Bishop Lonsdale Church of England Primary Academy Nursery

Sounds and words give Bishop Lonsdale’s nursery a clear starting point: children explore how sounds combine to make words, while the wider early years provision links adult teaching with practical play. The emphasis is on small steps children can practise for themselves.

This is the nursery within Bishop Lonsdale Church of England Primary Academy on Shaws Lane in Eccleshall. Entry can be considered in the term before a child turns three, subject to an individual assessment. That makes the starting point a decision about the child, rather than an automatic early entry offer. Ofsted graded the school’s early years provision Good at the inspection on 12 and 13 November 2024. That judgement covers early years within the school.

Early language work begins with sounds and their place in words. For nursery children, this gives learning a concrete focus before the later demands of reading: listening to the building blocks of language and understanding how they fit together.

In November 2024, early years learning included an adult demonstrating repeating patterns, followed by children trying the idea again in a sand tray over the course of the week. The physical resource matters. It lets children return to a taught idea through practical activity, strengthening their understanding of patterns while developing the small hand movements used in fine motor tasks.

At the November 2024 inspection, early years children understood routines and accessed learning resources independently. Adult teaching therefore has a practical follow-through: children can use what they have learned beyond the initial activity, rather than relying on an adult to direct each step.

Settling was a positive feature of early years in November 2024: children became accustomed to school promptly, with staff helping them understand routines and use resources independently. For families, those familiar routines give the start of nursery a manageable structure.

For questions about special educational needs or disabilities, the school has a SEN co-ordinator who can be contacted through the office. This provides a direct route for discussing a child’s needs. A member of staff with safeguarding responsibility is on site throughout the school day, giving families a clear point of contact for child protection concerns.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Families must make a separate Reception application through the normal admissions process and meet the applicable deadline. Staffordshire County Council is the academy’s admissions authority, and the Reception application route is through Staffordshire Admissions. Treat the nursery choice and the later school application as two separate decisions.

To join the nursery waiting list, complete the application form and send it to office@lonsdale.staffs.sch.uk, or post it to the academy on Shaws Lane, Eccleshall, Stafford, ST21 6AU.

Funding arrangements include an entitlement of 15 hours a week for three- and four-year-olds, with an additional 15 hours a week for eligible working parents. Families using the additional entitlement must send their 11-digit eligibility code to the office in the term before nursery starts. This is a practical step to complete ahead of the child’s first term.