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Hornsea Nursery School, Hornsea

Nursery
Local authority nursery school
Mixed
Ages 2–4

Hornsea Nursery School is a nursery school for pupils aged 2 to 4 in Hornsea. Its most recent Ofsted inspection, in February 2026, ended in a report card: 1 exceptional and 5 strong standard. Before that it was rated Outstanding at its last graded inspection, in October 2021.

Ofsted report card
6 of 6 areas strong or better
New inspections, open days and news, by email.

Data last updated 27 Oct 2026

Hornsea Nursery School in detail

What Ofsted's report card says

Ofsted's report card from its 3 February 2026 inspection grades Hornsea Nursery School on 6 areas: 1 exceptional and 5 strong standard. Report cards replaced single-word judgements in November 2025, on a five-point scale from exceptional to urgent improvement.

Inclusion - Exceptional. "Leaders' meticulous insight into child development has enabled them to design a highly effective approach to inclusion."

Achievement - Strong standard. "Children achieve highly across the 7 areas of learning."

Attendance and behaviour - Strong standard. "Leaders raise awareness of attendance with parents and carers."

Curriculum and teaching - Strong standard. "The school's inclusive approach has shaped the curriculum to meet children's differing needs."

Leadership and governance - Strong standard. "Leaders are forward-facing advocates for early years education."

Personal development and wellbeing - Strong standard. "Leaders make deliberate choices about the best activities to support children's personal, social and emotional development (PSED)."

Safeguarding standards were met.

Ofsted's next steps for the school: "Leaders should ensure the school's approach to child development responds to future challenges and changing cohorts so that children continue to achieve the best possible outcomes and are well prepared for their next steps".

Read the full report card on Ofsted's site (school website)

Source: Ofsted report card (Open Government Licence), quoted

What parents say

12 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Hornsea Nursery School (as of April 2026): 100% would recommend the school and 100% say their child is happy there.

The strongest agreement was that they are kept well informed about progress (100%); the weakest, that their child is happy at the school (100%).

Who goes there

In 2026, 11 pupils (15.5%) received SEN support and 0 (0%) had an education, health and care plan. The most common need among them is speech, language and communication needs.

Getting there

There is no railway, tram or Underground station within about three miles of Hornsea Nursery School.

8 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Hornsea Newbegin, 180 metres away.

The area around the school

In August 2026, police recorded 51 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, criminal damage and arson and public order offences. That is well above the typical figure around schools in East Riding of Yorkshire (31), as is usual near a town centre.

Sources: Ofsted Parent View; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime

Location

Key Information

DfE GIAS
Head:Mrs Claire White
Pupils:71
LA:East Riding of Yorkshire
Phone:01964534396
Address:Willows Drive, Hornsea, HU18 1DA
Status:open

Ofsted Rating

Ofsted · 8 months ago

Report card - no single overall grade (Ofsted's framework since November 2025)

Safeguarding standards met

  • InclusionExceptional
  • AchievementStrong standard
  • Attendance and behaviourStrong standard
  • Curriculum and teachingStrong standard
  • Leadership and governanceStrong standard
  • Personal development and wellbeingStrong standard

Safeguarding standards: met

Inspected 3 February 2026View full report
URN:117699
Diocese:Not applicable
Constituency:Bridlington and The Wolds
Urban/Rural:Larger rural: Further from a major town or city

Ofsted's report card, in its own words

What it's like to be a pupil at Hornsea Nursery School

Children flourish and thrive at this inspirational setting. Right from their first day in the school, children are immersed in a caring and nurturing environment. They are supported by warm, positive and trusting relationships with compassionate staff. This helps children to settle quickly and feel safe. Children know that staff will deal with any incidents of unkindness, including bullying. Leaders have meticulously designed every part of the school day to ensure it is adapted to meet children's needs. Staff explicitly teach routines and ensure that they are part of every child's learning experience, including toileting and eating. Staff speak gently and sensitively to children. This helps them to understand and manage their emotions. Staff identify children's needs quickly, and they have a deep insight into children's backgrounds and interests. They make sure that everyone is involved in the rich early years offer. This includes children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). If they need it, children have dedicated time for sensory exploration. Activities such as the indoor sandpit offer sensory experiences that help children regulate and feel calm. Children quickly learn to follow rules and stay safe. They engage deeply and enthusiastically with the purposeful learning activities. Children with SEND, disadvantaged children and those who are known to social care succeed with the right, targeted support. Children are immersed in songs and rhymes from the beginning of the day. They are immersed in wellbeing activities that teach them to be kind and look after themselves and each other. This ensures that children are ready for life in modern Britain. Children are happy and settled. In the outdoor area, even in cold and wet weather, they take part confidently in a range of engaging activities, including woodwork and the mud kitchen. Children quickly learn to be independent and follow well-established routines. They move freely and access their learning without adult direction. Staff use their interactions and careful questioning to extend children's thinking. Parents and carers value the support that their children receive to help them thrive.

What Ofsted says the school should do next

  • Leaders should ensure the school's approach to child development responds to future challenges and changing cohorts so that children continue to achieve the best possible outcomes and are well prepared for their next steps.

From Ofsted's report card (inspection 3 February 2026). Read the full report Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Ofsted Insights

From Ofsted's February 2026 inspection report.

What This School Does Well

Hornsea Nursery School creates a caring, nurturing environment where children flourish and feel safe from day one. Staff are exceptionally skilled at recognising each child's individual needs - whether they need extra support for physical development, emotional wellbeing or learning - and provide tailored help that enables all children to succeed. The school offers a rich, ambitious curriculum with exciting activities like woodwork, engineering projects and community visits that build children's confidence and prepare them brilliantly for Reception.

Key Strengths

  • Exceptional approach to inclusion with meticulous identification of children's needs and highly tailored support plans
  • Ambitious curriculum deliberately designed to build early learning in writing, reading, maths and communication with a strong focus on physical development
  • Outstanding personal, social and emotional development through rich experiences like woodwork, dance, yoga and community visits
  • Expert staff who use high-quality interactions and precise language to move children's learning forward
  • Strong leadership committed to research-informed practice and staff professional development

Safeguarding

Safeguarding standards are met - leaders have established an open culture where safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and concerns are actively identified, acted upon and managed.

Extracurricular Activities

Orchestra sessions, Lego Masters, yoga, woodwork, clay, dance, early engineering, beach visits, library visits, wind turbine visits

Hornsea Nursery School is an exceptional early years setting that has been rated with strong standards across all areas. Leaders have designed a highly effective approach to inclusion that precisely meets children's individual needs and supports them to thrive.

At a Glance

0.0%

Free School Meals

No

Boarding

Yes

Nursery

No

Sixth Form

No

Special Measures

What Parents Think

12 responses
Would recommend100%
Child is happy100%
Feels safe100%
Well behaved100%
Kept informed100%
Handles concerns (of parents who raised one)100%

Source: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at April 2026 - % who strongly agree or agree

Keep up with Hornsea Nursery School

Getting There

Bus Stops

Hornsea Newbegin (22000018)
176m · 3 min walk
Newbegin Museum and Parish Hall (22000019)
260m · 4 min walk
Hornsea Southgate (22001537)
269m · 4 min walk
Hornsea New Road (22000305)
292m · 5 min walk
Hornsea Market Place (22011689)
380m · 6 min walk

Free school transport

Check free transport to Hornsea Nursery School from your postcode →

You apply to the council where you live. Hornsea Nursery School is in East Riding of Yorkshire; for families living there:

Apply to East Riding of Yorkshire for free school transport. Its policy is on the council's website.

Safety and surroundings

Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)

Collisions
16
Fatal
0
Serious
3
Children hurt
5

Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 16 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 3 serious and 13 slight.

5 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 4 on foot and 1 in a vehicle or otherwise.

5 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 East Riding of Yorkshire is 6 (the median across 160 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.

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Commute and house prices

See commute times and house prices with Pro - £9 a month, or £90 a year, inc. VAT

Capacity & Demand

Area Demand Pressure - Hornsea

Low pressure
New homes approved:259
Projected new pupils:47

Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Hornsea

Across East Riding of Yorkshire council

Low demand council-wide0.85 applications per place

Places available

3,771

Applications

3,190

Got 1st preference

96.8%

Got preferred school

99.0%

All secondary applications across East Riding of Yorkshire council (2026/27), not just this school.

Inspection History(7)

3 February 2026Report card
Inclusion
Curriculum & teaching
Achievement
Attendance & behaviour
Personal development
Leadership & governance
12 October 2021
OutstandingReport
Quality of EducationOutstanding
Behaviour & AttitudesOutstanding
Personal DevelopmentOutstanding
Leadership & ManagementOutstanding
4 October 2018

SEND & SEN Provision

SEN Overview

11

SEN Support

0

EHC Plans

15.5%

of Total Pupils

2026 academic year

Provision & Specialist Facilities

No specialist provision recorded

Pupils by Need Type

Speech, Language & Communication7
Social, Emotional & Mental Health1
Hearing Impairment1
Physical Disability1
EHC Plan
SEN Support

Pupil Demographics

Ethnicity

White British
98.6%
Mixed
1.4%

2026 academic year

Key Indicators

Free School Meals0.0%
English as Additional Language0.0%

71

Total Pupils

34

Boys

37

Girls

2026 academic year

Workforce

4

Teachers

17.8:1

Pupil-teacher ratio

£80,371

Mean salary

2026 data

Questions parents ask about Hornsea Nursery School

What is Hornsea Nursery School's Ofsted rating?

Hornsea Nursery School's most recent Ofsted inspection, in February 2026, produced a report card, which grades each area but gives no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in October 2021, it was rated Outstanding.

What is the catchment area for Hornsea Nursery School?

No fixed boundary. When Hornsea Nursery School is oversubscribed, East Riding of Yorkshire allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.

How many pupils go to Hornsea Nursery School?

Hornsea Nursery School has around 71 pupils on roll.

How do I apply to Hornsea Nursery School?

Apply through East Riding of Yorkshire's coordinated admissions process, naming Hornsea 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 Hornsea Nursery School?

Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 16 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 3 serious and 13 slight. 5 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 4 on foot and 1 in a vehicle or otherwise. 5 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 East Riding of Yorkshire is 6 (the median across 160 schools, same distance and years).

Where is Hornsea Nursery School?

Hornsea Nursery School is at Willows Drive, Hornsea, HU18 1DA.

Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)

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