St Thomas More Catholic Primary School, Kidlington: Nursery Review

Stories, conversation and learning to play together give this nursery its character. St Thomas More Catholic Primary School in Kidlington provides nursery education for two- and three-year-olds, within a Catholic primary school on Oxford Road. Its early years provision received an Outstanding judgement at the Ofsted inspection on 15 and 16 July 2025. That judgement covers early years within the school, rather than a separately inspected nursery.

The nursery's 2025–2026 curriculum brought language, movement and friendships together with early reading, number work and creative activities. Catholic learning included Christmas, Easter and Advent, making faith part of the children's learning from the nursery stage.

Conversation has a practical purpose here. In July 2025, nursery children enjoyed songs, rhymes and stories connected with hands-on experiences. Across early years, adults demonstrated how to speak and behave during shared meals and play. Everyday interactions therefore provided opportunities to learn alongside planned activities.

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) combines learning with children's care and development. It includes talking and listening, physical skills and emotional development, alongside literacy, mathematics, understanding the world and creative expression. For parents, that means learning extends beyond letters and numbers to making friends, expressing feelings and using the body with increasing control.

The 2025–2026 nursery programme made those connections concrete. Children practised retelling with toys and puppets, discussed characters' emotions and gave meaning to their own marks. Scissors work and drawing supported hand control; movement included dance, gymnastics and ball skills. These are different routes into communication and physical independence.

Early mathematics involved comparing quantities, exploring shapes and spotting repeated patterns. Creative projects included making a den or a stick figure. In July 2025, the early years learning environment was carefully arranged around children's development, giving activities a clear learning purpose.

Learning the routines was part of the nursery's autumn programme for 2025–2026, alongside developing relationships with adults and other children. Emotional vocabulary and friendship work followed. This treated becoming comfortable in a group as part of learning itself.

For children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), staff are expected to respond to emerging difficulties and listen to parents' concerns. Support follows an assess, plan, do and review cycle, so adjustments can be reconsidered as understanding of a child's needs develops. Children receiving SEND support have progress discussions involving parents, the class teacher and the SEND coordinator three times each year.

The school also provides a Nurturing Room that children can use when needed to support self-regulation. Parents can raise developmental concerns with the class teacher, with the SEND coordinator accessible through the school office if concerns remain unresolved.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Families must make a separate Reception application through the normal admissions route and meet the normal deadline. Treat that application as a separate task when planning the next stage.

For children with education, health and care plans, transition planning includes reviewing and amending the plan ahead of a change of educational phase. This allows time to organise the support needed at the next stage.

The school office can be contacted on 01865 373674 or at office@stthomas-more.org.uk. The address is Oxford Road, Kidlington, OX5 1EA.

Prospective parents can contact the school to arrange a visit. Parent Hub carries school messages, pictures and documents together, giving families a channel for keeping up with school communication.