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Nursery at Mandeville School
Last reviewed: October 2026 · Inspection data and key information above update regularly, however, this review below is refreshed bi-annually and may not reflect recent changes. Contact the nursery directly to confirm current arrangements. If you spot anything outdated or inaccurate, please let us know.
Short bursts of group learning, play on the floor and therapy woven into everyday activities give Mandeville’s nursery its distinctive shape. Communication and independence are the priorities. Adults join children’s play, helping them develop it rather than leaving learning confined to organised sessions.
This is the nursery within Mandeville School in Greenford, whose provision serves children with severe or profound learning difficulties and autism. Nursery referrals come through the Ealing Early Years Placement Panel, with support for both EHAP applications (Early Help Assessment Plan) and EHCP applications (education, health and care plan). That specialist context matters: the day brings education and prescribed therapy together around each child.
The rhythm alternates brief, structured activities in small groups with play directed by children. Adults model play or take part alongside them during floor activities. Children’s schemas, the patterns they return to in play, help shape the learning environment. This gives their own interests a role in what happens next.
The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the framework. In parent language, learning connects communication, movement, emotions, early literacy and maths with creativity and understanding the world. Mandeville adapts this through its developmental curriculum, allowing teaching to follow a child’s needs when progress does not happen in a fixed sequence.
Across the school curriculum, Mandeville Curriculum 1 starts with engagement, including exploring, anticipating and initiating. Mandeville Curriculum 2 works towards individual skill statements. These pathways place the emphasis on a child’s developmental starting point.
Daily storytime belongs on every class timetable. Classroom reading corners, sensory storytelling and personalised books using photographs or symbols give children different ways to engage with meaning. The wider creative provision includes puppets, musical instruments and role-play spaces. These are practical materials for exploring, making choices and expressing ideas.
Ofsted’s inspection on 3 and 4 June 2025 found that children in early years made excellent progress from their starting points, including in communication, independence and EHC-plan targets.
Prescribed therapy is part of nursery learning. Staff incorporate physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech and language work and clinical psychology recommendations into everyday activities. For families, this means therapeutic goals can be practised during the nursery day rather than being confined to separate appointments.
Mandeville uses a key worker system across the school. Class teams combine teachers, teaching assistants and nursery nurses, with lunchtime support from meals supervisory assistants. The school’s medical team includes two full-time nurses and two health care assistants, and each class team has someone trained in paediatric first aid.
Food is adapted to individual needs through Harrison’s catering, including puréed meals and gluten-free diets. Health speech and language therapists also advise staff and families on swallowing, food textures and positioning. Eating support therefore extends beyond choosing a menu.
The June 2025 inspection described nursery staff using pictures and colours to help children recognise emotions and communicate how they feel. This gives children a practical means of expressing needs that may otherwise be difficult to explain.
Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Families need to pursue the Reception placement separately through the relevant local authority process. Mandeville’s admission arrangements use the local authority SEND department and SEND Panel, with placements normally considered after statutory assessment. For this specialist setting, the EHCP and placement process are central to planning the next stage.
Enquiries go to the school office at admin@mandeville.ealing.sch.uk or 020 8864 4921. Open mornings take place on the last Thursday and Friday of each month, except when those dates fall in half-term. Call reception to reserve a place.
These mornings include classroom and resource-area tours and a conversation with a senior leader. Families can discuss their child’s needs, and another professional may accompany them if arranged when booking. That makes the visit a useful opportunity to connect the nursery’s daily routines with a child’s particular care and learning needs.
Brief small-group learning activities alternate with child-led play. Adults model play and join children during floor activities, while prescribed therapies are integrated into learning.
Nursery pupils are referred through the Ealing Early Years Placement Panel. Families receive support with EHAP and EHCP applications.
Yes. The school’s catering provision adapts meals for individual diets, including gluten-free and puréed food. Health speech and language therapists advise on eating, drinking and swallowing needs.
No. Reception placement must be pursued separately through the relevant local authority process. Mandeville’s admission arrangements involve the SEND department and SEND Panel.
Call reception on 020 8864 4921 to book an open morning. These run on the last Thursday and Friday of each month, except when they fall in half-term. Another professional can accompany you by arrangement.
