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Nursery at Milton St John's CofE Primary 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 If you spot anything outdated or inaccurate, please let us know.
Rainbow Unit gives this nursery its own base: a separate building beside Milton St John's main school in Mossley. The provision starts from age three, with morning attendance in the academic year in which children turn four. Afternoon care can extend the day. For families, that makes the morning session the starting point when planning childcare.
This is the nursery of a Church of England primary school. Its wider SHINE values include honesty, respect and including others, giving families a clear sense of the religious and social context around the early years provision.
The morning runs from 8.45am to 11.45am. Learning follows the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), which brings together talking and listening, movement, relationships, early reading, number work, creativity and exploration of the world. In parent language, learning to explain an idea or manage a feeling belongs alongside counting and looking at books.
Making is a concrete part of that curriculum. Nursery children choose materials for their ideas, investigate textures and practise joining things together. Activities combine children's own choices with adult guidance. That gives a child room to decide what to make while receiving help with the skills needed to do it. Development Matters guidance is used to track nursery learning.
Music also belongs to everyday early years routines, both outside and indoors. Singing, dancing and experimenting with sounds sit alongside art and role play as ways for children to express themselves. Early years computing includes learning about internet safety and exploring how technology relates to everyday life.
Outdoor space sits within the wider school grounds, which include playground equipment, a playing field and a Forest School area on that field. These are school facilities rather than a description of Rainbow Unit's own outdoor layout. The practical emphasis extends to independence: at the January 2023 inspection, early years children were learning to manage tasks such as getting their coats and shoes on themselves. Small skills matter here.
Older pupils supported early years children as buddies in January 2023, adding contact with children beyond their own age group. For parents, everyday communication has several routes within the school's arrangements: conversations with teaching staff, telephone contact, newsletters and termly parent evenings. Families with concerns are directed first to their child's teacher, with the SEND coordinator also available.
Support can include visual schedules, vocabulary preparation and strategies developed with professionals such as speech therapists. The school's SEND arrangements also allow individual collection and drop-off plans for children who need them. This makes practical care arrangements part of the discussion about a child's needs.
Mellors Catering Services Ltd provides the school's meals. Payments are made in advance through Arbor; families should refer to the school for current charges. This is the school's catering arrangement, so it should be considered alongside the nursery's afternoon care booking.
Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place at Milton St John's. Families must make a separate Reception application through the normal admissions route. The school's admissions page directs parents to Tameside Council for that application. Keep the nursery booking and the Reception application as two separate decisions: attending Rainbow Unit does not remove the need to apply again.
Afternoon nursery wraparound runs from 11.45am to 3.05pm and is offered to all nursery children. Contact the school office to arrange it or to enquire about a nursery place: 01457 832572 or admin@milton-st-johns.tameside.sch.uk. The school is on Mill Lane, Mossley, OL5 0BN.
The admissions information describes free part-time nursery education for three- and four-year-olds, with entitlement for three-year-olds beginning in the term following their third birthday. The school's own nursery model is morning attendance with optional afternoon care.
School uniform allows unbranded clothing in the required colours. A red polo shirt, blue cardigan or jumper and grey trousers or skirt form the main outfit; an embroidered logo is optional. Early years children are handed directly to parents or carers at the relevant exits at collection, providing a defined handover rather than independent departure.
The nursery takes children from age three. Its usual morning entry is during the academic year in which a child turns four.
Morning nursery runs from 8.45am to 11.45am. Optional afternoon wraparound continues from 11.45am to 3.05pm.
No. Reception requires a separate application, with the school's admissions page directing families to Tameside Council.
The EYFS covers communication, physical and social development, literacy, mathematics, understanding the world and creative expression. Nursery activities include choosing and joining materials, exploring textures and making music.
Contact the school office on 01457 832572 or email admin@milton-st-johns.tameside.sch.uk. The office also handles enquiries about afternoon nursery care.
