Dorton House Nursery

Early Years Support

A child from Dorton House NurseryEvery parent wants the best for their child and to give them the chance to fulfil their potential. It’s no different if your child is visually impaired; it’s just that you have to go about things differently.

RLSB’s Dorton House Nursery in Seal, Kent, has long held a reputation for excellence and affordability. Established over 20 years ago, our Nursery supports blind and partially sighted children aged between two and five who may also have additional needs.

One of the only nurseries in the country to cater specifically for blind and partially sighted young children, it has received the highest Ofsted rating of Outstanding at every inspection.

A personalised approach

We offer a rich multisensory curriculum so your child will have fun whilst they learn vital skills, helping them to become more independent. The nursery is purpose built, and run by our highly trained and experienced staff who assess each child’s needs to create an individual programme for them.

We follow the Early Years Foundation stage curriculum, adapted to meet the needs of each child. Working closely with parents, we stimulate a child’s residual vision, helping new pathways form in the brain. We support the building blocks for later life:

  • Language development
  • Socialisation skills
  • Ease of movement and mobility
  • Self help

Drop-In Days

Our Drop-in Days are informal friendly sessions for families of children who are blind or partially sighted, including those who have additional needs. If you have a baby or preschool child, do join us and other parents for support, advice and to share experiences – there’s no need to book.

Flexible hours, to fit around you and your child’s needs

Some children attend a mainstream or other specialist nursery for part of the week and come to us as a shared placement. We also promote excellent links between our specialist provision and other nurseries to ensure that communication aids the development of the child (whole day or half day placements are available):

  • We provide the support you and your child need
  • Individual and group work to aid early learning, communication skills and confidence
  • Dark and light sensory rooms for visual stimulation and assessment
  • Physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech and language therapy
  • Weekly music therapy group
  • Mobility training
  • Skills for independent living
  • Environmental outings and links with the local community
  • Expert support & understanding

How to apply

Come and see the nursery for yourself at one of our open days. Or if you’d like to discuss how your child may benefit from visiting RLSB’s Dorton House Nursery, please get in touch today by contacting us on 01732 592681 or nursery@rlsb.org.uk.

New parent and toddler group in Greenwich

We have a new parent and toddler drop-in group starting in Greenwich which will be open on Fridays. Find out more.

The Little Heroes Nursery Appeal – video

We have launched a new campaign called The Little Heroes Nursery Appeal which aims to raise £100,000 in 100 days to help us expand our specialist nursery care for blind and partially sighted babies and toddlers. Find out more about the campaign by visiting www.littleheroesappeal.com. Watch the video below which will give you an insight into how we are making a difference to the lives of blind babies and todddlers. The video features Archie, a little boy who attends our nursery.