Levens CofE School Nursery

Glue, paper clips and tape give nursery children at Levens practical ways to turn an idea into something they can make. This is a school nursery with a clear emphasis on exploring materials, developing language and learning through activity.

Children can begin in the term following their third birthday. The provision belongs to Levens CofE School on Church Road in Levens, within a Church of England school whose Christian values shape school life. For families, that religious character is part of the setting they are choosing.

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) connects learning with children’s developing physical skills, expression and understanding of their surroundings. Here, those connections are concrete. Nursery design activities involve fastening materials together in different ways, while early-years children make mouldable materials each week, practise handling utensils and follow instructions. Making something becomes an opportunity to develop independence as well as an idea.

Mathematics follows Development Matters within the EYFS. Nursery learning runs across alternating A and B cycles because some children attend for two years: the learning goals remain consistent, while the content changes. That gives a longer nursery stay variety rather than a repeated programme.

Creative activity includes using brushes, scissors and pencils, experimenting with marks made by hands or cotton buds, and mixing colours. Outdoors, children observe plants and animals, draw what they notice and pursue their interests. The physical environment matters here: in January 2023, Ofsted described an appealing outdoor learning area with plentiful resources, where early-years children cooperated in their play and learning.

Sound awareness begins in Nursery. Early-years music adds rhymes, body percussion and instruments, linking listening with expression. Religious learning includes festivals such as Harvest, Holi and Christmas, giving children opportunities to consider other people’s lives alongside the school’s Christian character.

There is a qualification to the curriculum picture. In January 2023, some school subjects still needed their curriculum revisions completed, and learning in those areas was less developed; this was a school-wide improvement point rather than a separate nursery judgement.

Settling starts with contact between home and school. Staff work with incoming nursery families during the summer term, make home visits and encourage children to visit before starting. Additional familiarisation visits are encouraged for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), allowing preparation to reflect individual needs.

Communication includes Tapestry for nursery families, alongside parent meetings and access to the class teacher for concerns. All class teachers hold teaching qualifications and work with teaching assistants and the SEND lead. For children on the SEND register, a special educational provision log records their needs, support and progress across terms, giving families and staff a shared basis for reviewing help.

In January 2023, additional needs were identified promptly, including in early years, and classroom work was adapted with effective support. This helped children with SEND participate in the curriculum alongside their peers.

Lunch can be a hot meal prepared in the school’s own kitchen and eaten in its dining room with staff assistance. Nursery meals are charged, and families can arrange meal days flexibly across the week. Dietary requirements can be accommodated through discussion with the office. Contact the school for current meal charges.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place or confer priority under the listed admission criteria. Families must make a separate Reception application through Westmorland and Furness Council’s normal admissions process and meet the applicable deadline. Familiarity with the school does not replace that application.

Transition support is a separate matter. For September 2026 starters, a June stay-and-play event offered children time to explore their future classroom and meet the teacher. For children with SEND moving between classes, information and individual plans are shared with the receiving teacher, and children meet that teacher before the school year ends.

The office handles enquiries and visit arrangements at office@levens.cumbria.sch.uk or 015395 60694. Telephone during its weekday opening hours, 8.30am to 4pm; email provides another contact route.

Use the school’s own calendar when planning family holidays. Its term dates can differ from the council’s proposed dates, so those calendars should not be treated as interchangeable.