A Message from the Head of Education

Guidance

Contents

A message from the Head of Education
Headteacher’s message
Establishment ethos, vision and values
Establishment information
Establishment security
Establishment calendar
Staff information
Establishment improvement
Pre-birth to 3 (ECC only)
Curriculum 3-18
Assessment and reporting
Policies and procedures
Additional Support for Learning
Transition
Parental involvement
Learning community
Wider community links
Otherinformation
Disclaimer

A Message from
the Head of Education

Thank you for taking the time to read this handbook.In writing the following pages, colleagues are attempting to do two things.The first is to provide you with the information you need so that your child can be given access to all of the services and facilities to which they are entitled.The second purpose is to seek and promote a genuine partnership with you as the main responsible adult in your child’s life.Without that partnership it will not be possible for your daughter or son to take maximum advantage of their education and so to fulfil their potential.Quite simply, we want the best for your child in exactly the same way you do.

My invitation to you is that should you have any doubts about your child’s progress or their entitlement to a service, then you should not hesitate to contact the school or early childhood centre.You are entitled to an explanation of anything that is of concern to you and staff will be very pleased to assist you with an answer to any question you have.All we would ask is that you do this with the courtesy that you yourself would expect.

I know your child will enjoy their time with us and they will learn and progress every day.However old your son or daughter, never be afraid to ask what they were doing today and whether they were having any difficulty or problem that we, or you, can help them with.By our working together in this way, I promise that your child will succeed and will have a great preparation for life.

Kindest regards

Alan Ward

Headteacher’s
message

Dear Parents/Carers,

We realise that starting nursery is a whole new experience and this may be your child’s first encounter with adults and children outside their own family circle.

Therefore we strive to make RiccartonEarly Childhood Centre a welcoming, happy place for your child. We will build upon the valuable learning that you have been providing for your child at home and like you, we will value and care for your child as an individual and encourage them to give of their very best in all situations.

We hope that the information in this handbook is helpful but if you require any additional information – please do not hesitate to contact myself or a member of staff at any time.

We look forward to welcoming you and your child to Riccarton Early Childhood Centre.

Yours sincerely

Teresa Porter

(Head Teacher)

Establishment ethos,
vision and values

Our Vision

At Riccarton E.C.C we strive for Excellence and aim to provide the highest quality care and education for all our children and their families.

Our Aims

We will seek to :-

Provide a safe, happy, nurturing and stimulating environment in which every child and all involved in their development will feel welcome, respected, valued and confident.
Provide a well balanced curriculum both indoors and out. Ensuring high quality and challenging play experiences that promote breadth, progression, depth, coherence, relevance, personalisation and choice.
Ensure thatthe experiences we offer take account of children’s personalities, interests and individual needs, therefore allowing them to develop to their fullest as confident individuals.
Encourage children to become responsible citizens and effective contributors to be involved in decision makingand encouraged to respect the worth of others and recognize that everyone has equal status and equal opportunities.
Establish and nurture a working partnership with parents and the wider community to work productively togetherto encourage innovative and forward thinking ideas to continually improve the service we provide.
Our aims and objectives reflect key principles of national Care Standards

Dignity

Privacy

Choice

Safety

Realising potential

Equality and Diversity.

At Riccarton E.C.C, strive to provide a warm, friendly, fun environment and parents and visitors often comment on the excellent ethos within the establishment. It is important that every individual is treated with equal respect and can learn and work in the knowledge that his/her contribution is valued irrespective of race, gender or disability.

We seek to do this by:-

Treating each child, parent, staff member as an individual.
Listening and talking to children, parents, community and each other as a staff team.
Planning curriculum activities to meet the needs of each individual child.
Promoting self esteem through Circle Time, celebrating birthdays, the arrival of new babies, ensuring that each child has his/her work displayed throughout the year.
Keeping parents and visiting adults informed about further education opportunities, through the notice board.
Providing Work Experience placements for school pupils and Further Education Students.

We celebrate children’s achievements through our weekly ‘Achievers of the week’ award. This includes wider achievements from outside the nursery and displayed for parents and visitors to see.

The centre has an important part to play in the community. We have an open door for anyone who needs our help and, in turn, receive a great deal of help in the form of practical assistance from the people in the community.

We invite members to our social events and concerts and visit elderly residents in the nursing home nearby. Here we present representatives of our chosen charities with an annual donation on behalf of the parents. Our Annual Easter parade allows the children to show off their beautiful bonnets to the surrounding neighbours and has been a popular event in our calendar.

We enjoy visits from the local fire fighters, community policeman, paramedics, school nurse, road safety officer and re-cycling officer throughout the year.

In partnership with vibrant communities we run a series of parent workshops throughout the year such as stay and play, healthy cookery, stress management and book bug. We can also offer information on adult education courses.

We regularly visit places of interest in the local area e.g. library, shop, garden centre, vets and Caprington woods.

We advertise information on a range of local services on the school notice-board.

We have a strong parent Committee group who regularly meet to organise fundraising activities to support the school.

Establishment
information

Establishment Name:RiccartonEarly Childhood Centre

Address:45 Campbell Place

Kilmarnock

KA1 4DY

Telephone:01563 535633

E-mail:

Present Roll:140 (70/70)

Capacity:140

Stages Covered:3-5 years

Denominational Status:Non-Denominational

Co-educational Status:Co-educational

Hours of Opening

Morning Session8.45am – 11.55am

Afternoon Session12.35pm - 3.45pm

Snack Time

Every day the children have a choice of milk or water and a wide variety ofhealthy snacks. Any child on a special diet will be catered for and our daily menu is displayed on the parent notice board

To encourage a nurturing environment where the children can develop choice, independence andself help skills, we have a group time snack in the middle of each session. This is also an opportunity for the children to relax, have a chat and to develop their social skills e.g. sharing, helping others and taking turns.

We follow national nutritional guidance “setting the table” and Adventures in foodland to ensure we provide healthy snack choices

Making an application and enrolment

East Ayrshire council will advertise when the registration period is for Early learning and childcare. You may wish to complete an application form prior to the registration period but this will not influence your eligibility for a place. Places are allocated according to the Early Years Admissions Policy and all priority applications must be approved by an Admissions Panel.

Parents will be informed by May 2016 if their child has a place for session 2016/2017. You will be asked to complete a starting booklet in order to inform us of your child’s interest’s e.g. favourite food and toys.

A date will be agreed for parents and child to come to visit the establishment and meet the staff prior to them starting, they will get an opportunity to look round the playrooms and outdoors and be informed of the opportunities on offer to the children.

Associated Primary Schools

Here at Riccarton we have strong links with all local Primary Schools. Every year children go off to many different schools with our main feeder primary schools being –

KirkstylePrimary School, Carron Avenue Kilmarnock Tel. 522321

Bellfield Primary School, Tinto Avenue Kilmarnock Tel. 521727

St. Andrew’s Primary School, Grassyards Road, Kilmarnock Tel. 549549

Loanhead Primary School, Dick Road Kilmarnock Tel. 522938

Making A Complaint

Should you wish to comment on or make a complaint about any aspect of provision made by the establishment, you should contact the establishment in the first instance. Our aim is to resolve as many complaints as possible at the first point of contact. If you remain dissatisfied, leaflets are available outlining stage 2 of EAC “complaints handling procedure”

You have the right to contact the Care Inspectorate with any complaint that you have about an early childhood centre. Please see part 2 of the handbook for further information.

Establishment
security

We are very conscious of security in the nursery.

During sessional times our doors are locked and visitors must ring the bell before being admitted by a member of staff.

Before entering the establishment a visitor who is unknown to the member of staff must first show proof of identity. They then sign in to the visitor’s book in the office.

It is expected that a responsible adult will bring a child to and from the nursery – and sign the child in and out each day.In the interests of your child’s safety, it is essential you should make a point of telling a member of staff if he or she is to be collected by someone not known to the Head of establishment or staff members. This is then written down in the Parent Information folder in the playrooms. This avoids difficult situations when a child cannot be allowed to leave with an adult who is a stranger to the staff.

If your child is not able to attend nursery, in the interests of safety could you please notify the nursery as soon as possible. Failure to do this will result in the nursery contacting parents to ascertain the reason for their child’s absence.

Establishment
calendar

First term beginsTuesday 16th August 2016(In-Service Day)

Pupils returnWednesday 17th August

Local HolidaysFriday 16th September and Monday 19thSeptember

Mid term breakMonday 10th October – Friday 14th October

In-Service Day Monday 17thOctober

Pupils returnTuesday 18thOctober

The centre will close for Christmas Holidays on Friday 23rd December

and will re-open on Monday 9thJanuary 2017.

Local HolidayFriday 10th February 2016

In-Service Day Thursday 16th February

In-Service Day Friday 17th February.

Pupils returnMonday 20th February.

The centre will close for the Easter Holidays on Friday 31st March

and re-open on Tuesday 18th April

May Day HolidayMonday1st May

Teachers (in Service) Thursday 4th May

Local Holiday Monday 29th May

The centre will close for the Summer Holidays on Thursday 29th June 2017.

Staff information

Head of EstablishmentTeresa Porter

Senior Early Learning and ChildcarePractionerLauren Gibson

Early Learning and Childcare PractionersChristine Hutchison

Tracie McDonald

Rita Van Rensburg

Pamela Stuart

Julie Clelland

Early Learning and Childcare Support WorkerIrene Sayers

Clerical AssistantSusan McLean

JanitorGillian Dick

Establishment
improvement

At Riccarton Early Childhood Centre we aim to continually improve our provision. Over the past twelve months we have many successes and achievements and we would like to thank staff, parents and partnership agencies for all their hard work and enthusiasm for making these improvements possible.

Below is an outline of our priorities for improvement and what we have achieved.

To continue to raise attainment in literacy and numeracy skills both indoors and out

New layout in nursery playrooms and additional 600hr service has increased children’s choice and freedom to access both playrooms extending opportunities, choice and depth to learning.

Homework literacy and numeracy bags:-

Children continue to show a keen interest and enjoyment in using these and good feedback obtained from parents.Improving access to literacy games/activities at home and raised attainment in phonological awareness and rhyme.

Increased attainment in literacy monitored through ELLAT screening programme.

Partnership links continued with Vibrant Communities department and 1+2 languages programmes implemented and well attended.

Weekly Book bug sessions for parents and children giving them the opportunity to participate in fun interactive sessions promoting stories, songs and rhyme.

The numbers of parents attending increased each week with excellent feedback from children, parents and grandparents and a noticeable improvement on listening skills.

A new tracking tool introduced to allow staff to link observations to learning outcomes and closely monitor children’s progress.

To continue to promote Health and wellbeing initiatives

All staff have been trained in Nurture and apply these principles throughout the nursery. We have devised Care Plans for each child and work very closely with the parents to set targets.We consult

We work very closely with partnership agencies, psychologist, SALT, Health visitors to ensure children’s needs are best met. We also invite buisinesses such as Dean Park rangers, KirstiesKritters, living egg programme to develop an understanding of animals and life cycles through interactive workshops.

We continued to provide parent workshops in partnership with Vibrant Communities.

We provided dance sessions and offered football coaching with our active schools co-ordinator. We are now able to offer indoor and outdoor physical play daily due to our new playroom set up and time table. We continue to implement the “oh Lila” substance and alcohol misuse programme andall staff have undertaken the e-learning module. Staff have updated their training on food hygiene, fire warden and administering medicines.

To continue to improve outdoor play provision and children’s opportunities to learn outdoors

Working in close partnership with parents, we have continued to raise funds and develop our outdoor learning environment.

A plot of waste ground has been excavated and top soil placed down. We obtained free trees from the woodland trust and families had the opportunity to sponsor a tree to make a lasting legacy by creating a woodland area that will be enjoyed by the community for years to come. This project is very exciting for everyone past and present in Riccarton and will be an ongoing development as funds become available.

The children and parents have enjoyed weekly visits to Caprington woods. The children have the opportunity to lean outdoors through a range of experiences, activities and seasonal changes and discovering nature.

To continue to use Self Evaluation as a tool for driving improvement

We have started to use the improvement science model and PDSA’s to carry out small tests of change and improve provision throughout the nursery. This is working well and as a result we have made significant changes to snack time, outdoor play and literacy skills.

We have explored the use of learning stories in the children’s folders and monitor children’s achievement and progression across all curriculum areas.

Pre-birth to 3 (ECC only)

Pre-Birth to Three- Positive Outcomes for Scotland’s Children and Families acknowledges the significance of the period before birth in terms of influencing children’s future outcomes and reflects the principles and philosophy which underpin the Early Years Framework and Curriculum for Excellence.

The guidance highlights the importance of attachment and attainmentfor young children to their parents and carers. It emphasises that all adults working with Scotland’s youngest children recognise that they have an important role to play in implementing the Early Years Framework, through giving all children the responsive care, support and respect which they need and they deserve.

Curriculum 3-18

At Riccarton Early Childhood Centre we ensure that we provide a Curriculum which is broad and balanced. We work with the experiences, outcomes and principles of ‘A Curriculum for Excellence’.

We develop and educate our children to become successful learners, confident individuals, responsible citizens and effective contributors.

Every fortnight staff plan the learning experiences for the children based on observations and tracking information gathered in the playrooms. Parents have the opportunity to contribute to our plans on parent planning boards and children are consulted regularly through our wish board, floor books,group circle time and mind maps. This ensures they have choice and their needs and interests are catered for.

We have two playrooms and a fantastic outdoor playground. We ensure that we make best use of space to provide play opportunities in designated areas within the eight curriculum areas. We ensure that there is a good balance between free choice and planned group activities and slick transitions. Our timetable also ensures that children can access to outdoor play daily throughout free play time.