School Chooser

Norcot Early Years Centre

Nursery · ages 2-5MixedLocal authority nursery school118 pupilsNurseryReading
School Chooser ScoreNot scoredWe don't score this type of school.
OfstedOutstandingConfirmed by Ofsted, May 2024
Pupils from low-income families6%Far fewer than most schools
Pupils per teacher26.4School workforce census
Pupils on roll118Census January 2026

Norcot Early Years Centre is a local authority nursery school in Reading for boys and girls aged 2 to 5. It has 118 pupils. About 6 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far fewer than at most schools in England. Ofsted's last grade was outstanding, back in 2024.

82 Lyndhurst Road, Tilehurst, Reading, RG30 6UB0118 937 5577norcotearlyyearscentre.co.ukMrs Katarina Bingham headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

A shorter visit on 14 May 2024 found nothing to change the school's grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.

Outstanding overall. A shorter follow-up visit found nothing to change that. The last full inspection was before September 2019, which is as far back as Ofsted's public records go, so we can't show its date or the grades for each area.

Getting a place

Admissions policy not published.

Each council publishes its own figures on how many families applied and how far away the last child to get a place lived. We are adding councils one at a time. If you have a link to Reading council's admissions booklet, send it to us.

Who goes here

Who the school teaches, from the latest school census.

Pupils on roll118Census January 2026
Pupils from low-income families21%6% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English41%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support26%31 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan2%2 pupils with a plan
Boys and girls70 / 48
White British pupils25%

Specialist SEND provision. Resourced provision (extra staff and funding within a mainstream school) with 18 pupils, for autism, moderate learning difficulties, other needs, social, emotional and mental health, speech, language and communication.

To get a place in the unit or resourced provision, a child normally needs an education, health and care plan (EHCP) that names the school. Other schools in Reading with autism provision.

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: Other difficulty or disability (28), emotional and mental health (3), Vision impairment (2).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll11810299103109109
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals21%22%21%19%26%20%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language41%38%31%41%35%37%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support26%39%28%26%19%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans6%5%4%0%2%

Staff and money

From the government's count of school staff in November 2025 and the school's published accounts.

Teachers3.2full-time equivalent, 4 people
Pupils per teacher26.4Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers100%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants1.9full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£61,781
Teachers who left in the year0%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher2.52023/24

Money

From the council school accounts, year to March 2025. The per-pupil figures are compared with other primary schools in England that report their accounts the same way.

Spend per pupil£27,649England £7,738. Total £1.9m
Income per pupil£30,324England £7,697. Total £2.0m
Spent on teachers per pupil£3,648England £3,480
Money in reserve14%A healthy amount put by: £291k, £4,343 per pupil. England 6%
Money in against money out+£179kit took in more than it spent this year
Where the money goes£27,649spent per pupil

Reserves are the money left over at the end of the year, kept back for emergencies and big projects. Being in the red year after year is a warning sign. Very large reserves can mean money sitting in the bank instead of being spent on today's pupils. Academy figures are rounded to the nearest £1,000 and include a share of any money the trust holds centrally.

The area around the school

Crimes within 500 m33212 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate101 per 1,000 people10% higher than the England average
Typical house price£350,000Reading
Nearest bus stop100 mWeald Rise, 6 stops within 500 m

Crime figures come from police.uk. The police record each crime at the nearest of a fixed set of map points rather than the exact spot, so “within 500 m” is only rough. House prices are from HM Land Registry sales nearby over the last two years.

Nearby schools

The closest schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.

Well aboveAboveIn lineBelowWell belowNot scored
SchoolTypeDistancePupilsOfstedScore
Meadow Park AcademyAcademy740 m285Good 202313Compare
Ranikhet AcademyAcademy0.7 miles205Report card 20269Compare
Blagrave Nursery SchoolLocal authority nursery school0.7 miles61Good 2023Compare
Moorlands Primary SchoolCouncil0.8 miles286Good 202060Compare
English Martyrs' Catholic Primary SchoolRoman Catholic0.9 miles408Good 202465Compare
St Michael's Primary SchoolCouncil1.0 miles362Good 202314Compare
Westwood Farm Junior SchoolCouncil1.0 miles235Good 202242Compare
Westwood Farm Infant SchoolCouncil1.0 miles193Good 202329Compare

Questions parents ask

Is Norcot Early Years Centre a good school?

Norcot Early Years Centre doesn't have a score yet. Ofsted rated it outstanding at its last inspection in May 2024.

What is Norcot Early Years Centre's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted rated Norcot Early Years Centre outstanding at its last full inspection on 14 May 2024.

How many pupils does Norcot Early Years Centre have?

118 pupils aged 2 to 5 were on the roll in January 2026.

Does Norcot Early Years Centre have specialist SEND provision?

Yes. It has resourced provision (extra staff and funding within a mainstream school) for autism, moderate learning difficulties, other needs, social, emotional and mental health, speech, language and communication. To get a place there, a child normally needs an education, health and care plan (EHCP) that names the school.

These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.

Contact and details

Address
82 Lyndhurst Road, Tilehurst, Reading, RG30 6UB
Telephone
0118 937 5577
Website
www.norcotearlyyearscentre.co.uk
Headteacher
Mrs Katarina Bingham
Type of school
Local authority nursery school (Local authority nursery school, local authority maintained schools)
Phase
Nursery school, ages 2-5, with nursery
Gender
Mixed
Local authority
Reading
Ward
Kentwood
Constituency
Reading West and Mid Berkshire
Setting
Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
URN
109751 · LAESTAB 8701004

Where these figures come from