Nursery
Welcome to Willow Class!
Our thriving nursery is led by Mrs Louisa Fanstone, supported by experienced practitioners, Mrs Sally Harris and Mrs Sandra King. Children are nurtured and supported to learn in an exciting environment.
We are extremely fortunate to be able to offer a stimulating outdoor space, where children develop their movement. The nursery is very much part of the wider school, joining in with key events and celebrations.
Please look at the Willow Class page to find out about all the fun and exciting learning we are doing! We also have a virtual tour of the classroom 
Our next Open Morning for Nursery is on Thursday 18th April at 9.30am. Please contact our school office by emailing office.3181@benson.oxon.sch.uk or telephoning 01491 202502 if you would like to attend.
Nursery Admissions & Charges
Our nursery admissions policy is detailed below. We enrol children from 3 years of age and have three application windows throughout the year, where we allocate places according to our admissions criteria (these mirror the school places criteria that Oxfordshire County Council use).
Our nursery morning session runs from 8.45am to 11.45am, and afternoon session is from 12.15pm to 3.15pm. Lunch Club is always chargeable and runs from 11.45am to 12.15pm.
We offer the universal entitlement of 15 funded hours and we also offer the extended entitlement of 30 hours for those who qualify.
Charges (from Sept 2023) for non-funded bookings are £18.00 per session & £3.00 for lunch club
September 2024 admissions: all applications must be received by 30th April 2024. Decisions will be communicated before May half term
January 2025 admissions: all applications must be received by 30th September 2024. Decisions communicated by October half term
April 2025 admissions: all applications must be received by 31st January 2025. Decisions communicated by February half term
(Please note - April admissions are often extremely limited due to nursery capacity at this time of year)
Nursery application forms & information
Extended (30 hours) Entitlement and Tax-Free Childcare
Parents can apply for an additional 15-hours of free childcare per week if they are working & earning at least the equivalent of 16 hours at minimum wage. Applications are made through Childcare Choices - see link below.
Parents can also apply for a Tax-Free Childcare account through this route, which can be used to pay for any chargeable childcare. The government tops up any transfers made into this account by 20% and this has (largely) replaced the system of employer childcare vouchers.
Payments for Willow Nursery can be made using Tax-Free childcare or Childcare Vouchers - please ask Mr Pointer for more details on this or if you have any queries about these schemes.