Thurlestone All Saints Church of England Academy Nursery

A school start from the age of two is the defining practical feature of Thurlestone All Saints Church of England Academy’s nursery. This is the academy’s own early years provision, in Thurlestone near Kingsbridge, rather than a separate childcare setting. For families considering an early introduction to school, the distinction matters: nursery attendance and admission to Reception remain separate decisions.

The academy has a Church of England character and belongs to the Learning Academy Partnership (South-West). Its nursery is part of that school setting, while having a separate application question when children move on.

Children learn through play, with activities adapted to their individual needs. This allows different levels of challenge or support.

Play therefore has an educational purpose here. The school describes an approach that allows learning to be adjusted for the individual child, rather than expecting children to tackle an identical task in an identical way.

For additional needs, families have a direct contact route to the school’s special educational needs coordinator (SENDCo): thurlestone@lapsw.org or 01548 312290. The partnership says it aims for children to participate fully in their education and values working with parents to shape support. That gives families a clear starting point for discussing their child’s needs.

Operation Encompass connects the school with police notifications following domestic abuse incidents involving a child’s household. Information reaches the school before the following school day, allowing staff to understand the circumstances behind a child’s behaviour and offer support. This is a school safeguarding arrangement, relevant to the care surrounding the nursery.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Families must make a fresh application through the local authority where their child lives, using the normal application route and meeting the deadline for their intake year. Devon residents use Devon’s online admissions service or request a paper application.

For the 2025–26 intake, qualifying nursery attendance carried seventh priority when applications exceeded places. Children had to be attending this nursery when the application was made and using at least half of their free Early Years Entitlement. Attendance beyond funded entitlement brought no extra priority. That was a conditional place in the admissions order, not a reserved seat.

The deadline for that intake was 15 January 2025. Families choosing nursery now should use the arrangements and deadline for their child’s own Reception year: admissions rules can change between annual intakes.

Nursery enquiries can go through the school’s contact form, by email to thurlestone@lapsw.org or by telephone on 01548 560494. The school address is Thurlestone, Devon, TQ7 3NB. These are direct routes into the school for families considering its nursery provision.

Keep nursery enquiries and the later Reception application as two distinct tasks. Contacting the school about nursery does not replace the local authority application required for Reception.