West View Primary School Nursery Review

At the March 2023 inspection, nursery children took welly walks accompanied by older pupils, connecting their activities with the wider school. The nursery belongs to West View Primary School on Davison Drive in Hartlepool, alongside a separate Pre-Nursery provision for two-year-olds. Nursery entry begins in the term after a child’s third birthday.

Ofsted graded the school’s early years provision Good at its inspection on 8 and 9 March 2023. That judgement covers early years within the school; it is not a separate nursery rating.

Books have a regular place in the nursery day. Children can use the reading corner during daily discovery time, with changing books to explore. They learn how to handle books and begin understanding what stories mean. This gives reading a starting point in enjoyment and familiarity, rather than simply recognising words.

Early years reading uses Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised, with Collins Big Cat Phonics books matched to the sounds children learn. A first independent reading book is introduced when a child is ready. The distinction matters: exploring books and beginning independent reading are different steps.

Practical exploration extends beyond stories. Early years science uses projects about the surrounding world, while computing resources include Beebot and Code-a-pillar. Nursery children also took welly walks accompanied by older pupils in March 2023, bringing contact with other age groups into their activities.

The March 2023 early years findings described children trying ideas out and developing independence and persistence, supported by adults who used questions skilfully. There was a curriculum concern too: the knowledge children should acquire was insufficiently precise in some areas, making it harder to link learning together. For parents, the useful question is how an exploratory activity builds towards a clear next step.

Language support has a concrete structure. Early Talk Boost is for selected children aged 3 to 4 who need help speaking or understanding words. Over nine weeks, a trained adult leads groups of up to six children through three sessions a week, each lasting between 15 and 20 minutes. It provides focused practice alongside other learning.

Families can discuss communication concerns with the SENCO or the Speech, Language and Communication Lead. Across the school, SEND support follows a repeating cycle of assessing needs, planning help, putting it into practice and reviewing it. Parents contribute to decisions about adjustments and interventions, so their knowledge of their child forms part of the support.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Families must make a separate application through the Hartlepool Borough Council Admissions Team, following the normal admissions route and its deadline.

For the 2027/28 admissions round, nursery attendance confers no Reception priority. A younger sibling attending an attached nursery also does not qualify a child for sibling priority: that criterion applies to siblings of compulsory school age. Familiarity with West View therefore needs to be kept separate from securing a school place.

Morning nursery sessions run from 8.30am to 11.30am; afternoon sessions run from 12.15pm to 3.15pm. These are useful collection and childcare planning points for families.

West View offers 30 hours of free nursery entitlement for three-year-olds. Nursery enquiries go directly to the school. Contact the office on 01429 267466 or email office@westview.adastraschools.org to begin an enquiry.