluntary, and the joining deposit is non-refundable. Discuss the intended attendance pattern and obtain a written quotation that separates private hours, contributions and the deposit.

Wendens Ambo suits families seeking term-time morning sessions, afternoon sessions or a combination including lunch, with garden play and practical preparation for school. Scruffy Bear and the key-person system give home and pre-school clear points of connection.

The Good judgement is supported by specific strengths in language and progress, but the November 2023 priorities around challenge and books deserve attention. The strongest fit is a family that values play, growing independence and a village setting, and can work within its term-time hours.