Totley Primary School, Sunnyvale Road, Totley, Sheffield

Telephone: 01142364319

Email:

Web address:

Enquiries version

Address: Wizz Kids, Totley Primary School, Totley, Sheffield, S17 4FB

Phone: 0114 2364319

Our aim is to:-

  • Provide high quality care and education for children
  • Work in partnership with parents to help children to learn and develop
  • Add to the life and well-being of the local community
  • Offer children and their parents a service that promotes equality and values diversity.

We offer your child:-

  • a safe and stimulating environment
  • generous care and attention - high ratio of qualified staff to children
  • a chance to join in with other children and adults to live, play, work and learn together
  • help to take forward her/his learning and development by being helped to build on what she/he already knows and can do
  • a key person who makes sure each child makes satisfying progress
  • a setting that sees parents as partners in helping each child to learn and develop
  • a setting in which parents help to shape the service it offers

Term Dates and Holidays for Academic Year 2016/2017

Summer Half Term 1 4th April – 27th May 2016

Spring Bank Holiday 30th May – 3rd June 2016

Summer Half Term2 6th June – 19th July 2016

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Autumn Half Term 1 5th Sept – 21st October 2016

Autumn Half Term Holiday 24th October – 28th October 2016

Autumn Half Term 2 31st October – 16th December 2016

Christmas Holiday 19th December – 30th December 2016

Spring Half Term 1 3rd January – 17th February 2017

February Half Term holiday 20th February – 24th February 2017

Spring Half Term2 27th Feb – 7th April 2017

Easter Holiday 10th April – 21st April 2017

Summer Half Term1 24th April – 26th May 2016

Spring Bank Holiday 29th May – 2nd June 2017

Summer Half Term2 5th June – 21st July 2017

Closed - Bank Holidays (Nursery Closed)

2nd Jan 2017, 14th and 17th April, 1st and 29th May 2017, August 28th 2017

Christmas Opening To Be confirmed, Bookings available to Full Year Contracts only !

A holiday club is run to cover every other holiday period. The club caters for children aged 0 – 11 years and must be booked separately unless you are on a full year contract.

Opening Times

Monday – Friday 7.30 am – 6 p.m

Staff and their responsibilities

We are proud of the high ratio of adults to children in our group. This ensures individual attention to help the development of each child.

We work with an equal opportunities employment policy. We are committed to recruiting, appointing and employing staff in accordance with all relevant legislation.

The regular staff members are:

Alison VickersManagerN.V.Q in child care and education

Level 3

Jane PrestonDeputy ManagerEarly Years Professional

Jayne Ives Early Years Practitioner Diploma in pre-school practice

Level 3

Hannah Marsh Early Year PractitionerEarly Years Degree

Julia Dixon Early Years PractitionerN.V.Q level 3

Diana Smith Early Years PractitionerN.V.Q level 3

Danielle Marples Early Years PractitionerN.V.Q level 3

Clare O’Leary Play workerN.V.Q level 3

Kirstina Parton Early Years PractitionerN.V.Q level 3

Helen Hodgkinson Early Years PractitionerN.V.Q level 3

Christina Colledge Early Years PractitionerN.V.Q level 3

Natalie Baxter Early Years Practitioner N.V.Q level 3

Emma Caterer Early Years Practitioner N.V.Q level 3

Veronika Polackova Early Years Practitioner N.V.Q. level 2

Tracey O’Brien Playworker

Brenda Williams Playworker

Connor Bingham Playworker

Clare O’Leary Play workerN.V.Q level 3

Charlotte Rooney Play worker

Annabelle Cameron Apprentice working towards N.V.Q. level 2

All our staff are trained in First Aid, which is updated every 3 years, under go checks with Disclosure and Barring Service when employed and fully trained in Safeguarding issues.

Training

We ensure that we are constantly in touch with new thinking in the field of child education

and care. We receive all the latest information on relevant training opportunities. All training undertaken is with recognized bodies.

Environment

Our rooms are organised in a way that the children can become familiar and confident in their surroundings. We have found that the sooner this happens, the quicker they settle and begin to enjoy nursery.

We organise the time the children are with us so that they can take part in a variety of child-chosen and adult-led activities. These take account of children’s changing energy levels throughout the day. The setting caters for the children’s individual needs for rest and quiet activities throughout the day.

They have free flow access to outside play areas. The children benefit greatly from free flow play and being able to mix with older or younger children so we have times when this is accommodated, always taking into account the safety needs of the all the children.

Our environment allows children to re visit activities and enhance on them at their own pace. It doesn’t rush children along but identifies when a child is ready to take further steps.

We plan based on the children’s interests and abilities and this is made possible by staff undertaking informative observations and understanding the importance of valuing the child within group. We show the learning to the child but the child shows us the way.

This way all the children are learning and developing in the best possible way, a happy, confident way which will hopefully stay with them throughout their lives. If you would like to know more about the Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum please do not hesitate to ask.

Links with Totley Primary

Wizz Kids is positioned in the grounds of Totley Primary School. Although we are completely independent from the school, the excellent logistics mean we can give the children opportunities to learn about a school environment irrelevant of which school they will attend.

Please note : attending Wizz Kids does not mean your child will be granted a place at Totley Primary and it will not influence any admission decision.

Record Keeping and Key persons

For older children we do not send home daily written feedback sheets, unless specifically requested as we strongly feel that having a conversation about your child’s day with a member of staff is much more constructive, feedback sheets often become just a tick sheet. Please feel free to talk to us about your child’s time with us at any time. We do provide a home/nursery diary for children under 3.

We do not hold large parents evenings on set dates because we like to be able to fit our meetings around you and your family’s schedule. You will be invited throughout the year to make an appointment to suit you to meet with your child’s key person.

We use a computer software system called TAPESTRY to compile and store all children’s learning journeys. TAPESTRY is completely secure and is used in Schools and Early Years Settings. This system allows greater efficiency in both time and presentation. We download assessments and observations to each child’s learning journey. We can store text, videos, audio and photos as evidence your child’s progress.

The system also allows you to securely view your child’s progress and learning, you can also upload any possible evidence for us through photos or text.

If you have any questions regarding this system do not hesitate to contact us.

Information gathered and inputted into the child’s learning journey does depend greatly on how often they attend Wizz Kids. A child who attends only one session a week will not have as comprehensive a file as a child who attends 5 sessions.

When a child also attends another child care provider we liaise once a term with them to gather their input on your child’s development.

Your child’s key person will work with you and any other childcare provider involved with your child, to collect information about your child’s needs, activities, interests and achievements, this will ensure we offer the appropriate learning opportunities to each child individually and how to help them move on to next steps confidently

We are only a small group therefore have the benefit of being able to build close relationships with all our families and we would like to stress that no matter how many written systems are in place to share information they cannot replace talking freely face to face with staff about how your child is enjoying their time at Wizz Kids.

Fees

£4.50 per hour for under 2 year olds. Rising to £4.75 per hour in Spring 2016

£4.20 per hour for over 2 year olds. Rising to £4.45 per hour in Spring 2016

We charge for every hour used.

Every child will receive Free Learning Entitlement (Nursery Grant) the term after they are 3 years old. This entitles them to 15 hours per week or part of a 15 hours if split with another provider, 38 weeks a year completely free. Please note that you can only claim the Grant from a maximum of 2 different settings. For further details please ask.

We can also accept 2 year olds who are entitled to Free Learning Entitlement. For more information about whether your 2 year old meets the criteria to receive free funding contact Sheffield City Council either by email: www.sheffield.gov.uk/freeearlylearning or by phone: 0114 273 4567.

Fees are to be paid in advance every month, 4 weeks notice must be given if you decide to leave nursery. Fees can be paid in various ways but we can only accept cash payments in exceptional circumstances.

To be able to maintain a suitable staffing ratio, for children attending Wizz Kids in term time only there can be no refunds for illness or holidays etc. Refunds will only be given if the nursery should fail to open e.g. extreme weather conditions.

For children attending all year round there is 3 weeks holiday allocation not including the week we are shut during the Christmas period or Bank Holidays. Holidays must be booked with a half terms notice. Subsidized places are always available for families who find the fees too high. Please do not hesitate to ask about these places and other forms of funding such as the Family Tax Credit, which can be used to pay up to 70% of your childcare costs.

Wizz Kids is registered to receive Childcare Vouchers and if you are employed it is worth enquiring about them with your employer. It is a government scheme which allows you to pay for childcare from your PRE tax and national insurance salary. For further information go to .

Flexible childcare

We aim to be as flexible as possible to accommodate parents` childcare needs .

Our day can be split into numerous time slots and you can use these in any combination that

suits you and your child, but all sections must be booked in advance per term on one of our

booking forms. Note bookings must be spread over a minimum of 2 days.

‘Out of School Clubs’

Our ‘Out of School Clubs’ include older children from both Totley Primary and Totley All Saints School. We offer Early Bird care from 7.30a.m and After School Care until 6p.m during school term tmes. Our policy for Early Birds club has been recently updated as we have found balancing the high number of full time nursery children with older children increasingly difficult. We therefore ONLY offer Early Bird Club to children from All Saints, children with siblings in the nursery and to FS2 children at Totley Primary. Totley Primary runs its own breakfast club .

We also offer Holiday Care for children with siblings at nursery which enables more flexibility for working parents. We are recommending other enquiries be sent to an alternative holiday scheme called `Play In Dore `(open to all children regardless of school attended) 8a.m-6p.m tel. 07592112520. We offer a limited Christmas holiday club which is confirmed on an annual basis.

Starting at Wizz Kids

A child who is tense and unhappy will not be able to play or learn properly, therefore it is important for parents and the staff to work together to help the child feel confident and secure in the group. This takes longer for some children than others and parents/careers should not feel worried if their child takes a while to settle. You will be asked to fill out a registration form and a pre-admission information form prior to your child starting to enable us to understand and meet your child’s individual needs whilst with us.

Nappies and Toilet Training

Nappies etc. must be supplied if your child is not yet toilet trained. This includes any Nappy Rash Creams, Wet Wipes, Nappy Sacks as well as the nappies themselves. Each child has a named draw in which their supplies will be kept for their sole use. There is a charge of 50p per nappy if we have to use one from our stocks.

For children who are new to toilet training we offer support and advice and will operate

various methods of encouragement to make this a positive development.

Sleep and rest

We will gather information from you on your child’s sleep or rest needs and will endeavor to accommodate these where ever possible. We have a designated room in which children can obtain a sleep away from the main play areas. This room is equipped with cots and a sleep tent so that children can access a sleep independently should they wish. For their comfort we do not recommend that children sleep in a buggy or car seat.

Snack time

Fresh fruit, milk and water are constantly available to the children. The children have a choice on the kind of other snack they would like.

Lunch and tea time

On the pre-admission form there is space for you to tell us all about your child’s individual feeding pattern and dietary needs. Lunch time will generally be held between 12p.m-1p.m. May differ for under 2’s.

If your child is staying for lunch you can send them with a lunch and drink or purchase a hot school dinner which we collect from the school. There is an extra cost for this option and the meals are not suitable for children under the age of 18 months.

For the over 2’s if you wish your child to have tea with us we would prefer that they have a hot school dinner at lunch time and have sandwiches etc. for tea.

We do not have the facilities to prepare and cook any types of food on the premises!

Bottles, cups and formula milk must be supplied by you and clearly named. Formula milk must be in an air tight sterile container.

There is always an additional snack/meal served at about 4p.m for those staying for the longer day.

Inclusion

Our group aims to adhere to the DfEE Special Educational needs and disabilities code of practice 2014 and the Children’s and Families Act 2014, to provide inclusive learning opportunities for all children. Children with special needs will be admitted to Wizz Kids after consultation between parents/carers and Nursery leaders

The committee

Wizz Kids Nursery is a registered charity and run by a parent committee. The committee is elected yearly and meets approximately once a term. No special expertise is required, only enthusiasm and an interest in how the group is run. All meetings are held in a friendly environment and every one given a chance to have their say.

The duties of the committee vary from arranging coffee mornings and fund raising activities to setting the groups policies and the recruitment of staff. The manager is employed to run the group on a day-to-day basis and feeds back to the committee at any meetings.

The committee forms the backbone of the group and it is very important we keep it as productive as it is at present. To ensure this we are always in need of new members. If at any time you feel able or willing to serve on our committee please do not hesitate to contact either the present chair or the manager of the group. Serving on the committee gives you chance to make a difference. If you do not feel you would like to serve on the committee but you have an issue you wished to be raised you can contact any of the present committee member listed below. Contact

Alison Vickers

Hazel Davies

Kim Stilwell – treasurer

Fran Arnold – secretary

Sarah Stevens

Helen Dobson – designated safeguarding lead

Amy Clarke

Liz Raynor

Laura Glover

Julie Fowell- chair

A Guide to the Early Years Foundation Stage Framework

Our Nursery is registered to deliver the EYFS (Early Years Foundation stage) framework. This is a very important stage as it helps your child get ready for school as well as preparing them for their future learning and successes. From when your child is born up until the ages of 5, their early years experience should be happy, active, exciting, fun and secure; and support their development, care and learning needs.

The EYFS Framework exists to support all professionals working in the EYFS to help your child and has developed with a number of early years experts and parents.