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Nursery at St Oswald's CofE Academy
Last reviewed: October 2026 · Inspection data and key information above update regularly, however, this review below is refreshed bi-annually and may not reflect recent changes. Contact the nursery directly to confirm current arrangements. If you spot anything outdated or inaccurate, please let us know.
Conversation, rhymes and shared stories shape the nursery experience at St Oswald's CofE Academy. This is provision for children who have reached their third birthday, with 26 places and a separate entrance beside the school car park on Addison Road, Rugby. Blue Windmill Nursery is a different setting and is not part of the academy's nursery.
Early years provision was graded Good at the Ofsted inspection on 5 and 6 November 2024. The nursery-specific findings give that judgement substance: adults developed children's communication through purposeful exchanges, while children sustained their attention and took a keen interest in learning indoors and outside.
Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) learning here brings together language, stories, physical activity and investigation. Little Wandle Foundations gives early reading preparation a clear shape. Short activities develop listening to language sounds, enjoyment of books and communication through songs and conversation. The emphasis is on preparing children for reading through spoken language and shared books.
Books also travel home. Children can borrow from the nursery lending library each week, choosing titles with textures, sounds or flaps to explore with an adult. That gives families a practical way to continue the nursery's language work. Suggested home activities can take as much or as little time as families choose, and staff welcome news of children's celebrations and experiences beyond nursery.
The 2025/2026 nursery activities show how stories become practical learning. During Time for Tea, The Tiger Who Came To Tea prompted a giant tiger creation and pretend tea parties. The Gingerbread Man led to baking and decorating gingerbread. Making jelly gave children a chance to watch ingredients dissolve and then set after refrigeration: an everyday process became something to investigate.
Movement has several forms. Obstacle courses and ride-on toys sit alongside yoga and dancing, with physical activities taking place both outside and indoors. The school hall provides another space for movement. These examples give parents a picture of a day that combines conversation and books with active exploration.
The nursery teacher also holds early years leadership and deputy safeguarding responsibilities. Everyone working or volunteering at the academy undergoes an enhanced DBS check. For collection changes, parents must tell nursery staff or the office when someone other than an agreed contact will collect their child.
Lunch arrangements depend on the session. An afternoon place includes a packed lunch brought from home; the full-day option includes a hot lunch. Hot meals carry a separate charge that government funding does not cover, so funded attendance does not make every part of the day free.
Additional support. The academy describes identifying learning barriers, arranging interventions and involving outside agencies where appropriate. In November 2024, however, some pupils across the school needed more precise identification of SEND needs and better-matched support; support for pupils falling behind in phonics and prolonged absence were also concerns. These were school-wide findings, rather than findings specifically about nursery children, but they make the detail of an individual child's support important for families.
Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Families must make a separate Reception application through Warwickshire School Admissions Service and meet the applicable deadline. Treat the nursery choice and the school-place application as two separate decisions.
Preparing for school is part of the nursery's curriculum aim. Selected books and rhymes build children's experiences, and Little Wandle Foundations develops the language and listening foundations for later phonics learning. Educational preparation is distinct from entitlement to a place.
Session options are a universal-offer-only morning from 8.45am to 11.45am, an afternoon from noon to 3pm, and a full day from 8.45am to 3pm. A separate term-time morning timetable gives 9am to noon. Confirm the applicable session times before arranging childcare.
Applications must specify the 15-hour universal offer or the 30-hour extended offer. The funded afternoon uses three hours; a funded full day uses six. Ask the school for current charges. The Owlery's before- and after-school clubs accept children from Reception onwards, so they do not extend the nursery day.
Availability. There are no nursery vacancies for the 2026 to 2027 academic year. Families can join the waiting list using the Nursery Place Enquiry Form. Visits can be arranged through the academy office, which can be reached on 01788 543882 or school.office@stoswalds.covmat.org.
Children can apply after their third birthday. The nursery has 26 places, with a waiting list for the 2026 to 2027 academic year.
Little Wandle Foundations uses short activities involving stories, language sounds, songs and conversation. Children can also borrow a nursery library book each week to share at home.
The afternoon option includes a packed lunch supplied by home. The full-day option includes a hot lunch, with a meal charge outside government funding.
No. Families need a separate application through Warwickshire School Admissions Service and must meet the applicable deadline.
No. The Owlery's before- and after-school clubs are restricted to registered academy pupils in Reception to Year 6.
