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Nursery at Hadfield Nursery 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 If you spot anything outdated or inaccurate, please let us know.
Bicycles, forest exploration and conversations with older neighbours give Hadfield’s nursery education a practical character. Children solve problems together and take their learning beyond the classroom. This maintained nursery school on Queen Street in Hadfield serves children aged two to five; nursery education is the school’s purpose, rather than a department within a primary school.
The school describes 84 funded places of 15 hours each. That is a provision figure, not a count of children currently attending. Its session model centres on mornings or afternoons, giving families a regular pattern of shorter nursery sessions.
Play has a clear learning purpose. The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the framework, with communication, physical development and emotional and social development addressed through activities and support. Alongside it, the Hadfield Goals identify knowledge children should develop and use. Parents receive these goals too, connecting learning at nursery with support at home.
In July 2025, children tackled a damaged patch of their bicycle route by choosing materials, making signs and collaborating on a repair. It was a practical reason to experiment and communicate. Songs and rhymes support expression and early understanding of sounds and letters; books introduce vocabulary, while retelling stories gives children opportunities to use it.
Free-flow sessions allow children to move between indoor learning and the outdoor area. An off-site forest school adds another setting for exploration, and children learn to assess risks in the forest grounds. Small quiet spaces indoors and outside provide somewhere to pause. Community experiences add a different kind of learning: visits to a residential home develop conversation with older people, while train journeys introduce public transport and the use of money.
Settling begins with opportunities to become familiar with staff and the setting. Families accepting a rising-three place can have a home visit from the key worker, followed by a family induction session. Teachers and Early Years Educators act as key workers and assess children’s progress. Parents receive progress reports during their child’s first and third terms, giving them points at which to discuss development.
Support includes Every Child a Talker for language and Every Child a Mover for physical development. Staff training covers these programmes, paediatric first aid and safeguarding. Ramp access, adjustable tables and a sensory room with fibre optics and a bubble tube provide practical adaptations. Children can start before toilet training is complete; staff work with parents on readiness and a shared approach, with families supplying nappies when needed.
SEND adaptations. The July 2025 inspection found that needs were identified effectively and external help sought appropriately, but activities did not consistently match every child’s needs. Some children consequently accessed learning less successfully than their peers. Families should discuss how activities will be adapted and how progress will be reviewed. Safeguarding arrangements were effective at that inspection.
Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Families must make a separate application through the normal Reception admissions process and meet its deadline. Treat that application as a separate decision from choosing nursery.
Transition support addresses the child’s experience of moving school. Staff agree with families what information to share with the next setting, accompany a child’s first Reception visit and arrange further supported visits where needed. For children with SEND, additional summer-term visits can involve the parent and key worker. A familiar adult helps introduce the new routine; these visits do not secure admission.
The rising-three policy offers five morning or five afternoon sessions, each lasting three hours. This route applies to children eligible for two-year-old funding from their third birthday, with a start possible during the term. Session preferences are considered where possible; admission criteria apply if a particular session is oversubscribed.
In July 2025, the school managed a before- and after-school club. Ask the office about current availability. Nursery application forms cover two-year-old and three-year-old provision. Parents can also visit to discuss nursery admissions. Contact the office on 01457 852297 or email Info@hadfield-nur.derbyshire.sch.uk to enquire or request the three-year-old application form on paper.
No. Reception requires a separate application through the normal admissions process, by its deadline.
It offers five morning or five afternoon sessions of three hours each. Preferences are considered where possible, with admission criteria used when a session is oversubscribed.
Families accepting a rising-three place have the opportunity of a home visit from the key worker and a family induction session.
Yes. Staff work with parents to assess readiness and agree a toilet-training approach. Parents supply nappies if their child needs them.
Staff share agreed information with the next setting and support the first Reception visit. Further supported visits can be arranged when needed, including additional visits for children with SEND.
