Brookfields School Nursery Review

Learning to communicate, manage feelings and tackle everyday tasks shapes the early years at Brookfields. Nursery provision sits within the specialist school in Tilehurst, Reading, which takes children from age three. Learning difficulties are pupils’ primary need, with some children also having sensory, physical or medical needs.

Small classes and personalised learning programmes are school-wide features. For younger children, the Exploration Strand puts engagement and independence first: the starting point is what helps each child take part. We hold no published inspection grade for this nursery.

Explore Time gives the day a concrete centre. Running daily from 10 to 11.30am, it lets children choose activities across rooms and outdoor areas, with adult support adjusted to their development and engagement. Creativity, cognition, imaginative play and movement outdoors form its four learning areas. Choice has a purpose: staff adapt learning around what motivates the child.

The Exploration Strand uses Brookfields’ Foundation Curriculum, incorporating the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). In parent terms, learning starts with relationships, communication, play and the skills needed to participate. The nursery approach includes supported exploration, sensory work, Intensive Interaction and REACh (Relationship Education for the Autistic Child). These provide different ways into learning for children whose needs make participation difficult.

Everyday independence receives explicit attention. Communication, toileting, helping oneself and solving problems are priorities rather than incidental tasks. Adults support children with regulation, working towards managing feelings more independently. The balance of adult guidance and child choice depends on the individual.

Rooms and outside areas are arranged with input from therapy services, including speech and language specialists. Across the wider school grounds, a quiet sensory garden, an orchard with chickens and two working allotments add physical variety. These facilities sit within the wider school grounds.

Before a child starts, Brookfields brings parents and the professionals already involved with the child together to share information with staff. Initial placement is finalised after half a term, allowing time for a child’s presentation to change. For a new pupil with an EHCP, the education plan is reviewed within 12 weeks. Settling therefore includes reassessing what support and placement suit the child.

Earwig gives families secure digital access to a record of their child’s school life. Parent consultations take place at least termly, while the Pastoral Hub supports families with home routines, sleep, behaviour, communication and eating. This connects classroom learning with practical concerns at home.

The school’s Integrated Therapy team includes occupational therapy, physiotherapy, speech and language therapy and a therapy assistant. Its usual role is advice and training for families and staff, rather than individual treatment. Targeted clinical work happens when needed; needs beyond that provision require additional support through the local authority.

Dolce Schools Catering provides school meals, managed through SchoolGrid. Packed lunches are an alternative, and dietary requirements can be discussed with catering staff. These are school-wide arrangements; they do not establish a nursery entitlement to free meals.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Families should discuss any application requirements for the next placement with their local authority. At Brookfields, placement decisions involve the school and the child’s local authority considering the EHCP, whether needs can be met and whether a suitable peer group has space. Discuss the next placement with the local authority through that process rather than treating nursery attendance as an allocation.

Contact the school office on 0118 942 1382 or email office@brookfields.w-berks.sch.uk. Visits are currently restricted to families whose children have been offered a place because the school is oversubscribed.

School uniform is required for pupils up to the age of 16. Primary clothing includes a white polo shirt and royal blue sweatshirt or cardigan; branded items are optional. Staff receive children from parents, carers or bus escorts, with corresponding handovers when school finishes. Applications for local authority transport go through the family’s local council and depend on entitlement.