Saint Mary's Catholic Voluntary Academy Nursery Review

Climbing bars, familiar rhymes and space to explore give Saint Mary's nursery its early years character. This is the school's own nursery on Wellington Street in Grimsby, within a Catholic academy that offers Catholic education to families who choose it. The school aims to help children develop confidence alongside their spiritual life.

Ofsted judged the school's early years provision Good in its March 2024 inspection, with additional evidence gathered in April 2024. That judgement covers early years within the school, rather than a separately graded nursery. The concrete strengths included children's concentration, persistence in physical challenges and learning to play together.

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) brings together learning to communicate, managing feelings and developing physical skills with early literacy, mathematics, creativity and understanding the world. Here, vocabulary and manageable learning steps give that learning a clear direction. In March 2024, children remembered rhymes and understood everyday health habits, including tooth cleaning and why dental visits matter. Learning connects with things children can recognise in their own lives.

Outdoor activity has a practical purpose. Children used the outdoor learning space independently and kept trying to cross the climbing bars. Repeating a physical challenge gave them a visible reason to practise: getting better at something they wanted to do.

Nursery shares outdoor space and a wet area with Reception, with both classes able to use the areas during free flow. Joint themed days also bring the classes together for celebrations and topic activities. These arrangements give nursery children opportunities to explore beyond their own classroom while becoming familiar with the neighbouring class.

Getting along with other children is part of the learning. In March 2024, early years children sustained their attention and developed their relationships with one another, alongside the physical and language work.

For additional needs, the school uses the Graduated Approach: teachers assess difficulties, plan support and review its effect with families. Parents participate throughout the process. The Child Development Centre can advise on early intervention in early years, while the Speech and Language Therapy Team supports children with identified speech and language difficulties. The SEND coordinator can be contacted through the office.

Additional needs. In March 2024, SEND support across the school needed further development for some pupils. This was a school-wide concern, so families should weigh the planned support for their child carefully. The other school-wide improvement concerned giving pupils enough opportunities to revisit earlier learning.

The kitchen team provides meals for children across the school. Families should distinguish those school meal arrangements from the nursery's morning and afternoon session timetable when planning their child's day.

A nursery place does not guarantee admission to Saint Mary's Reception. Families must make a separate school-place application through North East Lincolnshire Council and meet the deadline for their entry year.

Shared spaces and joint themed days provide familiarity with Reception. They are transition opportunities, separate from the application and allocation of a school place.

Morning nursery doors open at 08:45 and close at 09:00; the session finishes at 11:45. The afternoon runs from 12:10 to 15:10. These separate sessions give families distinct collection times to plan around.

The academy handles nursery applications, using a nursery application form accompanied by a copy of the child's birth certificate. For enquiries, contact the office on 01472 357982 or office@smp.nelcmail.co.uk. Tell the school if someone different will collect your child, and keep contact details up to date.