Hawksmoor School Nursery Review

A short footpath separates Hawksmoor from its nursery class: the provision currently runs at partner school Windrush Primary on Bentham Road. That location matters when planning the daily journey. This is a part-time, term-time arrangement, with children joining in the autumn after turning three, where places permit.

The weekly pattern is fixed: 15 hours, spread across daily attendance in either a morning or an afternoon session. It gives children a repeated routine rather than a choice of occasional days. Families should plan around the partner-school location as well as the session pattern.

Play provides the starting point for Hawksmoor’s Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) approach. Children explore and try challenges, while adults observe their learning and use those observations to plan activities that address the next step. In parent terms, play and adult guidance work together: what a child does helps shape what they are taught next.

Literacy and mathematics receive explicit attention alongside children’s wider development. Reading for enjoyment is part of the approach, and nursery phonics begins through Little Wandle Letters and Sounds Revised. Speaking and listening also receive emphasis, giving early reading a foundation in language rather than treating it solely as learning letters.

In October 2023, Ofsted judged Hawksmoor’s early years provision Good. Children practised counting in both directions and used number songs to consolidate learning. However, some other curriculum areas had weaker planning, including in early years, and teaching did not consistently help children retain and deepen key ideas. That qualification matters alongside the grade: curriculum consistency was an improvement priority.

Social learning includes practical habits. In October 2023, early years children learned turn-taking and sharing, supporting their emotional development and their ability to play alongside others. These are everyday skills with a purpose beyond completing an activity.

Hawksmoor also includes nursery in its weekly Jigsaw personal, social, health and economic education programme. Emotional understanding, social skills and mindfulness are part of that approach, giving feelings and relationships their own teaching time.

For additional needs, Hawksmoor’s school-wide approach uses adapted activities, teaching methods and resources. The school aims to involve parents in decisions, reviewing progress and setting goals. Advice and training draw on services including educational psychology, speech and language therapy and occupational therapy. This describes the school’s support framework; it should be distinguished from an individual child’s nursery arrangements.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Families must make a separate Reception application through the normal admissions process; Greenwich Council handles school applications. Treat the nursery choice and the Reception application as two separate decisions, even when the intention is to remain at Hawksmoor.

Childcare coverage. Nursery children cannot use the Breakfast or After School Clubs. The daily part-time pattern therefore needs to fit family working hours, with separate arrangements beyond the nursery session and during holidays.

Completed nursery application forms go to office@windrushthamesmead.org.uk. The application route reflects where the class operates, so nursery enrolment is handled through Windrush rather than as a direct application for a Hawksmoor school place.