Nurture
WHAT IS NURTURE?
Nurture is a tried and tested way of relating to children that helps them develop vital social skills, confidence and self-esteem. By developing and nurturing these skills children are then more likely to engage with learning, show improved behaviour and achieve higher attendance levels. The concept of nurture highlights the importance of social environments – who you are with and not who you are born to – and their significant influence on social and emotional skills, wellbeing and behaviour. The nurturing approach to education offers a range of opportunities for children and young people to engage with missed early nurturing experiences, giving them the social and emotional skills to do well at school and with peers, and to develop their resilience and self-confidence. It encourages pupils to take pride in achieving - addressing the social and emotional needs that can hamper learning.
We are always continually developing the nurturing culture within our school and aim to make sure our learning environment makes all our pupils, staff, parents and visitors feel happy, safe, valued and cared for. We are extremely proud to say that Greatstone Primary School received the National Nurturing Award in March 2025. The programme aims to enhance teaching and learning and promote healthy outcomes for our children. It focuses on emotional needs and development, as well as academic learning in a whole school environment. We constantly revisit these practices to make sure we are maintaining a higher level of nurturing provision.
We have also created a new nurture classroom. This space provides a stimulating and welcoming learning environment for children who may at times benefit from undertaking some of their learning in a small group. Mrs Harman and Mrs Heath, along with other adults will support the learning that will take place within the nurture classroom.
THE SIX PRINCIPLES OF NURTURE
Everything we do has been based on and guided by the Six Principles of Nurture including our National Nurturing Schools Programme.
The Six Principles of Nurture have successfully underpinned nurturing approaches for over 50 years and can be seen below:
Safety – Making sure our school is a safe place to be
Wellbeing – Believing in ourselves and promoting good self esteem
Language – Using words to express emotions and communicate
Transitions – Learning coping strategies to deal with changes
Learning – Understanding that everyone learns in their own way and in their own time
Behaviour – Understanding that behaviour can be a reflection of our feelings
THE GRADUATED APPROACH TO NURTURE
Our graduated approach to nurture ensures that every child in the school has the opportunity to flourish in their education. It ensures that every child has access to the support they need, when they need it. Through this approach, we work to measure and support the social, emotional and mental health of all children, so no child falls through the cracks.
The graduated approach focuses on: early identification of need, making sure the nurture approach is embedded throughout the whole school and then implementing interventions, group work or extra help where needed.
At Greatstone, we use Boxall Profiles to identify the SEMH areas of need so we can put strategies in place.
The Boxall Profile® is an evidence based tool supporting a whole school approach to assessing and addressing children and young people's social, emotional and behavioural development to positively impact learning, behaviour, attendance and wellbeing.
Each classroom is welcoming, has a cosy space (book corner), visual timetable and Zones of Regulations display.
Around school there are displays about the 6 Principles of Nurture that are shared with the children.
