The Hazlegrove Nursery is in the fortunate position of being within the secure environment of the pre-prep. It is adjacent to the Reception classrooms and has direct access to its own safe and exciting play area. Children are welcome from 2 1/2 years of age and the Nursery terms run in line with the rest of the school.
The Nursery aims to nurture each child and enable them to develop a sense of pride in themselves; in their own identity and in the way they behave. All children are encouraged to have a go and always try their best. They learn about the world around them through exploration and play.
In the Foundation Stage classes, each child will be assigned a key person who works alongside the class teacher, to support their development and act as a second point of contact with that child’s parents.
The holistic approach of the Early Years Foundation Stage is to help young children strive to achieve the five ‘Every Child Matters’ outcomes of:
- Staying Safe
- Being Healthy
- Enjoying and achieving
- Making a positive contribution
- Achieving economic well being
The Nursery day
All children attend sessions on a part time basis. Children are welcomed from 2½ and usually attend 2 to 3 mornings a week. They gradually build up their time with us over 1 to 2 years.
Morning sessions run from 8.30am until 12.00noon. Children staying for lunch will go to the dining room at 12.00noon for a meal prepared by our own catering staff including a hot main course. After lunch collection is by 1.30pm and those staying for the afternoon are collected at 3.45pm. For older Nursery children it may be possible to stay for after-school activities with the pre-prep children, subject to discussion with the nursery and pre-prep staff.
Activities
The children spend most of their time in the exciting and stimulating environment of the Nursery and its outside area. The children also go for lots of walks in and around the school and enjoy the wonderful woodlands in their Forest School. Activities for children in the Nursery include cooking, PE in the sports hall, dance in the dance studio, tennis, singing, Forest School, music with Mr Marquiss, swimming in our own 25m indoor swimming pool and termly trips off-site.
Parental Involvement
Parents are invited to:
- Join their child for swimming sessions.
- Take part in various trips throughout the year.
- Build friendships with other parents in the setting.
- Enjoy the Nursery ‘Family Hour’.
- Come along to Coffee Mornings.
Moving up to Reception
Children in the Hazlegrove Nursery are expected to move up to the adjacent Reception class in the September term when they are 4 years old - no separate application is required. We aim to run a couple of sessions introducing those children moving up to the Reception class (and those children joining Hazlegrove for the Reception class) towards the end of the Summer term each year.
Please click here to find out more about the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) for children aged 2 1/2 to 5 years old at Hazlegrove.