Egglescliffe Church of England Primary School Nursery

Play and teaching share the nursery day at Egglescliffe: children learn through play and work with adults in groups or individually. This is the school's nursery provision on Butts Lane in Egglescliffe, within a primary school whose age range starts at three. Its Foundation Stage team helps children adjust to school life and build relationships with other children.

Adult teaching sits alongside play, rather than taking up the whole session. Children have class activities, smaller group work and individual support alongside opportunities to learn through play. Topic themes organise the early years curriculum. For parents, the practical distinction is that children have both time to explore and time with an adult directing their learning.

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) brings together movement, communication and emotional development with early reading, writing and mathematics. Children also explore the world and express ideas through art and design. Egglescliffe gives equal value to these seven areas. Alongside them, the school focuses on the Characteristics of Effective Learning: how children approach an activity, rather than simply what they learn from it.

During Ofsted's January 2022 inspection, nursery children practised letter sounds while making a fruit shopping list. Early years mathematics included opportunities to recognise numbers and count. These examples connect early learning with something children can do and talk about, rather than treating it only as a formal lesson.

Physical spaces add another dimension. Nursery children can access the school's Nature Garden and sensory area. Rock, wood, gravel and sand give the garden different natural materials to explore; the sensory space includes soft furnishings, comfort toys and stories. These offer settings for exploration and quieter reflection alongside classroom activity.

Settling involves the Foundation Stage team helping children move from home routines into school experiences. Staff support children as they make friends, share resources and solve problems together. The emphasis is on learning to be part of a group as well as taking part in activities.

Nursery learning journals bring together photographs, observations, examples of children's work and contributions from home. Parents, teachers and children use these books to look back at experiences and progress. That gives families a concrete way to contribute to the picture of their child's learning.

For children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), the school plans early responses to emerging difficulties and listens to parents' developmental concerns. Support follows a cycle of assessing needs, planning help, putting it into practice and reviewing progress. Children receiving SEND support have parent meetings with their teacher, supported by the SENCO, three times each year, giving families regular points to discuss outcomes and adjustments.

Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place and confers no nursery-attendance priority under the arrangements for the September 2026 intake. Families must make a separate application, even when their child already attends nursery.

The route is Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council, using the Local Authority Common Application Form. Apply by the normal closing date for the relevant intake: late applications are considered after those submitted on time. Treat choosing the nursery and applying for Reception as two separate decisions.

Morning sessions run from 8:40am to 11:40am; afternoons run from 12:20pm to 3:20pm. A full day runs from 8:40am to 3:20pm. These give families a choice between a shorter session and a day spanning both periods. The school describes its nursery provision as fully flexible.

Collection is from the front gate when the child's session finishes. For nursery enquiries or to arrange a visit, call 01642 787945. The same number is the contact route for childcare outside normal school hours.