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Nursery at Sunny Bank Primary School
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 If you spot anything outdated or inaccurate, please let us know.
Stories, conversation and minibeast discoveries give Sunny Bank’s early years provision its character. The nursery belongs to Sunny Bank Primary School in Murston, Sittingbourne, with learning that combines adult guidance and children’s own explorations. For parents, the useful connection is between talking, playing and making sense of the world.
Ofsted graded the school’s early years provision Good at the inspection on 9 to 10 July 2024. That judgement covers early years within the school; it is not a separate nursery rating. Communication was a clear strength in July 2024, with children developing their use of vocabulary and increasingly complex speech.
The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) approach brings together stories, number work, movement and learning to get along with others. Adult-led activities sit alongside play that children initiate themselves. Six themes organise the year’s early years exploration, with materials connected to the topic and that week’s story giving children starting points for their own ideas.
Books help shape the learning space. Daily stories and texts placed around different activity areas encourage children to bring story ideas into their play. Monster Phonics is the named early years reading approach. Writing also extends into play, while activities for small hand movements and daily whole-body movement prepare children for the physical demands of writing.
Number learning includes a daily taught activity, counting and exploring numbers to 10. Practical objects help children work out what numbers mean, and opportunities to use mathematical ideas continue during their own play. This connects a taught concept with something a child can handle and explore.
Outside, early years children investigated habitats and gathered small creatures in the forest school area in July 2024. These are concrete encounters with the natural world. Social learning is practical too: role play helps children explore cultural similarities and differences, while regular contact with familiar adults and peers gives relationships time to develop.
Sunny Bank says its Six Principles of Nurture guide how adults support children. The approach treats behaviour as a way of expressing needs and recognises that children develop at different rates. For a parent, this places understanding the child alongside responding to the behaviour.
The school’s Inclusion Team supports families, and its This is Me initiative brings a trained staff member and parents together to consider nine areas of development. It supports understanding of neurodivergent children’s needs and strengths, including children without a formal diagnosis. Families can contact the SENDCo through an email form or call the office for an urgent discussion with the Inclusion Team.
Class Dojo provides a route to class teachers. Early years attendance is also monitored: unexplained absence prompts contact with parents, with safeguarding escalation if concerns arise or contact cannot be made. The Family Liaison Officer can help with professional meetings and referrals for early help, giving families another route to practical support.
Attending the nursery does not guarantee a Reception place. Families must make a separate Reception application through the normal admissions process. Kent County Council’s online application window runs from November to January for entry the following school year; paper application forms can also be requested through the school office. Treat that application as a separate task from choosing nursery.
Nursery doors open at 8:30am, and parents may accompany children to the door until the gates close at 8:50am. Later arrivals use the front Main Reception gate and are signed in. Collection is at 3:10pm from the same point used for drop-off, so families have a consistent handover location.
Tours are offered for families considering the nursery. To enquire, telephone 01795 473891 or email SBoffice@tiltrust.org. The nursery is at Sunny Bank, Murston, Sittingbourne, Kent, ME10 3QN.
No. Families must apply separately for Reception through the normal admissions process.
Stories, child-initiated play and adult-led activities work together. Monster Phonics is the named early years reading approach, while number learning includes counting and practical objects.
Yes. In July 2024, early years children explored habitats and collected minibeasts in the forest school area.
Contact the SENDCo using the email form, or telephone the office for an urgent conversation with the Inclusion Team. This is Me supports discussion of neurodivergent children’s strengths and needs without requiring a formal diagnosis.
Call 01795 473891 or email SBoffice@tiltrust.org. Tours are offered for prospective nursery families.
