Lydalls Nursery School Handbook for Parents and Pupils

(Handbook Appendices)

Lydalls Nursery School Uniform (Optional)

Lydalls Nursery School is a Local Authority maintained nursery school, which has existed on its current site for over 70 years. The current building was opened in 1995 and it was further developed in 2001 to provide Daycare facilities for children aged 2-5. Lydalls Nursery School receives a regular full school Ofsted inspection.

What is a Maintained Nursery School and what makes them different?

A Maintained Nursery School is a local authority school that specialises in early years education. Like other schools, it is led by a Headteacher and a Governing Body with teaching and learning delivered by a team of teachers, nursery nurses and teaching assistants. Like all schools we are subject to regular rigorous Ofsted inspections. In a Maintained Nursery School the Headteacher and the teaching team are all early years specialists. This makes our provision very special indeed.

Children’s well-being and involvement is at the heart of our work. We use our deep understanding of how children learn to deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage curriculum and ensure that children make great progress from their starting points by using our assessments to plan for next steps in their learning.  Our knowledge of child development means that we think ‘stage’ rather than ‘age’. This means that we can support and challenge the wide range of children who we work with.

Maintained Nursery Schools also focus on developing and supporting children’s dispositions and attitudes to learning at a time when they are actively curious and questioning. Staff are highly skilled at extending children’s learning ‘in the moment’ by making a comment, asking an open ended question or offering an alternative point of view.

Maintained Nursery Schools place a great deal of emphasis on developing a high quality, stimulating environment for early learning, both indoors and outdoors, through play, problem solving and exploration. The environment and the Nursery routine is very carefully planned to provide a balance between child initiated and more structured, adult led learning. At Lydalls Nursery School we have invested very thoughtfully in fixed outdoor equipment that allows the children to challenge themselves physically in a carefully managed way. We have also created special areas inside, such as our sensory room and our book den. Pictures of the learning environment at Lydalls are regularly posted on our Facebook page.

There are six Maintained Nursery Schools in Oxfordshire and we work increasingly closely together. As specialists, we often lead and deliver training for colleagues in other settings across Oxfordshire. At Lydalls Nursery School we have particular expertise in speech, language and communication and literacy.

The Nursery School offers a funded education place for children from the term after their 3rd birthday until the term during which they turn 5 years of age. Children’s names may be placed on the waiting list for Nursery from their 2nd birthday. The Nursery provides 60 places per session. The Nursery is open from Monday to Friday during term time. Term Dates and Holidays are displayed in the entrance hall and on this website.

Children are offered a part time place of either 5 mornings or 5 afternoons per week for a total of 15 hours per week. We do not split the 15 hours universal entitlement with any other setting or provider. Limited additional sessions are available – lunch club is provided in an integrated way by our Chameleon Club. There is a charge for these sessions. If your child has taken up the 30 hours offer a top-up charge for lunch time (11.45-12.45) will apply. You have the option of collecting your child and taking them home for lunch if you prefer.

There is no charge for Nursery School sessions, although we do request a weekly, voluntary donation of £1.50 to help purchase expendable resources.

We work closely with, and receive regular visits from a range of support agencies, including educational psychologists, speech and language therapists. Lydalls Nursery School works in partnership with local pre-schools and the Didcot Partnership of Schools. The Nursery is used as a training placement for teachers, nursery nurses and work experience students. We are also used as a model of good practice by the Local Authority. Parents and members of the local community are encouraged to come in to school to support our work.

If you would like to know what our Parent Community think about Lydalls please see some of their comments below:

“As an EYFS lead I visit lots of nurseries during transition, none of them compare to Lydalls. I love the learning environment and feel that my daughter has made amazing progress, particularly socially with her confidence. Her key worker is brilliant too! We feel so lucky she has had such a magical start to her education” Parent Comment 2024

“My child has had an amazing time at Lydalls, thank you to everyone who has been a part of his journey. He especially loved some of the ‘extra’ things e.g. weekly Forest School with a fire and woodwork and hot chocolate etc as well as the opportunity to grow fruit and vegetables in the garden” Parent Comment 2024

“Our child has been well supported and really grown in confidence during her time at Lydalls. She has really enjoyed Forest School and all the creative activities on offer and has been so proud of all the work she has brought home. We are so grateful to all the staff for the time and nurturing you have put in to her during her time at Lydalls. Thank you” Parent Comment 2024

“I believe you are the best Nursery in Didcot, and maybe in the world!” Parent Comment 2024

“My daughter really enjoyed her time in Lydalls Nursery. She loved playing and learning and especially Forest School. Her English has improved massively in the last 2 years while at Nursery and she became more social and less afraid of socialising. Thanks to all of the staff at Lydalls. We will miss you all” Parent Comment 2024

“If we could stay forever we would” Parent Comment 2024

“If I could pick up Nursery and move it closer to our new home I would absolutely not be leaving. I love everything you have and the variety of activities, the space, the Forest School, the staff, the list goes on. She has loved her time with you and it’s been a pleasure seeing how much she has grown in a short space of time. I’ve loved seeing her creations, especially the Forest School ones, and hearing her talk so fondly about her experiences with you. We will both miss everyone so much and Lydalls will always hold a special place for me as my girls first learning setting. Thank you all so much for your support” Parent Comment 2024

“My daughter had such a wonderful time at Lydalls Nursery School. She was excited for each day. She loved playing in the sand, climbing and painting with her Teacher. After checking out the pictures in Tapestry it’s no wonder she is always so tired when she gets home! We really want to thank everyone at Lydalls for taking such great care of her. We’ll always cherish the warm welcome and the family like atmosphere at Lydalls. Thank you to all the staff” Parent Comment 2024

“Words cannot express how grateful I am for the positive influence you have had on my child. To all the staff, thank you for being a guiding light through his educational journey. I witnessed my son’s progress and it was amazing. Everything he has learned he will definitely carry in to his new school and for the rest of his life as he grows up. Thank you for helping my child to explore new things and new ways of doing things. You are all such wonderful Teachers!” Parent Comment 2024

“My child was always very excited to go to Nursery. She seemed to particularly enjoy her friendships that developed over her time there. I really appreciate the help and advice from the staff about helping her become more independent and “using her words”. We have really been able to see her personality shine through and see how good she is at making friends” Parent Comment 2024

“My son really enjoyed his time at Lydalls. He always comes home with lots to tell us about the fun things he has done throughout the day. He has really come out of his shell during his time at Nursery. He started off being quite tearful and just wanting to sit on his own and now he doesn’t have time to say a proper goodbye before he is off playing! I just can’t believe how much he has grown in confidence and how much more he socialises with other people. Thank you for all you have done for him over the last year. He will really miss it!” Parent Comment 2024

“Thank you for the lovely detailed report. It was lovely to hear about her strengths over the year and also about the progress she has made with areas she finds more challenging. We are extremely grateful for the nurturing support she has received this year. She absolutely loves coming to Nursery and we have loved hearing about all the wonderful learning experiences you have created. She is so sad she won’t see you in September. She is going to miss you lots” Parent Comment 2024