Good Shepherd RC Primary School Nursery Review

Early learning here puts speaking, sharing and basic skills alongside Catholic faith. Good Shepherd RC Primary School’s nursery takes children aged three and above in Shepherds Bush, with 26 nursery places offered for 2026–2027 and the same number planned for 2027–2028. It forms part of the primary school’s early years provision.

Ofsted graded early years Outstanding following its inspection on 9 and 10 July 2024. That judgement covers the school’s early years provision. For parents choosing the nursery, the useful detail is the attention to children’s starting points: support begins in the Nursery Year, with staff helping children develop their foundational skills.

Communication, movement and learning to cooperate sit alongside early reading, writing and number work. The nursery’s class-page headings include speaking and listening, investigating the world, creativity and faith. These give parents a picture of learning that extends beyond letters and numbers.

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) brings these strands together: language and physical development sit beside personal and social development, literacy, mathematics, creative expression and understanding the world. In July 2024, children in early years were learning to share and collaborate. Learning to work with another child is part of the education here.

Physical access is a concrete feature of the learning environment. The school’s SEND information report describes ground-level early years classrooms accessible to children with physical disabilities, plus a wheelchair-accessible toilet. It also identifies small rooms for speech and language therapy, occupational therapy and group interventions, providing spaces for support beyond the main classroom.

Additional help starts early. In July 2024, staff supported children from the Nursery Year and adapted learning for children in early years with special educational needs or disabilities. This means support is part of the child’s learning rather than something postponed until later schooling.

Wellcomm is a named EYFS assessment and provision tool for speaking and listening. The school’s SEND policy uses an assess, plan, do and review cycle, involving parents in agreeing support and checking progress. Families can arrange an appointment about additional needs through the school office.

The 2023–2026 accessibility plan records additional paediatric first-aid training for Foundation Stage staff. Its care arrangements also include parental consent for medication and records of medicines administered, giving families a defined process for medical needs during the day.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place or confer priority under the 2027–2028 admission criteria. Parents must submit a fresh application. Treat the nursery choice and the Reception application as separate decisions.

For September 2027 entry, complete the Common Application Form through your home local authority. The school also requests its Supplementary Information Form to assess applications against its criteria; the policy gives a deadline of 3.15pm on 15 January 2027. That form is optional, but omitting it can affect the application’s ranking.

For children with SEND moving between classes, support plans and provision maps pass to the new teacher, alongside a planning handover. This supports continuity of care; it does not change admission entitlement.

Full-time nursery provision was recorded in July 2024. Wraparound care is available to all children: breakfast club starts at 7.45am, while after-school club runs from 3.15pm to 6.15pm. Those extensions can matter for families fitting childcare around work.

For nursery enquiries, contact the school office on 020 8743 5060. The school’s admissions letter directs families there for nursery information.