Easington Colliery Primary School Nursery

A hedgehog in the nursery garden became a lesson in animal safety, storytelling and salt-dough modelling in 2023-24. That episode captures the character of Easington Colliery Primary School’s nursery: children’s discoveries become things to discuss, make and explore.

The nursery belongs to the primary school on Whickham Street in Easington Colliery. Its staff structure includes nursery teaching roles, an Early Years Lead who also has safeguarding responsibilities, and a nursery teaching assistant. Ofsted graded the school’s early years provision Good following its September 2023 inspection; this is an early years judgement within the school inspection.

Morning and afternoon sessions provide the basic shape of the day. Learning follows the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), with activities that bring language, physical skills and understanding of the world together. The nursery’s 2023-24 activities show how this works: children retold Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See? with story stones, searched for colours and experimented with colour mixing. A familiar story gave them several ways to practise describing and remembering.

Outdoor discoveries supplied other starting points. After spotting the hedgehog, children made models with leaves, paint and salt dough, read Roly the Hedgehog and used dishes from the mud kitchen to collect rainwater. The garden was a place for observation as well as play. Forest School sessions that year began with learning the rules and becoming familiar with the forest areas, with problem-solving and managed risk planned for subsequent sessions.

Indoors, the 2022-23 nursery activities included a reading retreat with felt story characters and a construction area where children recreated houses from The Three Little Pigs. These linked storytelling with building and imaginative play. Music has a named partner: Durham Music Service provides input to nursery during the academic year, giving music a place alongside the practical activities.

Clear routines and relationship-building helped early years children learn appropriate behaviour in September 2023. For a young child, that means learning how to participate socially as well as learning new skills.

For children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), starting arrangements can include meeting staff with parents and spending time in the new class where possible. Families are asked to discuss identified needs before their child starts, so support can be planned. The school’s speech and language therapy contract also gives parents and staff access to advice each week, alongside NHS support.

Food appears in the nursery’s 2023-24 activities too: children decorated biscuits and ate them at snack time. Families should contact the school office about food allergies. The school’s catering policy requires a doctor’s note for specific dietary requirements.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Families must make a separate Reception application through the normal school admissions process. The school directs parents to Durham County Council, with applications and decisions handled by County Hall.

Transition support is a separate matter. Children with SEND can have individual arrangements to become familiar with their next teacher and classroom when moving between year groups. Those visits support adjustment; they do not secure admission.

The morning session runs from 8.30am to 11.30am; the afternoon runs from 12.15pm to 3.15pm. These are distinct sessions with their own collection times, so families can plan around the nursery timetable.

Nursery applications are handled by the school office. Contact the school on 0191 527 0293 or email easington.colliery@durhamlearning.net.

Wraparound care. The school-day timetable lists breakfast childcare and Fun Club for Reception to Year 6. Families choosing the nursery should plan their childcare around the nursery session times rather than those older-pupil arrangements.