Hampton Vale Primary Academy Nursery Review

Forest School and specialist arts teaching give Seedlings and Little Seedlings a distinctive place within Hampton Vale Primary Academy. Nursery children are included in specialist teaching that extends across the school, bringing music, movement and creative work into their early education. This is school-attached provision with access to a broader teaching team.

In June 2023, the school provided places for two-year-olds. Ofsted graded early years provision Good at the inspection on 14 and 15 June 2023. That judgement covers the school's early years provision, rather than a separately inspected nursery.

Specialists teach Forest School, PE and the arts from Nursery onwards. For a young child, that means learning includes physical activity and creative expression alongside other classroom work. Music, art and performing arts have their own specialist teaching, giving these subjects a defined place in the nursery curriculum.

The school site includes a performing arts building containing a studio for drama and dance, an art classroom and a music room. Outdoors, the Forest School space includes three meadow areas. These are concrete features of the wider school environment in which the nursery sits; specialist Forest School teaching brings outdoor learning into its educational offer.

Experiences beyond school also feature. The June 2023 inspection recorded nursery trips to a local crocodile farm as part of the curriculum. It is a memorable example of the nursery's use of trips, rather than simply an extra activity detached from the curriculum.

Relationships were a strength in early years in June 2023: children felt secure and happy, and formed positive connections with adults and other children. Behaviour was also very positive from early years onwards. For parents, those findings speak directly to the social experience of joining a group and spending time with nursery staff.

An EYFS SEND coordinator sits within the school's inclusion structure. Families can arrange a discussion with the Inclusion Team about special educational needs or disabilities. The school works with the Early Years SEN Specialist and Portage Service, as well as other specialist agencies, giving families a route into conversations about additional support.

Parents participate in identifying needs and reviewing support. Where individual learning plans or pupil profiles are needed, they are reviewed termly. The approach gives families a continuing role in decisions about their child.

Early reading support. In June 2023, some children learning to read were falling behind because gaps were not spotted and addressed promptly enough. This was a school finding about early readers, rather than a nursery-specific criticism, but it matters as children begin learning to read.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Families must make a separate Reception application through the normal admissions process; the new Reception intake is administered by the local authority. Treat choosing the nursery and applying for school as separate decisions.

For children with SEND transferring internally, staff coordinate arrangements and children visit their next class before the move. This preparation supports familiarity with the next setting. It is separate from the allocation of a Reception place.

Eligible families can use either 15 or 30 funded childcare hours. Funding eligibility includes working families with children from nine months, alongside eligible two-, three- and four-year-olds. Eligibility for funding should be distinguished from the nursery's own age and place arrangements.

General enquiries go through the school office at office@hvp.org.uk or 01733 247000. The academy is on West Lake Avenue in Hampton Vale, Peterborough, PE7 8LS.