The FMS Inspection Score is FindMySchool's proprietary analysis based on official Ofsted and ISI inspection reports. It converts ratings into a standardised 1–10 scale for fair comparison across all schools in England.
Disclaimer: The FMS Inspection Score is an independent analysis by FindMySchool. It is not endorsed by or affiliated with Ofsted or ISI. Always refer to the official Ofsted or ISI report for the full picture of a school’s inspection outcome.
Nursery at Tynsel Parkes CofE Primary 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 If you spot anything outdated or inaccurate, please let us know.
Balance bikes, story props and a bridge built for Stick Man give this nursery its character: learning through movement, conversation and making things. The Caterpillars nursery belongs to Tynsel Parkes CofE Primary Academy’s Early Years Foundation Stage in Uttoxeter. Children can join from the term after their third birthday.
A nursery lead and nursery class support sit within the teaching assistant team, alongside early years support. The school’s Christian character also reaches nursery learning, with creation stories and Harvest celebrations included in its activities.
The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) brings together seven connected areas of development. Here, speaking and listening, physical skills and managing feelings form the foundations for literacy, maths, creative work and understanding the world. Adult teaching sits alongside activities children initiate themselves, with their interests helping shape learning.
The Autumn 2025 activities made those foundations concrete. Children counted beads into numbered cups, examined their faces in mirrors and made pictures using collage. Dough disco developed the small movements needed for writing. Small-group stories and practising longer sentences gave children opportunities to listen and express themselves.
Outdoor equipment adds a different kind of challenge. The autumn Stick Man work included moving planks and crates to construct a bridge, exploring balance bikes and making marks with leaves, stones and sticks. Indoors, puppets and story sacks support imaginative retelling; a story corner provides space for quiet rest. These are different ways to explore the same ideas through talk, movement and play.
Spring nursery-rhyme activities included copying patterns with instruments and recognising sounds through Read Write Inc. The nursery also used five and ten frames to explore numbers. In March 2025, early years teaching developed vocabulary such as camouflage and symmetrical, checking children’s understanding and changing the teaching when necessary. That gives a concrete example of language learning extending beyond naming familiar objects.
Settling begins before the first nursery term. Stay and play visits take place during the preceding term, and families meet Foundation Stage staff to discuss routines and the first term. Initial nursery activities include supported separation from adults and learning to share toys. Familiarity comes before independence.
Parents can use Evidence me to prompt conversations about what their child has done. For additional needs, staff identify children requiring support within EYFS and plan the help they need. The school uses an assess, plan, do and review cycle, with parent meetings each half term. Its sensory room is accessible to all pupils and provides a quiet setting with resources for sensory and emotional needs.
Healthy-food tasting and handwashing activities also form part of nursery learning. In March 2025, positive relationships helped early years children settle and feel secure. Separately, school-wide improvement priorities concerned checking phonics understanding and consistently supporting attention and behaviour; these were not separate nursery judgements.
Nursery attendance does not guarantee a Reception place. Families must apply separately through Staffordshire County Council by the normal application deadline. For the 2026/27 admissions cycle, nursery attendance does not confer priority.
A proposed change for 2027/28 would give priority to children who attended the school nursery and receive Early Years Pupil Premium funding. This remains a draft proposal, applies only to that qualifying group and would not guarantee admission. Keep the admissions decision separate from settling into the next class: summer transition days let children meet their next teacher and classmates, with individual arrangements for children needing more support.
The 2026/27 nursery arrangements provide a funded place of 15 hours per week from the first term after a child’s third birthday. Nursery applications are handled by the academy. Contact the office on 01889 221920 or email office@tynselparkesacademy.co.uk for nursery enquiries and current charges.
Children can join from the term after they turn three.
Activities include riding balance bikes, exploring climbing equipment and building with crates and planks.
Children can attend stay and play visits in the term before starting. Families also meet Foundation Stage staff to discuss routines.
No. A separate application through Staffordshire County Council is required. Nursery attendance gives no priority for 2026/27; a draft proposal for 2027/28 would cover nursery children receiving Early Years Pupil Premium funding only.
Speak to the class teacher or SEND coordinator. Support planning includes discussions with parents and half-termly reviews.
