St Patrick's Catholic Primary School Nursery

Two full days followed by a Wednesday morning give St Patrick’s nursery a distinctive weekly shape. Its Block 1 pattern concentrates attendance at the start of the week, a practical consideration for families organising work and other childcare. This is the nursery within St Patrick’s Catholic Primary School on Upper Hill Street in Toxteth, part of the school’s Foundation Stage.

Ofsted graded the school’s early years provision Good at the inspection on 7 and 8 November 2023. That judgement covers early years within the school; it is not a separate nursery rating.

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) brings together seven areas of development. The handbook places talking and understanding language, physical development, and social and emotional development alongside literacy, mathematics, expressive arts and learning about the world. For parents, this means the learning framework extends beyond early reading and numbers to how children communicate, move and relate to others.

Monday and Tuesday run from 08:45 to 15:15, with Wednesday finishing at 11:45 after the same morning start. The shorter Wednesday changes the collection routine midway through the block.

Early identification of additional needs is a concrete strength in the November 2023 early years findings. Children’s needs were assessed promptly when they joined, with additional help arranged quickly. For a child who needs support, that makes the starting point an assessment of their needs rather than waiting for difficulties to accumulate.

The school’s SEND information report for 2024–2025 describes work with Merseyside Autism and Speech Therapy (MAST) in EYFS, including staff training in recognising speech, language and communication difficulties. WellComm is listed for early language support. These are specific routes for identifying and supporting communication needs, rather than a single approach applied to every child.

Parents participate in planning and reviewing SEND support alongside teaching staff and the special educational needs coordinator. The same document describes classroom support, individual work and small groups, with the form and frequency shaped by the child’s needs.

For meals, the school arrangement allows either a hot lunch or food brought from home, with Absolutely Catering named as the provider. Packed lunches should carry the child’s name, and chocolate is excluded. Medication requires a parent’s request and a completed form; prescribed containers must retain the child’s details and administration instructions. These routines give families concrete preparation tasks.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Families must make a separate Reception application through the normal admissions process and meet the deadline for their intake.

The 2025–2026 admission arrangements directed parents to Liverpool City Council’s preference form or its online admissions service. A supplementary form was also required for consideration under faith criteria. Treat that as a dated admissions cycle, and use the arrangements for your child’s intake when applying.

Transition support is a separate matter. The SEND information report describes individual transition plans for more vulnerable children, helping staff prepare for changes according to each child’s needs. This support does not allocate a Reception place.

Breakfast care. Nursery children cannot attend the school’s Breakfast Club. Families needing an earlier start must factor that restriction into their childcare plans.

For nursery enquiries, contact the office on 0151 709 1062 or email patricks-ao@st-patricks.liverpool.sch.uk. The parent handbook specifies grey tracksuits with the school logo for the Foundation Stage and asks families to label clothing, including coats.

Collection needs an agreed adult. The handbook asks families to tell the school about changes to collection arrangements and to telephone promptly if they will be late. This matters especially on Wednesday, when Block 1 ends before lunchtime.