St Vincent's Voluntary Catholic Academy Nursery

Paper puppets, fruit salad and bird feeders give St Vincent's nursery an early years programme with practical things to make and explore. This is the nursery within a Catholic primary academy on Queens Road in Hull, part of St Cuthbert's Roman Catholic Academy Trust. The school describes its nursery as focused on children's development as a whole, with kindness and love for others shaping its ethos.

A nursery teacher sits within a team that also includes an EYFS lead and a SEND coordinator. For parents, the provision's character is a combination of practical early learning and the wider school's Catholic life.

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) is the nursery's curriculum framework. Here, making and exploring provide concrete ways into learning: the early years design and technology programme moves from paper puppets to preparing fruit salad and constructing bird feeders. Children have something tangible to work on, rather than learning only through explanation.

Art brings experimentation with colour and texture. Early years children mix colours, choose resources and combine materials to produce different effects. Selecting tools for assembling and joining materials makes creative work an exercise in making decisions, too.

Computing starts with everyday problem solving. Nursery themes include Awesome Autumn, Springtime and Summer Fun, while the early years approach introduces computational thinking through planned experiences. The emphasis is on developing ways to solve problems before the later computing curriculum.

Books have a physical place in the learning environment: each classroom has a reading area where children can choose texts. Catholic life also has a classroom focus through Sacred Spaces, alongside daily prayer. These features give children places for independent book choice and exploration of faith.

In June 2022, Ofsted found early years children attentive and considerate across adult-led learning, free-flow activity and family group time. That finding concerns the early years experience within the school, rather than a separate nursery rating.

Support begins with baseline assessments when children enter FS1. If parents have concerns about learning or progress, the first conversation is with the class teacher, who can involve the SEND coordinator. Additional assessment can draw on the Speech and Language Therapy Service, Northcott Outreach or an Educational Psychologist. This gives families a route from an initial concern to more specialist involvement.

Safeguarding concerns can be raised with the school's safeguarding team, with a written concern form following an initial verbal conversation. Operation Encompass links police and education to support children affected by domestic abuse. These are school arrangements that extend around the nursery provision.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place and gives no priority in the September 2027 admissions criteria. Families must make a separate application through their home local authority using its Common Application Form. The deadline for that intake is 15 January 2027.

A Supplementary Information Form is also requested for specified admissions categories, including faith, siblings and children of staff, with the same deadline. Treat the nursery choice and the Reception application as two separate decisions.

Breakfast Club includes FS1 children. Its 8:15am to 8:45am slot is free of charge, and staff take children to classrooms afterwards. Book through ParentPay by noon the preceding day.

After School Club runs during term time from 3:30pm to 6pm and is open to children attending the academy. Registration requires an agreement plus booking and collection forms; sessions are booked through ParentPay by noon the day before. Availability is limited by staffing ratios, so securing the required days matters for families relying on this care.

For nursery enquiries, contact the office on 01482 342645 or admin@stvhull.org. School visits can be arranged through the office.