Speedwell Infant School Nursery

A Home Corner, water play and a Quiet Area give Pandas Class its mix of make-believe, exploration and quieter activity. This is Speedwell Infant School’s nursery for children aged three and four, on College Avenue in Staveley. It sits within the school’s early years provision, with a choice of morning or afternoon attendance and full days for children eligible for the 30-hour offer.

Ofsted judged the school’s early years provision Good at its inspection on 8 and 9 October 2024. That judgement covers early years within the school, rather than a separately inspected nursery.

Pandas Class has distinct spaces for different kinds of play. Construction and Blocks and Small World sit alongside a Maths Area and Mark Making Area, giving children materials for building, exploring numbers and trying out marks. Playdough and Natural Art add further ways to work with materials. Sand Play and Water Play bring another kind of exploration, while the Quiet Area provides a less busy option within the classroom.

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) is the nursery’s curriculum framework. Speedwell’s planning includes an EYFS Long Term Curriculum and Progression Overview, alongside its Communication, Language and Vocabulary Strategy. For parents, the emphasis is on developing children’s communication, language and vocabulary during early learning.

In October 2024, children in early years were occupied and happy, enjoying stories, songs and rhymes. Activities supported the intended learning, and curriculum milestones were clear in most areas. Curriculum sequencing. A few areas needed more detailed planning and clearer steps in children’s development. This matters because activities should build towards identifiable learning milestones, as well as keep children engaged.

Morning food has a named partner: Magic Breakfast. Its bagels are offered to all children in their classrooms at the start of the school morning, giving morning nursery children access to breakfast before learning activities. Contributions to the programme are voluntary.

For additional needs, the school provides a SEN Policy, School Offer and SEND Information Report, with a SENCo contact route through the school. DIASS supplies families with impartial information about education, health and social care relating to special educational provision. These give parents both a school contact and a separate advice service.

The safeguarding page includes an Early Years Intimate and Personal Care policy and a School Early Help Offer. At home, families can use the school’s links to National Literacy Trust Small Talk activities for language development and Oak National Academy’s early years lessons, extending learning beyond nursery sessions.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Parents must make a separate application through Derbyshire County Council’s School Admissions Service, following its normal deadline. The school describes November as the opening month for applications for the following September.

Keep the nursery enquiry and the Reception application separate: completing Speedwell’s Registration of Interest Form is a way to contact the school, while the council service is the route for applying for Reception.

The attendance pattern is five mornings, from 8.45am to 11.45am, or five afternoons, from 12.20pm to 3.20pm. Children using the 30-hour nursery offer can attend full days. That makes the half-day options a regular weekly pattern rather than a selection of individual sessions.

Speedwell describes a 15-hour funded entitlement for three- and four-year-olds and a 30-hour entitlement for eligible working families. Refer to the school for current charges.

Enquiries and visits can be arranged by calling 01246 472336 or using the Registration of Interest Form. The school’s uniform guidance permits clothing without its logo; branded items can be ordered through the office.