Cullercoats Primary School Nursery Review

Stories outdoors and bubbles made with a hula hoop give Cullercoats Primary School’s nursery a concrete learning character. Listening, talking and exploring size feature in the nursery observations from February 2022. These are small activities with a clear purpose: children encounter language and mathematical ideas through things they can hear, see and try.

This is the nursery provision within Cullercoats Primary School, on Marden Avenue in North Shields. Its place within the school also connects families to the school’s arrangements for additional needs and support when children change classes.

Storytelling crosses the boundary between indoor and outdoor learning. In February 2022, Ofsted described nursery children choosing to hear stories in either setting. That gives reading a place beyond an indoor group activity and allows children to join a story where they are playing.

Early learning also includes recognising letter sounds and combining them. Within the Early Years Foundation Stage, these are the beginnings of understanding how spoken sounds connect to reading. The February 2022 observations place this work in the early years, alongside the nursery’s story choices.

Mathematical language takes a practical form. Nursery children explored differences in size by making bubbles, including a bigger one using a hula hoop. The activity connected comparison words to a visible difference. For parents, it is a useful example of what learning can look like at this age: an experiment becomes an opportunity to talk precisely.

For concerns about a child’s development, the school’s SEND policy makes the class teacher the first contact. Families can arrange a meeting with the special educational needs coordinator through the office. This gives parents a defined route from an initial conversation to more specialist discussion.

Support planning involves parents. Once a child is identified as needing SEN Support, the teacher and coordinator meet the family to discuss assessments and agree provision. Subsequent meetings take place each term to review progress and decide the next targets. Education plans are also reviewed termly and shared with parents, making the support a continuing conversation rather than a single referral.

The school premises are on one level, with broad corridors and an accessible toilet. Its policy allows adjustments for physical and sensory needs. These details matter to families considering how their child will use the building, alongside the learning support they may need.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Families must make a separate Reception application through the normal admissions process and meet its deadline. The school’s admission policy places decisions about oversubscribed community primary schools with the local authority.

Transition support is a separate matter. Depending on individual needs, the SEND policy allows extra meetings with the next teacher, classroom visits and photographs for a transition booklet. These can help a child become familiar with people and places; they do not secure admission.

General nursery enquiries can go through the school office on 0191 823 1013 or by email to info@cullercoatsps.org.uk. Cullercoats Metro station is close to the school, and several bus routes serve the area, giving families public transport options for the journey.