John Henry Newman Academy Nursery

An alphabet song gives a small but concrete picture of nursery life at John Henry Newman Academy: children begin encountering letters and their sounds through singing. This is the academy’s own nursery in Littlemore, Oxford, with a nursery manager within its Early Years Foundation Stage team.

The wider setting has a Church of England character and belongs to Oxford Diocesan School Trust. Families of every faith and background are welcome. Its local church connection is with St Mary and St Nicholas, placing the nursery within a school with an explicitly Christian ethos rather than a religiously neutral setting.

Early reading begins with recognising letter names and sounds. In March 2024, nursery children participated enthusiastically in the alphabet song. That is a useful, specific example of learning through a shared activity: singing brings the alphabet into something children can join in with together.

For parents, the distinction matters. These are first encounters with the ingredients of reading, rather than evidence that nursery children are already expected to read independently. The song provides a concrete picture of one learning activity, and the nursery’s place within the Early Years Foundation Stage identifies the team responsible for this stage of education.

Staffing includes a nursery manager and Early Years Foundation Stage support staff. Nursery therefore has a designated management role within the early years team, giving families a clear role to approach about their child’s experience.

Beyond that team, the school has an inclusion leadership role and a special educational needs and disability coordinator. Parents raising developmental or additional-needs concerns can ask to speak with the coordinator through the school office. This identifies a point of contact; it does not presume a particular support package for an individual child.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Families must make a separate Reception application through the normal local authority process and meet the deadline for their child’s entry year. Oxfordshire County Council handles Reception places, so joining nursery should be considered separately from securing a school place later.

For the September 2026 intake, the application deadline was 15 January 2026. That cycle is now past. Families considering a later intake need to follow the timetable for that entry year, rather than reuse those dates.

Separate applications. Reception allocation remains with the local authority. Treat the nursery decision and the later Reception application as two distinct tasks when planning your child’s education.

The nursery is part of John Henry Newman Academy on Grange Road, Littlemore, Oxford, OX4 4LS. The school office can be contacted on 01865 772495 or at office.2000@jhnacademy.co.uk. These provide a direct enquiry route for families considering the nursery.

For Reception enquiries, the office can also help families contact Oxfordshire County Council. Keep that route separate from discussions with the nursery team: the school handles its own in-year admissions, while Reception places are handled by the local authority.