Nursery provision for two-year-olds across Barrow is in the national spotlight on the BBC’s The One Show.
Victoria Infant and Nursery School is launching its new expansion of free childcare and were visited by a team from the prime time TV show.
The school has opened a new classroom with places for up to 15 two-year-olds at a time in a purpose-built environment complete with mini kitchen, reading area and outdoor space.
Headteacher Lindsay Grayless said they had decided to change the school’s age range to support children and their families in line with the Government’s expansion of free early education, which moved to 15 hours in September.
She said: “The aim is to enable the children to start sooner and ensure a smooth transition through into their school education.
“They will be working with our staff to help develop speech and language and early maths skills from an early age as well as socialisation.”
“The staff have been working hard to plan activities so the curriculum feeds naturally into everything we do here.”
The new nursery room has created an additional full-time teaching post and an apprenticeship and parents can benefit from the new funding for two year olds.
Reporter Ashley John-Baptise spoke to parents who welcomed the expansion.
He also spoke to South Cumbria Multi-Academy Trust CEO Professor Andrew Wren, who told him there are currently three or more children for every available childcare place in the area.
Prof Wren said: “As a trust, we want to offer high quality nursery provision with early intervention for those children who need additional support and to make a positive difference in the children’s lives.
“We are looking at extending the age range of our schools and will work with our communities. These term-time places are different to private nurseries and offer parents a choice to help meet their needs.”
Mick Cull is headteacher of Ormsgill School, also part of South Cumbria Multi-Academy Trust, and said when children attend nursery from two there is the potential to identify any special educational needs as early as possible.
“The earlier we can teach the children, we can identify any needs and put support and referrals in place.
“We also hope that the new funding will encourage more low-income households to access early years education and care and we will be working with our trust and our nursery partners to provide the best possible education for our children.”
The school was due to feature on The One Show yesterday, Tuesday February 11 at 7pm. The One Show is also available on the iPlayer.
