- schools, according to Little Wandle
- 5,500+
- a year for a one-form-entry UK school
- £750
- year the DfE validated the programme
- 2021
- matched Big Cat decodable books from Collins
- 300+
About Little Wandle
Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised is a systematic synthetic phonics programme for primary schools in England and abroad. The Department for Education added it to its list of validated phonics programmes on 10 July 2021. Wandle Learning Trust, a London multi-academy trust, runs it with Little Sutton Primary School, and the site says more than 5,500 schools use it. A UK school pays £750 to £2,000 a year depending on its number of forms of entry, and schools buy the matched books from Collins. Parents get free videos and sound guides on the For parents page, without an account.
Little Wandle teaches children to read with phonics. Children in Reception and Year 1 learn the sounds of Phases 2 to 5 in short daily lessons. One lesson in every five is for review. Children then read decodable books matched to the sounds they know, and each book is read three times: to decode, to read with expression and to understand.
Chesterton Primary School in Battersea, part of Wandle Learning Trust, and Little Sutton Primary School in Sutton Coldfield started the work during the Covid lockdown in 2020. Headteachers Mark Siswick and Rachel Davis received MBEs in the 2020 Honours for putting phonics teaching online. The Department for Education funded their update of the original Letters and Sounds, and in July 2021 validated the programme.
Schools buy an annual membership. It covers lesson planning, training videos, the online Assessment tracker and add-on programmes for nursery, catch-up, SEND, spelling and fluency. Collins publishes the matched books and classroom resources.
History
- 2011 The company that is now Wandle Learning Trust is registered on 2 June as Chestnut Grove School.
- 2017 The company takes the name Wandle Learning Trust on 25 October.
- 2020 Mark Siswick and Rachel Davis take phonics teaching online during Covid. Both receive an MBE for services to education.
- 2021 Wandle Learning Trust and Little Sutton Primary School co-found Little Wandle in June. The DfE validates the programme on 10 July.
- 2022 The SEND programme and Rapid Catch-up for Year 2 and above join the membership at no extra cost.
- 2023 Little Wandle Foundations for nursery, Fluency and Year 2 Spelling join the membership at no extra cost.
- 2024 Little Wandle wins an ERA Award and a Teach Primary Award and is a Bett Awards finalist.
- 2026 Little Wandle Code, a Key Stage 3 phonics intervention built with FFT and Collins, is on sale after a three-year pilot in more than 60 secondary schools.
Leadership
- RDM Rachel Davis MBE Co-founder, Headteacher of Little Sutton Primary School
- MSM Mark Siswick MBE Co-founder, Co-CEO of Wandle Learning Trust
- SM Sian Mathias Chair of Trustees, Wandle Learning Trust
Roles from the Little Wandle founders page and the trust’s accounts for the year to 31 August 2025. The trust has two Co-CEOs. A Little Wandle Committee of the trust board leads the programme’s strategy.
How Little Wandle teaches reading
- lessons kept for review, one week a half-term
- 1 in 5
- training modules, about 5 hours
- 6
- weeks in each assessment block
- 5
- Daily phonics lessons in Reception and Year 1
- Phases 2 to 5
- Decodable books matched to the progression
- Three reads of each book
- Daily Keep-up
- Mnemonics and letter formation phrases
- Placement assessments
- Rapid Catch-up for Year 2 to Year 6
- SEND graduated approach
- Reading for Pleasure
Little Wandle measures impact through member surveys, focus groups and Ofsted reports on member schools. Its own survey of 139 members who joined between May and July 2022 found that over 96% believed the programme had a significant impact on consistency of practice across their school.
Programmes by stage
Nursery3
- Foundations for Phonics
- Foundations for Language
- Foundations for a Love of Reading
Reception and Year 13
- Core phonics programme, Phases 2 to 5
- Reading practice sessions with decodable books
- Daily Keep-up
Year 2 and above3
- Year 2 Spelling
- Fluency, 40 books from 60 to 120 words a minute
- Rapid Catch-up, Year 2 to Year 6
Special needs2
- SEND programme with the graduated approach
- Guidance for deaf, autistic, non-verbal and vision-impaired children
Secondary1
- Little Wandle Code, Key Stage 3 phonics intervention
From littlewandle.org.uk and littlewandlecode.org.uk, checked on 15 October 2026.
Video, blogs and resources
- For parentsSound videos, sound guides, tricky words and nursery rhymes↗
- Programme overviewWhat children learn in Reception and Year 1 and when↗
- Little Wandle at HomeCollins flashcards and games for families↗
- Reaching every childFree SEND guidance made with RNIB, nasen, NDCS and others↗
- Validated SSP programmesThe DfE list of 45 validated phonics programmes↗
- Free information briefingHour-long online sessions for headteachers and phonics leads↗
Products
- Letters and Sounds Revised Weekly plans for every phonics lesson in Reception and Year 1, with sentences and images for each activity, ‘How to’ videos, grapheme mats and letter formation sheets. What’s included
- Assessment tracker Teachers enter pupil assessments after each five-week teaching block. The tracker builds a class heatmap, shows pupil trends and suggests a book level for each child. Assessment tracker
- Rapid Catch-up and SEND Rapid Catch-up repeats the core content at a faster pace for children in Year 2 to Year 6. The SEND programme splits teaching into one plan per sound for children with complex needs. Rapid Catch-up
- For parents A free page with videos of how each sound is said, sound guides for every term, tricky word sheets, nursery rhyme films and advice on the two books that come home. For parents
- Whole-school CPD Six on-demand training modules of about five hours in total, plus live webinars for Reading Leaders, monthly CPD and a SEND Forum. All training is in the membership price. Whole school CPD
- Little Wandle Code A phonics intervention and assessment programme for struggling readers in Key Stage 3, made with FFT and Collins. It costs £1,495 a year or £4,485 for three years. Pricing and FAQs
How much is Little Wandle?
- Lowest Small, Junior, SEND or Nursery school £300/yr £300 a year, PAN of 15 or less, Junior and SEND schools, by email
- 1 form entry £750/yr £750 a year, UK school
- 2 form entry £995/yr £995 a year, UK school
- 3 form entry £1,250/yr £1,250 a year, UK school
- 4 to 6 form entry £1,500/yr £1,500 to £2,000 a year, UK school, £250 per extra form
- International school Quote by school size, paid by invoice
- ITT provider £20/yr from £300 a year, per trainee, minimum 15; £60 for 3 years
- Little Wandle Code £1,495/yr £1,495 a year, £4,485 for 3 years
Is Little Wandle free?
Free: the For parents page, the Reaching every child SEND guidance and an hour-long information briefing for schools. Schools that use the Big Cat for Little Wandle Fluency books without membership get a free Fluency account with 100 log-ins.
Prices from the Little Wandle pricing page and UK school checkout, in pounds sterling, for a 12-month membership, checked on 15 October 2026. The pages do not say whether VAT is added. Schools also buy the matched books and resources from Collins. The checkout lists hospital schools at £0.
How renewal and cancellation work
Terms- Email or phone ↗
- Email cancel@littlewandlelettersandsounds.org.uk or call 020 4568 6718, option 2
- Give the school’s name, address, order details and a contact
- Do this before the renewal date to stop the next 12 months
- Membership lasts 12 months and renews by itself on the anniversary of the start date.
- Little Wandle sends a reminder before renewal with the new fee and how to cancel.
- The renewal invoice comes within a week of the renewal date. Access is restricted if it is not paid within 30 days.
- Fee rises apply only on renewal.
Refund rules
- Cancelling mid-term
- A school can cancel at any time but pays the fee for the whole 12 months, with no refund.
- Late payment
- Interest of 4% a year above the Bank of England base rate.
- Disputes
- Law of England and Wales, with the courts of England and Wales.
From the Wandle Learning Trust terms and conditions of membership, updated October 2023, checked on 15 October 2026.
Little Wandle for schools
Select membership- 01A UK school picks its size at checkout, and Little Wandle checks it during onboarding.
- 02The account goes live after the school attends a Welcome Zoom and sends a Purchase Order number.
- 03A Super User, usually the Reading Leader, invites the reading team to create accounts.
- 04State-funded schools in England can apply to their English Hub for up to £3,000 matched funding, up to £6,000, or up to £9,000 in education investment areas.
- 05A multi-academy trust offer with a data dashboard is in development.
UK schools pay £750 to £2,000 a year by forms of entry, checked on 15 October 2026.
Is Little Wandle worth it?
What schools like
- A phonics lead says the Assessment tracker helps find gaps and track progress.Gemma, Learners Trust, on littlewandle.org.uk
- A phonics champion uses the half-termly organisers to focus staff on priorities.Amanda Orrey, Gonerby Hill Foot C of E Primary, on littlewandle.org.uk
- Training, catch-up, SEND, spelling and fluency programmes come in one membership fee.Little Wandle pricing page
- English Hubs can fund the membership and books for state-funded schools in England.Little Wandle funding page
What schools criticise
- Schools must also buy the Collins books and resources to run the programme.Little Wandle FAQs
- There are no refunds when a school cancels before the end of the 12 months.Terms and conditions
- Access starts only after a Welcome Zoom and a Purchase Order number.UK school membership page
- Little Wandle does not run one-to-one briefings, and briefings are not recorded.Little Wandle FAQs
What schools write, not our rating. Little Wandle has no Trustpilot page. The quotes in favour are testimonials Little Wandle publishes on its own site, and the points against come from its FAQs and terms.
Contacts and company data
- Enquiriesenquiries@littlewandle.org.uk
- Outside the UKinternational@littlewandle.org.uk
- Assessment trackerassessments@littlewandle.org.uk
- CPDCPD@littlewandle.org.uk
- Phone020 4548 4260, weekdays 8.30am to 5pm
- Collins resourcesFind a rep
- Legal entity
- Wandle Learning Trust, Chesterton Primary School, Dagnall Street, London, SW11 5DT, England
- Company number
- 07655651, England and Wales
- Type
- Charitable company limited by guarantee, exempt charity
- Registered
- 2 June 2011, as Chestnut Grove School
- Former names
- Chestnut Grove Academy, 2012 to October 2017
- Schools
- 8 academies in Wandsworth, Croydon and Richmond, August 2025
- Auditor
- Price Bailey LLP, Bishop’s Stortford
Alternatives to Little Wandle
-
Twinkl🇬🇧 United Kingdom Teaching resources from Sheffield with its own phonics programme, Twinkl Phonics, also on the DfE validated list. → -
EdShed (Spelling Shed)🇬🇧 United Kingdom Phonics Shed, Spelling Shed and Literacy Shed Plus for primary schools, from Bewdley. Phonics Shed is on the DfE validated list. → -
Teach Your Monster🇬🇧 United Kingdom Phonics games for ages 3 to 6 from London, free on computers, which families can use at home. → -
Nessy🇬🇧 United Kingdom Reading and spelling programmes from Bristol built for children with dyslexia, sold to families and schools. → -
Lalilo🇫🇷 France A reading and phonics app for primary schools, from Paris. →
How we built this profile
- Sources. Facts come from the company’s own website, press room, imprint and careers page, from Wikipedia, the App Store, Google Play and Trustpilot. Every source is listed on the page.
- Checks. Kinescope checked every number on 15 October 2026. Prices, ratings and job counts change, and we refresh them with each update.
- Our words. Descriptions are written by the Kinescope team. Quotes from reviews are marked with the author and source, and we do not rate the company ourselves.
- Corrections. The company can send new facts or corrections, and we update the profile.
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Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised is a systematic synthetic phonics programme that teaches children in Reception and Year 1 to read. It covers Phases 2 to 5, with daily lessons and decodable books from Collins matched to each step. Wandle Learning Trust runs it with Little Sutton Primary School, and the site says more than 5,500 schools use it.
Yes. The Department for Education validated Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised on 10 July 2021. It is one of 45 programmes on the GOV.UK list of validated systematic synthetic phonics programmes.
A UK school pays by size: £750 a year for one form of entry, £995 for two, £1,250 for three and up to £2,000 for six. Small schools with a PAN of 15 or less, Junior and SEND schools pay £300. International schools get a quote. The books and classroom resources from Collins cost extra. Prices checked on 15 October 2026.
School staff log in at littlewandle.org.uk/member-login with the username or email their Super User set up, then open My Letters and Sounds. The Assessment tracker has its own login at analysis.littlewandlelettersandsounds.org.uk. Parents do not need an account. Some schools give parents a Collins ebook log-in at ebooks.collinsopenpage.com.
The free For parents page has videos of how each sound is said, sound guides for Reception and Year 1, capital letter and tricky word sheets and 20 nursery rhymes. It also explains the two books children bring home: a reading practice book they can read alone and a sharing book to read together.
State-funded schools in England can apply to their local English Hub. The funding can pay for the annual membership and the matched books. Little Wandle lists amounts of up to £3,000 matched funding, up to £6,000, or up to £9,000 in education investment areas.
Wandle Learning Trust, a charitable multi-academy trust registered in London as company 07655651, runs Little Wandle. Its co-founders are Rachel Davis MBE of Little Sutton Primary School and Mark Siswick MBE, Co-CEO of the trust.
Membership renews every 12 months by itself. To stop it, email cancel@littlewandlelettersandsounds.org.uk or call 020 4568 6718, option 2, before the renewal date. A school that cancels during the year still pays for the full 12 months.
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