Lilycroft Nursery School: play, language and outdoor learning

Outdoor learning gives Lilycroft its character. Its beginnings as Lilycroft Open Air Nursery School in 1921 still shape a curriculum that treats exploration outside as part of learning, rather than an optional extra. For a child who learns through movement and discovery, that is a useful distinction.

The provision serves children aged two to five on Lilycroft Road in Bradford, behind Lilycroft Primary School. Proximity to the primary school should not be mistaken for an admissions link.

Play has a clear educational purpose here. The Early Years Foundation Stage curriculum uses Birth to Five Matters as guidance, combining activities children choose with experiences supported by adults. Language, movement and learning to manage feelings sit alongside early reading, maths, creative work and discovering how the world works. Staff observe children's interests and development to decide what comes next.

Communication runs through practical activity. Experiences supported by Early Years Pupil Premium are planned around specific skills and vocabulary. Photos, videos, drawings and audio help children revisit these experiences with their families. That gives them something concrete to discuss and remember.

Outside, the curriculum makes room for active exploration and encounters with changing seasons and weather. Indoors and outdoors are both learning spaces. The balance matters: children can investigate physically as well as listen, talk and create.

Families are involved from the start. Staff ask parents about their child, their interests and how they learn, giving families a part in shaping support at nursery and at home. Learning Together Workshops demonstrate play, language activities, creativity and practical maths, offering parents ideas to try together.

The curriculum recognises bilingualism as an asset, giving home languages a positive place in children's education. Observations of each child's needs and interests inform planning, so the starting point is the individual child.

Food arrangements depend on the session. Paid full days include morning and afternoon snacks, with parents supplying a packed lunch; paid mornings include breakfast and a snack, while paid afternoons include a snack and tea. Children also help prepare snack food, making care routines another opportunity to participate.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Families must make a separate Reception application through the normal admissions process and meet its deadline. Treat choosing Lilycroft for the nursery years and applying for a primary school place as separate decisions, including if considering the neighbouring primary school.

The nursery offer gives funded mornings from 8:45am to 11:45am and afternoons from 12:30pm to 3:30pm. The published funded offer covers all three-year-olds from the term after their third birthday and eligible two-year-olds. Its 15 hours run over 38 term-time weeks, arranged as weekday mornings, weekday afternoons or a split of two and a half days. Ask the school to confirm current eligibility and arrangements. Paid sessions cover a full day from 7:45am to 4:30pm, a morning ending at 12:45pm, or an afternoon starting at 12:30pm. Combinations depend on space.

Paid additions to a funded place are restricted to term time and must represent less than half of the child's total provision. Lunch additions depend on places being available. Holiday care for children attending all year takes place at St Edmund's Nursery School, so families using it need to plan for a different location. Refer to the school for current charges.

To join the waiting list or arrange a look around, telephone 01274 545647; families can also visit to complete a form. There is no designated parent parking, making collection arrangements worth planning before the first session.