Southmead Primary School Nursery

Outdoor exploration gives Southmead’s early years provision its character: spacious areas outside support children’s learning through discovery. The nursery belongs to Southmead Primary School on Princes Way, Wimbledon, and its funded offer serves three- and four-year-olds.

There is a limit of 26 children per session. The place mix comprises ten morning places, ten afternoon places and sixteen places on the thirty-hour pattern. That distinction matters: the number attending together differs from the allocation across booking patterns.

Short daily sessions and a pattern combining longer days shape different nursery weeks. Morning and afternoon attendance each provide a regular three-hour block; the alternative fifteen-hour arrangement combines two longer days with Wednesday morning. Families can therefore choose between daily attendance and concentrating the same funded allocation into fewer days.

Learning outside is part of the early years experience, with space for exploration. Early mathematics also has a practical emphasis. At the April 2022 Ofsted inspection, early years staff explained mathematical ideas clearly and gave children opportunities to use numbers in practical learning. For parents, the useful distinction is that children practise number understanding through activity, rather than only hearing an explanation.

The school’s SEND contact is its special educational needs coordinator, who holds the NASENCo qualification. Families can use senco@southmead.wandsworth.sch.uk to discuss additional needs. Across the school site, accessibility features include ramps, three wheelchair-accessible toilets and a toilet area with a bed and hoist. These are concrete facilities relevant to planning a child’s physical care and access.

Safeguarding support includes a full-time safeguarding lead, alongside links with Wandsworth’s Multi Agency Safeguarding Hub for families needing additional help. First-aid cover includes paediatric training across the key stages, with a first aider available through the school day.

Collection arrangements also support safe handovers. Parents must tell the school beforehand when another adult will collect their child; children are not released to someone staff do not know. If collection runs late, children wait inside and parents collect them from the office.

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 child’s entry year. Treat choosing nursery and applying for Reception as two separate decisions.

Southmead directs families to the Choose a Wandsworth Primary School booklet for the Reception admissions process. Use the arrangements for the relevant entry year when planning that application.

Morning sessions run from 08:45 to 11:45, while afternoon sessions run from 12:25 to 15:25, Monday to Friday. The thirty-hour pattern runs from 08:45 to 15:25 on weekdays. These are fixed booking hours, so families need to match work and collection arrangements to the chosen pattern.

The nursery offer includes fully funded fifteen-hour and thirty-hour places, with eligibility applying to the thirty-hour entitlement. For nursery enquiries, email eyfsadmissions@southmead.wandsworth.sch.uk. Guided school tours can be booked through the office on 0208 788 8901.

Both morning and afternoon nursery groups use the Back Entrance for drop-off and collection. The morning drop-off window is 08:40 to 08:55; morning collection is at 11:45. Afternoon handovers are at 12:25 and 15:25.