Consultation on Proposal for Nursery Provision
Introduction
Stansfield Hall Church of England / Methodist Church Primary School, is seeking to open a 15-place 3-year-old nursery provision and this consultation document sets out the proposal to implement it. In order to establish a nursery, it is necessary for the School to change the age range for which the school can cater for, from 4 - 11 to 3 - 11 years old. This would enable the school to provide Early Education and Childcare places to children aged 3 and 4 years.
The purpose of this consultation document
The purpose of this document is to provide information relating to the proposal to establish the nursery and to seek views of parents and the wider community to enable them to make an informed decision.
Objectives of the Proposal
Maintained nursery settings are based on school sites. They offer teacher-supported learning through play - based around the Early Years Foundation Stage curriculum for 3-4-year-olds prior to their entry into school. This proposal presents an exciting opportunity to offer high-quality education to 3-4-year-olds on-site with the added benefit of enabling a seamless transition into full time education at Stansfield Hall Church of England / Methodist Church Primary School.
Stansfield Hall is a mainstream Primary school and has 103 pupils on roll from Reception to Year 6 based on the Oct 2023 school census. The current age range of the children is 4-11 and does not include a nursery. The school has recently consulted on a reduction of its PAN from 20 to 15 with effect from September 2025 and subsequent admissions. This is as a result of falling rolls and low birth rates in the locality. As a result, the school has additional capacity to extend its EYFS offer through the addition of a 15 FTE place 3-year-old provision.
This provision will contribute to the Local Authority’s Early Help agenda, in a part of the borough where levels of deprivation are high. The objectives and benefits to the school and children of the Nursery Class are as follows:
- To facilitate better transition for the children.
- The school currently takes from a number of different settings which does not allow for efficient transfer of information and can lead to social and emotional difficulties when settling in to their new school.
- Early identification of vulnerable groups. This will mean that the needs of new children can be identified as early as possible.
- Early identification of speech and language difficulties that can be addressed earlier.
- Consistent baseline data. This will improve standards and outcomes for children because time saved on transition logistics will be spent on providing for their needs.
- There will be continuity of provision which will reflect the ethos and culture of the school.
- Current parents have expressed as desire for a nursery on the premises
- Developing strong and effective parental links from the earliest possible opportunity.
- Standards throughout school will be raised because older children will have opportunities to interact with younger children.
- Ease of access for families who already know and trust the school.
- The reduction of PAN and addition of a Nursery provision will enable the School to set its class structure moving forward which will in turn bolster our curriculum and avoid future uncertainty due to constant changes in class/Key Stage mixes which was identified as an area of weakness in the School’s most recent OFSTED inspection.
We welcome your support
This is an opportunity for parents, carers, staff, the local community and other people who have an interest in the school to respond to and ask questions on the proposal to establish the nursery. The consultation period starts on Friday 16th February 2024 and will end at midnight on Sunday 31st March 2024. You can state whether you support the proposal or not by completing the consultation questionnaire online by clicking on the link below:
https://consultations.rochdale.gov.uk/research/proposal-for-a-nursery-provision-at-stansfield-hal/
If you have any other questions regarding this proposal, please contact the School Office on 01706 378 273 or email office@stansfieldhall.rochdale.sch.uk
All views and responses will be considered after the consultation ends and the Governing Board will decide on the next steps.
What happens next?
The final decision as to whether this proposal is approved for implementation will be made by the Governing Board. The process for making significant changes to maintained schools can be viewed in more detail here: School organisation: local-authority-maintained schools (www.gov.uk)
It is anticipated that the opening of the nursery provision at Stansfield Hall will not require any additional accommodation or teaching groups and will require only minor staffing changes which can be accommodated within the school’s current structure.
Funding for the Nursery class will be through EYNFF 15- and 30-hour funding. It is also anticipated that some funding will be received through the Early Year Supplementary Grant and Early Years Pupil Premium Grant.
The class which will be a Nursery/Reception mix will be expected to open in September 2024 and will mean that the class structure moving forward for the school will be as follows:
Class 1 - Nursery / Year R
Class 2 - Year 1 / Year 2
Class 3 - Year 3 / Year 4
Class 4 - Year 5 / Year 6
With a maximum school capacity of 120.
