Beeston Fields Flying High Academy Nursery Review

Songs, sound games and questions about living things give this nursery its character. Beeston Fields Flying High Academy takes children aged 3 and 4 into its early years provision on Boundary Road, Beeston. The pattern is a morning or afternoon session during school terms, giving families a regular half-day nursery routine.

Ofsted judged the school's early years provision Outstanding at the inspection on 17 and 18 June 2025. That judgement covers early years within the school, rather than a separately inspected nursery. The early years findings give substance to the grade: adults developed children's conversation, supported play led by their interests and used visual reminders to help them work independently.

Learning combines taught activities, work in smaller groups and play indoors and outside. The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) brings together communication, relationships and movement with early reading, mathematics, creativity and exploration of the world. For parents, that means conversation and play form part of the learning itself.

Super Sounds introduces early literacy through games, rhyme, songs and stories. Children practise distinguishing sounds and remembering what they hear and see. Towards the end of their nursery year, Teeny Reading Seeds introduces links between letters and sounds. These are distinct stages: listening and noticing come before the first steps towards reading words.

Flying High Nursery Maths develops counting, understanding how many objects a group contains, recognising shapes and repeating patterns. Children also practise recognising small quantities without counting each object. Learning from taught activities is revisited through play, giving children further opportunities to use the ideas.

A question guides each half-term's enquiry. Why is autumn special? and How do I take care of living things? connect taught activities with children's exploration. Changes to the play environment help them revisit the topic, before they reflect together on an answer. In June 2025, adults extended early years children's thinking through questions and comments, while visual cues in the learning space supported independence.

For children with additional needs, support involves families from the start. Staff gather information from previous settings and parents to understand the child. The school's SENCO coordinates support, and parents help agree adjustments and review progress. This gives families a role in deciding the next steps.

Visual timetables are used across the school. Support for autistic children can also include sensory resources and boards showing what happens now and next, helping make activities and changes more understandable. Where appropriate, children joining foundation stage may have extra transition visits or a booklet to use at home. These arrangements depend on individual need.

Milk is free until a child's fifth birthday through Cool Milk, but parents must register their child to receive it. Collection also has clear safeguards: provide a password when someone unfamiliar to staff will collect, and notify the school ahead of any change to the usual arrangement.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place or confer admissions priority. Families must make a separate application through their home local authority. Reception places follow the school's oversubscription criteria, so familiarity with the nursery does not change a child's admissions position.

The normal primary application deadline is 15 January. For the September 2026 intake, the closing date was 15 January 2026; that cycle has passed. Individual SEND transition support, such as additional visits or a transition booklet, helps children prepare for change and is separate from the allocation of places.

The nursery offers 15 hours each week in term time, with morning or afternoon attendance from Monday to Friday. Morning sessions run from 08:45 to 11:45; afternoons run from 12:30 to 15:30. This timetable needs to fit the family's working day and collection arrangements.

Children can start at the beginning of the term following their third birthday, subject to space. Submit the nursery application form to the office or email officeteam@beestonfields.notts.sch.uk. Visits can be booked by calling 0115 8440100 and include a conversation with a senior leader.

EYFS children use the playground's EYFS entrance. Morning nursery collection is at the corner door on the Boundary Road side; afternoon collection is at the EYFS door. The different collection points matter when another adult is taking over the pickup.