Normanton Common Primary Academy Nursery

Communication, independence and learning to get along shape the nursery’s purpose at Normanton Common Primary Academy. The school aims to develop children’s language and social confidence alongside familiar routines, making this an early years starting point within the primary academy on Castleford Road in Normanton.

Provision is for three- and four-year-olds, with entry possible in the term following a child’s third birthday. Capacity is expressed as 26 places of 15 hours each; the school can allocate a mixture of 15-hour and 30-hour places within that capacity. Extended places depend on demand, staffing and space, so the capacity figure should not be read as 26 full-day places.

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) provides the framework for nursery sessions. Here, the school’s stated emphasis is on learning to communicate, manage feelings and become more independent. Those are practical foundations for taking part in learning with other children.

At the July 2024 inspection, Ofsted found that early years children concentrated on learning and made positive social progress. They were learning consideration for others and how to wait for a turn. For parents, that connects learning with the everyday skills children need in a group, rather than treating social development as a separate concern.

Part-time nursery teaching roles sit within an early years team that also includes nursery nurses and an Early Years Leader. Families needing additional support can contact the school office to arrange a discussion with the special educational needs coordinator (SENCO).

For children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), the nursery will consider needs with parents and, where appropriate, professionals and the local authority. Reasonable adjustments are part of that provision. Across the school, support follows a cycle of assessing needs, planning help, putting it into practice and reviewing its effect; parents participate in termly reviews. This gives families a defined opportunity to discuss whether support needs changing.

Nursery children come under the school’s safeguarding arrangements. Parents must explain an absence on its first day, and staff follow up unexplained absences. Where attendance becomes difficult, the school first works with families to understand barriers, including medical or SEND-related needs.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Families must make a separate application through the local authority in the normal admissions round. Nursery attendance carries no Reception priority under the adopted Wakefield arrangements: allocation instead uses criteria including care status, catchment, siblings and distance.

Wakefield residents apply using Wakefield’s Common Application Form; families living elsewhere use their home local authority’s form. For September 2026 entry, the normal primary application deadline was 15 January 2026. That deadline is past. Families applying for a later intake should follow the normal route and deadline for that intake.

Support for children with SEND moving between classes or settings includes sharing their needs, existing provision and strategies that have helped. That continuity of support is separate from the allocation of a Reception place.

Funded provision runs during term time across 38 weeks. The 15-hour patterns normally comprise five mornings, from 8:50am to 11:50am, or five afternoons, from 12:20pm to 3:20pm. The school determines the pattern offered according to availability, staffing ratios and operational requirements. Eligible children taking 30 hours attend five full days, from 8:50am to 2:50pm. Extended funding requires a valid HMRC eligibility code, reconfirmed each term, and a place within available capacity.

Attendance follows an agreed pattern; individual ad hoc arrangements cannot normally be accommodated. Optional Early Bird Drop-Off adds 15 minutes before the nursery day, while the Wraparound Collection Session provides up to an hour afterwards, subject to availability. Additional paid nursery sessions use fixed three-hour blocks, must be agreed in advance and are normally booked for a full term. Changes or cancellations normally require a full term’s written notice, and charges remain payable for missed sessions. Contact the school for current charges.

Extras are optional and cannot be made a condition of taking a funded place. Nursery applications go directly to the school using its application form, obtainable from the office. For enquiries, call 01924 967612.