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Nursery at Aintree Davenhill Primary School
Last reviewed: October 2026 · Inspection data and key information above update regularly, however, this review below is refreshed bi-annually and may not reflect recent changes. Contact the nursery directly to confirm current arrangements. If you spot anything outdated or inaccurate, please let us know.
Play has its own purpose-built space at Aintree Davenhill: indoor and outdoor learning areas support a nursery curriculum built around exploration and social interaction. Teachers and teaching assistants lead the provision, which forms part of the school’s Foundation Stage.
Children normally join in September following their third birthday. The nursery has 26 full-time places, alongside four morning and four afternoon places for part-time attendance. That gives families a choice between a shorter session and a fuller nursery week, with separate allocations for each pattern.
The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) brings learning, development and care together. Here, play-based activities give children opportunities to explore, practise skills and interact with others. The purpose-built outdoor learning space makes activity outside part of the learning environment, alongside the indoor provision.
The published 2022-23 Nursery Cycle B plan gives examples of this approach. Marvellous Me focused on children’s families and preferences; Dinosaurs planned descriptive language around animals. Fabulous Forests included natural materials for printing and outdoor den building. These planned themes connected conversation with practical activity, giving children something tangible to discuss and investigate.
That plan listed The Squirrels Who Squabbled and The Very Hungry Caterpillar. Counting, comparing quantities and recognising shapes were planned alongside pencil control and cutting practice. Sunflower planting and melting ice investigations gave examples of how children could explore growing things and observable changes. The plan brought together language, movement, making and early mathematical ideas.
At the September 2023 inspection, Ofsted found that nursery songs and rhymes developed communication and language, and that early-years behaviour routines were well established. The same inspection identified a school-wide weakness in a few subjects: essential knowledge and its teaching sequence needed clearer definition. This concern relates to how learning connects over time, rather than a separate nursery judgement.
Health and developmental information is gathered through the nursery application form. Parents can record allergies, medication, speech and language needs, hearing difficulties and toilet-training needs. The form also seeks permission to contact previous childcare providers, allowing families to share relevant background before their child starts.
For special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), the school office provides access to the SEND coordinators. This gives parents a direct route to discuss their child’s needs. The school also participates in Operation Encompass with Merseyside Police: notifications about domestic abuse incidents allow staff to arrange support from an adult the child trusts.
School meals are supplied by Sefton catering and cooked on site. The school’s meal system uses an agreed weekly pattern, with two weeks’ notice needed for changes. Parents should distinguish these school meal arrangements from any entitlement to a free nursery lunch.
Nursery attendance does not guarantee admission to Reception. Families must make a separate application through their home local authority. For Sefton residents, the route is the Citizen Portal; the deadline for September 2026 entry was 15 January 2026.
The school’s 2026 Reception criteria give no priority for nursery attendance. They consider care status, siblings, eligible children of staff, catchment and distance. Nursery and Reception staff work together throughout the year to support children who move between the two. That continuity supports transition; it does not change how a place is allocated.
Full-time attendance totals 30 hours each week; morning or afternoon attendance totals 15. Families seeking full-time provision who do not qualify for 30 hours of free childcare should contact the school office about charges. A full-time place may be withdrawn if eligibility for that funding ends or extended-session fees remain unpaid.
Nursery applications go to the school office with a birth certificate and proof of address. General enquiries can be made on 0151 526 1162 or by emailing admin.aintreedavenhill@schools.sefton.gov.uk.
The normal intake is September after a child’s third birthday. January and April intakes can take place if spaces remain.
There are 26 full-time places at 30 hours per week, four morning places and four afternoon places, each at 15 hours per week.
No. Nursery attendance is not a criterion in the school’s 2026 Reception arrangements, and a separate local authority application is required.
Families who want full-time attendance but are not entitled to 30 hours of free childcare should contact the school office for information about charges.
Contact the school office to speak to the SEND coordinators. The nursery application form also collects medical and developmental information.
