Little King's Nursery at The King's School, Gloucester

Specialist music, Dance and Movement lessons give Little King's pre-school day a distinctive shape. Children join from age 3, within the junior school at The King's School, Gloucester, with a nursery class forming part of the school's early years provision. In October 2025, early years children had dedicated indoor spaces and outdoor areas within the school grounds. That gave the youngest children a defined base within the larger school.

Children's interests help shape the learning. In October 2025, early years staff planned activities around what interested the children while covering the different areas of learning. The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) brings together communication, physical and social development with early reading, writing and number skills. Here, children made good progress across those areas, supported by teaching, assessment and planning that worked effectively.

Indoor and outdoor learning both contribute to the day. Staff used these spaces to develop children's movement, conversation and social skills. Ball games and play in which children choose activities helped build balance and coordination. Choice has a practical purpose: children practise physical skills while taking an active part in their learning.

Music lessons involve a junior school specialist, alongside specialist Dance and Movement teaching. Structured activities and excursions also form part of pre-school provision, giving children experiences beyond their everyday play. Social learning starts early too. Staff introduce equality and diversity in ways suited to children's ages, and help them think about how their behaviour affects others.

In October 2025, early years staffing ratios remained appropriate throughout the day. Indoor and outdoor facilities received daily checks, and staff providing first aid or medication had relevant training, including paediatric first aid for early years. Records covered treatment given to the youngest children. These are concrete arrangements supporting everyday care.

In October 2025, staff applied the rules governing cameras and mobile phones in early years. Early years leaders also held regular meetings with staff to support their practice and development. For families, these findings add detail about how day-to-day procedures and staff support operated.

Safer recruitment. On 7 to 9 October 2025, some teaching prohibition checks had not been completed before staff began work with pupils, so the school's safeguarding and leadership standards were not met. The omitted checks were corrected during that inspection, but families should weigh the recruitment failure alongside the positive early years findings.

Before joining, children are invited to a short taster or observation session to assess their readiness for the pre-school environment. This gives staff an opportunity to see how a child participates before confirming a place.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Treat Reception as a separate admissions decision: its entry process involves registration through the school's Admissions Portal, a taster or observation session and confirmation through an acceptance form. Families should ask the Admissions Team what steps existing nursery children must complete for Reception entry.

Morning sessions run from 8.30am to 12.30pm; full days finish at 3.15pm after the same start. Aftercare is timetabled from 3.15pm to 6.00pm. Since September 2026, children have been encouraged to attend at least eight sessions each week. A session means half a day, and afternoon-only attendance is not permitted.

Little King's accepts 15 government-funded hours for children aged 3 to 5, but does not accept the additional 15 hours. For children attending solely for their funded hours, the patterns are three mornings from 8am to 1pm or two days from 8am to 3.30pm. Those times differ from the ordinary sessions, which matters when planning collection.

Pre-school charges are invoiced every six weeks and payable on receipt; contact the school for current charges. Little King's follows school term dates. Enquiries and individual tours can be arranged through the Admissions Team at admissions@thekingsschool.co.uk or on 01452 337 337.