St Chad's Catholic Primary School Nursery Review

St Mary is the nursery class at St Chad's: a start to school life shaped by play, Catholic values and a choice of morning, afternoon or full-day attendance. It takes children aged 3 and 4, within the primary school on Alverston Gardens in South Norwood. The school occupies a green site, while the nursery has spaces for learning both indoors and outside.

The nursery describes its Catholic ethos as welcoming and values each child. For families, faith is part of the educational setting rather than simply a feature of the school's name.

Play is the organising approach. The curriculum covers the seven areas of the Early Years Foundation Stage, so learning through play reaches across children's development rather than serving only as preparation for formal lessons. Indoor and outdoor spaces give children different places to explore their interests. Both belong to the nursery's learning environment.

Language has a clear place in that learning. In January 2024, early-years teaching emphasised children's communication, with adults demonstrating how to use language correctly. This gives young children examples to draw on as they develop their own speech. The same inspection found that children in the early years behaved well and received help to take turns, share and bring others into their play. Learning to play together matters alongside learning to talk.

Catholic Social Teaching has an age-appropriate resource: CAFOD animal mascots are used in the EYFS to help explain its principles. These give abstract ideas a concrete reference for young children. The nursery's Catholic character therefore extends into how ideas are introduced, as well as its stated ethos.

Additional needs are supported from nursery onwards by the school's Inclusion Team. Its structure brings together deputy headteachers, a SENCO, a Family Support Worker and support staff. For a nursery family, that connects educational support with a role focused on family support.

Full-day attendance includes supervised lunchtime, adding half an hour each day. That care period is part of the longer attendance arrangement, so it matters when comparing a full day with a morning or afternoon session.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Families must make a separate Reception application through Croydon's admissions route; allocations follow the school's admissions criteria. Treat choosing the nursery and applying for school as separate decisions.

For the September 2026 intake, the application deadline was 15 January 2026. Families also had to return a Supplementary Information Form to the school by that date. That admissions cycle is now past.

The nursery has links with the Reception class intended to help children make the transition. Those educational links are separate from the allocation of places.

There are choices of 15 or 30 hours a week. The morning pattern runs across five mornings, from 8:30am to 11:30am; five afternoons run from noon to 3:00pm. Full-day sessions are given as 9:00am to 3:00pm, with the supervised-lunchtime arrangement separately described as 8:30am to 3:00pm, totalling 32 1/2 hours weekly.

The 15-hour provision is free for nursery-age children regardless of parents' employment or tax status. Eligible families using funded 30-hour provision must give the office their 11-digit code. Additional hours can also be paid for; contact the school for current charges.

Visits can be arranged through office@stchadsprimaryschool.com, which also handles enquiries about places. Nursery applications use a Nursery Application Form, with evidence of the child's birth date and home address sent to admissions@stchadsprimaryschool.com. Paper forms and document copying are available through the office.