Nursery schools and classes

Nursery schools have a trained teacher or headteacher in position and tend to offer a structured timetable focussing on educational activities. Frequently nursery schools are on the site of local primary schools but will still follow the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) framework.

Nursery schools, tend to offer early education for children aged between 3 and 5, compared to day nurseries which tend to provide early education for children from the ages of six weeks to 5 years.

Southampton nurseries will often have a variety of rooms for different aged children. Each room has a lead staff member who tend to remain with the same children.

Opening hours will vary between settings and nursery staff often work shifts to accommodate working families. They may be run by private businesses, local authorities, voluntary or community groups, schools, colleges or employers and vary in size from the very small (with just 15 or so children in the nursery) to large (with up to 150 children in the setting).

The nursery management team must ensure that each room in the nursery has the right number of qualified staff, depending on the number of children. The ratios all nurseries must work to are outlined in the regulatory frameworks. All nursery settings offer professional, registered childcare for children under 5.

Find a nursery school