Nursery at Forest School
Last reviewed: October 2026 · Inspection data and key information above update regularly, however, this review below is refreshed bi-annually and may not reflect recent changes. Contact the nursery directly to confirm current arrangements. If you spot anything outdated or inaccurate, please let us know.
A separate nursery building within the school grounds gives Forest’s youngest children a space of their own while keeping them part of school life. Based on Moss Lane in Timperley, this independent school’s Nursery takes children who are two by 31 August and turn three during the academic year. The September cohort starts together, giving the group a shared beginning.
The building was refurbished when the nursery moved there in September 2022. Provision runs for 48 weeks annually, with separate holiday bookings alongside the term-time sessions. That distinction matters for working families: the nursery calendar extends beyond the school terms.
Specialist teaching gives the mornings a recognisable shape. French starts in Nursery through songs, rhymes and repeated listening; weekly music lessons bring singing and opportunities to explore sounds. Early-years PE includes dance, gymnastics and games focused on physical development. Spanish and Dance are also offered as after-school activities for Nursery and Kindergarten.
The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) combines early learning with children’s communication, movement and personal development. Here, number work can involve matching dinosaurs with numbers, while cutting, sticking and tracing practise the hand control needed for later writing. During the ISI visit of 2 to 4 December 2025, early-years teaching supported language development through responsive adult conversation, alongside established work on reading and making marks. These are findings across the early years, rather than a separate nursery judgement.
Outdoor learning adds another setting for activity. The Outdoor Learning Classroom supports practical exploration, and the nursery’s outdoor provision includes pygmy goats. Early-years children practise balance and coordination outdoors, connecting physical skills with play. Indoors, the nursery has its own building rather than sharing its base with older classes.
One school-wide improvement recommendation from December 2025 concerned more precise feedback about how pupils could develop their work. It should be read alongside the specific early-years findings, rather than treated as a nursery-only criticism.
Before joining, nursery children spend a session in the setting. This introduces the place before their regular attendance begins. The team includes a Nursery Manager with a degree in education and Early Years Teacher Status, whose responsibilities also cover early-years safeguarding and emotional literacy support.
In December 2025, warm adult relationships and predictable routines helped early-years children feel secure and build confidence. Staff coordinated feeding, sleep and toileting care, and checked risks in indoor and outdoor areas daily. These practical routines matter as much as the teaching for a two-year-old settling into a longer day.
Meals are cooked on site. The catering team accommodates allergies and individual dietary requirements, so families can discuss what their child needs. Parents can also raise concerns through the school’s open-door approach. For additional learning needs, the school uses Assess, Plan, Do, Review and shares Individual Learning Plans with parents. Its admissions policy qualifies SEND provision by the resources available and possible reasonable adjustments; outside specialist intervention may carry an additional charge.
Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Forest’s independent-school process involves an internal offer and acceptance: during Kindergarten’s autumn term, families must confirm their child’s place for the following September. Written confirmation follows acceptance. If parents do not accept by the end of that term, the place passes to the waiting list.
This is a separate decision families must complete through Forest, rather than assume attendance settles it. Families leaving instead must still give a full term’s notice, whether or not they accepted the Reception offer.
Term-time choices are a morning from 8:40am to 11:40am or a full day ending at 3:10pm. Eligible funded hours are limited to afternoons within full-day bookings, for up to three hours daily and 15 hours weekly during term time. Morning-only sessions do not attract that funding.
Lunchtime care and daily consumables are optional charged extras for funded provision, and parents may supply their own instead. Declining lunchtime care means collecting at 11:40am and returning at 12:10pm. For full-day children not claiming funding, those extras are included. Ask Forest for current charges.
Holiday half-days run from 7:30am to noon and full days until 5pm, booked through Magic Booking. Breakfast Club and Late Stay extend term-time care, although Late Stay closes on the final day of each full term. Tru Uniform supplies the nursery uniform. Enquiries go to enquiries@forestschool.co.uk or 0161 980 4075; the personalised-tour form lets families arrange a visit.
Children join the Nursery cohort if they are two on 31 August and turn three during that academic year.
No. Eligible funding applies to afternoon hours within full-day sessions, up to three hours per day and 15 hours per week during term time.
No. Families must confirm acceptance during Kindergarten’s autumn term. Forest then provides written confirmation; unaccepted places are released to the waiting list at the end of the term.
Yes. Provision operates for 48 weeks annually, with holiday half-days and full days booked through Magic Booking. Families should use the nursery calendar to plan around closures.
Before admission, children spend a session in the nursery. Families can also arrange a personalised tour through the school’s booking form.
