St Austin's Catholic Primary School and Nursery: Nursery Review

Dough, drawings and the small challenge of managing a fastening give St Austin’s early years provision a practical character. Physical development receives deliberate attention, linking everyday independence with the hand control children need for writing. These are concrete starting points for young learners.

The nursery belongs to St Austin's Catholic Primary School and Nursery in Stafford, a Catholic school whose overall age range is 3 to 11. The early years findings below relate to January 2025 and cover that phase within the school.

Physical skills are a clear focus. In January 2025, the school recognised that children starting school needed additional help with physical development. Opportunities addressed both larger movements and the smaller, more controlled movements involved in using hands and fingers. For parents, that connects learning with practical tasks children are beginning to manage themselves.

Working dough, drawing and handling fastenings were specific examples. Each gives a different reason to practise control: changing the shape of dough, making marks on paper or managing something that opens and closes. The emphasis makes everyday actions part of learning, rather than treating preparation for writing as pencil work alone.

Letter formation also received direct adult attention. The January 2025 findings linked an emerging improvement in early writing to adult help with letter shapes, including guidance when children made mistakes. That is a measured finding: the work was showing an initial effect, rather than establishing a finished picture of children’s writing development.

Adult relationships were a strength of the early years in January 2025. Children responded positively to caring staff, and relationships between children and adults were strong. For a family considering a first school experience, that interaction matters alongside the activities themselves: the adult helping a child is part of the learning experience.

Support also appeared in the detail of teaching. When children misunderstood letter formation, staff addressed the difficulty during the activity. This connects care with practical help, giving children guidance on the task they are attempting. The evidence supports this specific picture of adult involvement in early learning.

Attending the nursery does not guarantee a Reception place at St Austin’s. Nursery admission and Reception admission are separate processes. Families must apply again through the normal Reception application route and meet its deadline.

Treat the nursery choice as a decision about the early years experience itself. It should not be treated as securing the next school place; the Reception application remains a separate step for parents.

The school’s address is Garden Street, Stafford, ST17 4BT. Its telephone number is 01785413277. These give families a direct contact point for the school that includes the nursery provision.