Leverton Church of England Academy Nursery Review

New words come early at Leverton: language development starts in nursery, alongside attention to children's personal development. That gives this school nursery a clear educational emphasis, with learning to communicate taking a central role from the outset.

Within Leverton Church of England Academy in North Leverton, Robins caters for children aged two to three, while Puffins is the FS1 group. These are distinct groups within the school's early years provision. At the Ofsted inspection on 24 and 25 May 2023, early years provision was graded Good. That judgement covers early years within the school, rather than a separately inspected nursery.

Vocabulary is a deliberate starting point. In May 2023, the nursery curriculum introduced children to new words from the beginning, with communication and personal development receiving close attention. For a young child, this puts expressing themselves alongside acquiring knowledge: the emphasis extends beyond learning isolated facts.

The early years foundation stage (EYFS) includes concrete mathematical learning. In May 2023, early years children could identify how many fingers were shown without counting each one. Water containers provided another example, with children using words for full and half-full to describe their contents. These examples concern early years as a whole. They show number recognition and mathematical language being used with tangible objects.

Curriculum planning. In May 2023, some subjects across the school needed clearer decisions about which knowledge to teach and its sequence. This was a school-level improvement action, rather than a finding attributed specifically to nursery. It qualifies the wider curriculum picture.

An early years practitioner forms part of the staff team. For families considering additional support, the school also has a special educational needs coordinator (SENCO). Parents whose children attend can use Class Dojo to contact the SENCO about their child's needs, providing a direct way to begin that conversation.

Communication support includes signposting to Language for life, the Autism Education Trust and Nottinghamshire Speech and Language. These give families named starting points for advice about language and interaction.

For cognition and learning difficulties, the school's guidance recommends dividing activities into manageable steps, repeating learning and taking movement breaks. Memory games and baking are among its suggested home activities. This is practical advice parents can use alongside discussions about their child's individual needs; it does not describe a fixed nursery support programme.

Attending this nursery does not guarantee a Reception place. Families must make a separate Reception application through the normal admissions process and meet its deadline. The application route is Nottinghamshire County Council School Admissions.

Treat choosing the nursery and applying for Reception as two separate decisions. Nursery attendance should not be taken as an assurance of admission, and a visit or conversation about nursery does not replace the Reception application.

The academy is on Main Street, North Leverton, Retford, DN22 0AD. For enquiries, contact the school office on 01427 880470 or email office@leverton.snmat.org.uk.

Visits can be arranged to meet children and staff, with a school tour led by the headteacher and an opportunity to ask questions. That offers a practical introduction to the school setting before deciding whether its nursery suits your family.