Brunel Nursery School, Blackburn
Brunel Nursery School is a nursery school for pupils aged 3 to 4 in Blackburn. Its most recent Ofsted inspection, in May 2026, ended in a report card: 3 expected standard and 3 needs attention. Before that it was rated Good at its last graded inspection, in December 2013.
- Ofsted report card
- 3 areas need attention
Data last updated 26 Oct 2026
Brunel Nursery School in detail
What Ofsted's report card says
Ofsted's report card from its 19 May 2026 inspection grades Brunel Nursery School on 6 areas: 3 expected standard and 3 needs attention. Report cards replaced single-word judgements in November 2025, on a five-point scale from exceptional to urgent improvement.
Attendance and behaviour - Expected standard. "Leaders have established effective systems to track and monitor rates of attendance."
Inclusion - Expected standard. "Disadvantaged children and children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) have any barriers to their learning quickly identified."
Personal development and wellbeing - Expected standard. "Leaders provide a range of opportunities to promote children's personal development."
Achievement - Needs attention. "Some children do not achieve as well as they should in aspects of important knowledge and skills linked to early writing and mathematics."
Curriculum and teaching - Needs attention. "Leaders have recently developed a more detailed curriculum for this Nursery school."
Leadership and governance - Needs attention. "Leaders understand the strengths of the school and where improvements are needed."
Safeguarding standards were met.
Ofsted's next steps for the school: "Leaders should ensure that the curriculum accounts for those children who join the school working below age-related expectations"; "Leaders should ensure that staff consistently use assessment information to design and deliver learning activities that help children to build on what they already know"; "Leaders should ensure that children typically achieve well in all aspects of literacy and mathematics by the end of the Nursery Year"; "Leaders and governors should ensure that key areas for improvement are effectively prioritised and addressed in a timely manner"; "Leaders should review their systems for identifying and assessing children's additional needs, so that greater consideration is given to children who may have overlapping barriers to their learning".
Read the full report card on Ofsted's site (school website)
Source: Ofsted report card (Open Government Licence), quoted
Who goes there
0% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, and 94.1% speak English as an additional language, according to the 2026 school census.
The largest ethnic groups are Asian (88%), White British (6%) and Mixed (6%).
In 2026, 2 pupils (5.9%) received SEN support and 0 (0%) had an education, health and care plan. The most common need among them is autism.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Blackburn Rail Station, about 350 metres away (roughly a 4-minute walk).
13 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Jans Conference Centre (by), 160 metres away.
The area around the school
Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Brunel Nursery School stands in is among the 10% most deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.
In August 2026, police recorded 649 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and public order offences. That is well above the typical figure around schools in Blackburn with Darwen (289), as is usual near a town centre.
Sources: DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 5 months agoReport card - no single overall grade (Ofsted's framework since November 2025)
Safeguarding standards met
- Attendance and behaviourExpected standard
- InclusionExpected standard
- Personal development and wellbeingExpected standard
- AchievementNeeds attention
- Curriculum and teachingNeeds attention
- Leadership and governanceNeeds attention
Safeguarding standards: met
Ofsted's report card, in its own words
What it's like to be a pupil at Brunel Nursery School
Children happily come into school, eager to take part in the different learning activities available to them. Many children attend school regularly. Children learn how to share and cooperate. They work together to build models and to create imaginary games. This brings to life the school's motto of 'learning together'. Staff help children to understand their different emotions and how to manage these. Children who find this more challenging are supported well by caring and nurturing staff. Incidents of bullying are not something that children experience at the school. The positive relationships that children have with staff helps them to feel safe. Many children at the school speak English as an additional language. These children benefit from extra support that helps them to develop their use of spoken English. Disadvantaged children and children with special educational needs and/or disabilities receive the support they need to learn alongside their classmates. However, children do not achieve as well as they should. This includes developing some of the important knowledge and skills linked to early writing and mathematics. This limits how well prepared some children are for their next steps in education. Leaders and governors have not acted as quickly as they should to ensure that this is addressed. Children benefit from experiences that bring elements of the outside world into school. For example, children get to enjoy live shows from visiting theatre groups and performances put on by pupils from the nearby school. Children also begin to learn about important people in the local community and the roles that they serve. This includes by meeting police officers in school and by reading books about the fire service and other people that help us.
What Ofsted says the school should do next
- Leaders should ensure that the curriculum accounts for those children who join the school working below age-related expectations.
- Leaders should ensure that staff consistently use assessment information to design and deliver learning activities that help children to build on what they already know.
- Leaders should ensure that children typically achieve well in all aspects of literacy and mathematics by the end of the Nursery Year.
- Leaders and governors should ensure that key areas for improvement are effectively prioritised and addressed in a timely manner.
- Leaders should review their systems for identifying and assessing children's additional needs, so that greater consideration is given to children who may have overlapping barriers to their learning.
From Ofsted's report card (inspection 19 May 2026). Read the full report Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's May 2026 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
Brunel Nursery School is a warm, welcoming place where your child will feel happy and secure. Staff are caring and considerate, with particularly strong support for children with additional needs and those learning English as a second language. Your child will develop good routines, behaviour and independence skills, and benefit from a diverse curriculum that celebrates different cultures.
Key Strengths
- Strong safeguarding culture with all legal requirements met and children feeling safe
- Excellent support for children with SEND and disadvantaged pupils, with staff well-trained and barriers quickly identified
- Positive behaviour and attendance, with children learning good routines and settling well into school
- Caring and nurturing staff who support children's emotional wellbeing and personal development effectively
- Good support for children learning English as an additional language
Areas for Improvement
- Some children not making sufficient progress in early writing and mark-making skills
- Inconsistent teaching of early mathematics and number knowledge across the school
- Curriculum does not clearly set out what support children below age-related expectations should receive
- Staff not always clear about key vocabulary and next steps for individual children
- Leadership has not prioritised improvements in literacy and mathematics quickly enough
Safeguarding
Safeguarding standards are met - leaders have established an open culture where safeguarding is everyone's responsibility, all legal requirements are met, and children are kept safe and feel safe.
Extracurricular Activities
Live theatre shows from visiting theatre groups, performances by pupils from nearby school, meetings with police officers, learning about local community helpers
Brunel Nursery School is a nurturing environment where children feel safe and happy, with strong safeguarding and effective support for disadvantaged children and those with SEND. However, the school needs to improve teaching and progress in early writing and mathematics to better prepare children for primary school.
At a Glance
0.0%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
Yes
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby nursery schools
Keep up with Brunel Nursery School
Getting There
Train Stations
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Brunel Nursery School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Brunel Nursery School is in Blackburn with Darwen; for families living there:
Apply to Blackburn with Darwen for free school transport. Its policy is on the council's website.
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 68
- Fatal
- 1
- Serious
- 16
- Children hurt
- 9
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 68 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: 1 fatal, 16 serious and 51 slight.
9 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 5 on foot and 4 in a vehicle or otherwise.
11 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in Blackburn with Darwen is 24 (the median across 89 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Capacity & Demand
Area Demand Pressure - Blackburn
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Blackburn
Across Blackburn with Darwen council
Places available
2,284
Applications
2,116
Got 1st preference
78.9%
Got preferred school
94.1%
All secondary applications across Blackburn with Darwen council (2026/27), not just this school.
Inspection History(9)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
2
SEN Support
0
EHC Plans
5.9%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
34
Total Pupils
17
Boys
17
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
2
Teachers
17.0:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
2026 data
Questions parents ask about Brunel Nursery School
What is Brunel Nursery School's Ofsted rating?
Brunel Nursery School's most recent Ofsted inspection, in May 2026, produced a report card, which grades each area but gives no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in December 2013, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for Brunel Nursery School?
No fixed boundary. When Brunel Nursery School is oversubscribed, Blackburn with Darwen allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
How many pupils go to Brunel Nursery School?
Brunel Nursery School has around 34 pupils on roll.
How do I apply to Brunel Nursery School?
Apply through Blackburn with Darwen's coordinated admissions process, naming Brunel Nursery School on your application. The national closing date in England is 31 October for secondary places and 15 January for primary places, in the year before your child starts.
How many road collisions happen near Brunel Nursery School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 68 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: 1 fatal, 16 serious and 51 slight. 9 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 5 on foot and 4 in a vehicle or otherwise. 11 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in Blackburn with Darwen is 24 (the median across 89 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Brunel Nursery School?
Brunel Nursery School is at Cambridge Street, Blackburn, Lancashire, BB1 1ES.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)