WELCOME TO OUR NURSERY
Mission Statement
“We aim to provide a high standard of quality care and specialist Early Years education to raise standards into compulsory education.”
The Nursery
Children 4 Most caters for 95 children between three months and five years. We are situated on Cemetery road Audenshaw and are in close proximity to DentonTown centre and the motorway network. We are also in a convenient position for people travelling to Manchester from local towns. The nursery is a single storey building set in its own beautiful spacious grounds. It is surrounded by trees, woodland and nature, creating an air of peace and tranquillity. This idyllic setting is a perfect environment for your child to enjoy play, physical exercise, exploration and discovery. Children 4 Most is a friendly family run nursery that prides itself on its endeavour to provide high standards of quality care and education. We believe that care and education are inseparable and a loving atmosphere fostered by good relationships between home and nursery helps a child feel happy, settled and secure in their life. All our staff promote this practice and the care and welfare of the child is of utmost importance during their time at our nursery.
The Management Team
Children 4 most have a well qualified experienced management team.
Sheila Baldwin Owner/Manager
Sheila is our Business manager and takes care of Personnel
Alison Davies BA Hons PGCE Owner/Manager
Alison has a BA Hons degree in English and is a qualified teacher with an early years specialism. She is also NNEB qualified.
Nicola Sullivan BA Hons PGCE Owner/Manager
Nicola has a BA Hons degree in English and is a qualified teacher with an early years specialism.
Alison and Nicola have many years experience working in nurseries and schools.
Gail Baugh BA Hons Childhood StudiesEarly Years Lead Practitioner
Gail, our early years lead practitioner has a first class honours degree in childhood studies and has the highly regarded Early years Professional status. Gail has over fifteen years experience of working in Childhood settings and has worked for Children 4 Most for ten years. Gail works throughout the chain of nurseries providing support to the staff and families.
Jenny Scott BA Hons Early Childhood Studies Nursery Manager
Jenny graduated with her BA Hons degree in Early Childhood Studies in July 2015 and has worked for Children 4 Most for eight years. Jenny is in charge of the day to day running of the nursery.
Staff in the nursery
In order for us to support your child’s development in the best possible way our staff team are chosen not only for their qualifications but also for their experiences in, and approach to childcare. They all attend regular training courses both externally and in house which enables them to develop their knowledge and bring new ideas and best practice to their daily work – ideas that will also benefit your child. We operate using the Key Person system. Each child has a Key Person who will look after his/her individual needs. This provides parents and children with a special person they can relate to.
Staffing Ratios
0-2 years 1:3
2-3 years 1:4
3-5 years 1:8
Partnership with parents
We recognise that you are the prime educator of your child and would like to embrace this and develop a close relationship with you to help your child to achieve their full potential. We operate an open door policy and all parents are welcome at any time during the day. Our friendly staff team will always make time to discuss your child’s development or other aspects of nursery
life with you. All children receive a daily diary of their nursery day and activities they have participated in. This gives home and nursery the opportunity to share information about your child on a personal basis. We also hold regular parents information evenings where parents are invited to look at their children’s achievements, learning and development while enjoying a social evening with staff and Management. Aparent’s information board and table are situated opposite the Baby Room to keep parents informed of nursery issues. You will also find our own information leaflets and our regular newsletter here. A suggestions box is on the table where you may wish to comment on our services or make suggestions on improvements we could make to improve our service to you.
Equal Opportunities
Children 4 Most are committed to promoting equal opportunities within the nursery. We always strive to make all our children, parents and staff feel welcome at the nursery and everyone is treated equally, with great consideration given to individual needs. No discrimination will be tolerated towards anyone regarding race, religion, culture, language, gender or disability.
Customer care and complaints
We endeavour to resolve any problems or concerns you may have regarding any aspect of our nursery. Please discuss this at the office with a senior member of staff. If you are dissatisfied with the way your complaint has been dealt with, you can contact Ofsted our governing body.
Ofsted
Picadilly Gate
Store Street
Manchester
M12WD
Policies and Procedures
The nurseries full policies and procedures are available in the office for parents to read.
Admissions
We offer nursery places on a first come first served basis whilst adhering to our Ofsted registration that allows us a certain number of children of each age group. The staff will work with you to settle your child in to nursery life. We offer a free settling in period which is usually a week of visits where children will gradually build up their time they spend with us. Parents are always welcome to phone the nursery at any time during the day to see how their child is.
The nursery day
We start the day at 7.30am and finish at 6.00pm. Please be punctual when collecting children. If children are collected late they often get very upset and can easily think they have been forgotten.
Opening times
Children can attend on a sessional or full time basis.
Morning session (5 hours) 7.30am – 12.30am
Afternoon session (4.5 hours) 1.30pm – 6.00pm
Full time 7.30am – 6.00pm
If parents need other hours than those stated in our sessions, please ask the management. If at all possible we will do our best to accommodate you.
Attendance
If your child is absent please inform the nursery by telephone explaining why, as we need to keep a record of this. If your child has a hospital or clinic appointment the nursery must be notified about who will be collecting them and at what time. If you are taking a family holiday please contact the nursery in advance.
Clothing
Children should wear comfortable, casual clothing. No responsibility will be accepted for loss or damage to any articles of clothing or jewellery. Children with pierced ears should only wear studs. Staff cannot accept any responsibility for jewellery worn in the nursery. You will need to provide your child with a pair of pumps, slippers or indoor shoes (no plastic bags please) that can be left in the nursery. This helps keep our building clean and hygienic for the children during the winter months and in wet weather. It is also advisable to leave a complete change of clothing in case of accidents.
Lunch
Children who attend nursery full time or for the morning session will be provided with ahot meal. A midmorning and afternoon tea snack will also be provided. We promote healthy eating and therefore we would be grateful if parents would refrain from sending their children with sweets or chocolates.
Health
If your child is ill please telephone to inform the nursery. This is most important so that staff can organise meals and snacks and ratios of staff for the children present.
If children hurt themselves in nursery immediate action will be taken. If it is serious the child will be taken to hospital. You must sign a written consent form when your child starts nursery.
If a minor accident occurs it will be recorded in the nursery accident book and when you come to collect your child you will be asked to sign it.
A qualified member of staff may only administer medication that has been prescribed by a G.P. with instructions of correct dosage, and how many times your child needs to take the medication must be written down on the nursery form and signed by you.
Children’sRooms
With all our children we plan learning experiences in response to the children’s enthusiasm, interests and needs. All our children are unique and as such their current interests and needs are addressed in addition to lots of learning opportunities provided to them on a continuous basis. We endeavour to create strong partnerships with parents and carers, working together to enable us all to help our children develop and achieve in their learning.
Babies and Toddlers
The Fox Cub Suite
Busy Badgers
Dancing Deer’s
The nursery has a Baby Suite that consists of three rooms providing care for babies aged between 3 months and 12 months. In addition to this two large open plan roomsare provided for children aged between 12 months and two years.
Love and care is our first and foremost consideration in looking after our babies and children and a calm, relaxed home from home environment is nurtured. In addition, their developmental progress is important. The emphasis is on learning through play through a combination of sensory and messy play activities and a wide variety of carefully chosen toys, books and resources appropriate to their age and stage of development. The children also have their own access to a safe outdoor environment to aid their developing understanding of the world. In the younger years we focus strongly on the three prime areas of the EYFS which are: Communication and Language, Personal Social and Emotional Development and Physical Development. All staff caring for babies are specifically selected and trained to care for this age range.
Bouncing Bunnies two – three year old children
In this room children are inspired to develop lively, enquiring imaginative minds, and to build on their social and personal life skills. Circle time, dressing skills and toilet training are promoted. The focus is on purposeful play that sets the foundation for a lifelong love of learning. Children are stimulated to find learning fun and their achievements are recognised to develop their confidence and self esteem.
Helpful Hedgehogs (three year old children)
In this room the emphasis is on learning through play and having fun. A wide range of activities are available daily that encourage the all round development of each child. The children will have every opportunity to develop skills in the seven areas of learning as outlined in the Early Years Foundation Stage. The environment in this room though is more relaxed and less structured. This allows children to play, explore and engage in active learning to develop skills in a way appropriate for their age range.
Wise Owls Pre-School children
Our experienced high quality care continues in Pre-school where we expertly guide your child through the wonders of learning. All staff have rigorous training on the Early Years Foundation Stage to enable them to deliver an effective, exciting curriculum. Self confidence and a real enjoyment for learning are instilled so that when children start school they are self assured and raring to go! Our aim is that each individual child will have good foundations in all areas of learning that will enable them to achieve much and reach their full potential during their school life.
Outdoor Areas and Continuous provision
Children’s playrooms open on to their own outdoor space. Designed for each age range the areas are equipped with a combination of play equipment and all weather surfaces and canopies. We have awesome gardens with mature trees and a woodland area for the children to explore and discover wildlife and nature. The woodland area has an abundance of fruit trees and a vegetable patch which the children enjoy maintaining and plant and eat the vegetables and fruit from it. As well as fostering a love of nature the outdoor area provides spaces to explore equipment, encourages healthy physical activity, develops social skills and most importantly encourages children to have a great time playing!
P.E /Dance/Drama/Music and Movement/Yoga
During each term we employ a range of outside agencies to deliver professional skills to our children. These provide fantastic opportunities for our children to work with experts in their fields. They help to build self confidence in addition to learning many new skills, having lots of fun and keeping healthy!
Early Years Foundation Stage Learning and Development
The Early Years Foundation Stage is a statutory revised framework that came in to force in September 2012. It sets standards to help us to deliver personalised learning, development and care that will enhance the development of all the children in our nursery while keeping them safe and healthy. The learning and development programme offered to the children attending the nursery will have its basis in the “Early Learning Goals” that establish expectations for most children to reach by the end of the EYFS (the end of the academic year in which they reach five years). The goals provide the basis for planning throughout the EYFS so laying secure foundations from birth for future learning.
The revised EYFS focuses on three prime areas which are the foundations for children’s ability to learn and develop healthily and are:
Personal, Social and Emotional Development
Communication and Language
Physical Development
In addition to the prime areas there are four specific areas that include essential skills and knowledge to strengthen and reinforce the three prime areas and are:
Literacy
Mathematics
Understanding the World
Expressive Arts and Design
The seven areas of learning and development are explained in more detail below. All these areas of learning and development are important and inter connected to support the “Whole child”. The areas will be delivered through planned purposeful play and there will be a balance of adult led and child initiated activities. We place a strong emphasis on meaningful play and plan regularly so that all play is appropriate, stimulating and purposeful. For young children purposeful play is an essential and rich part of the learning process. Play is a powerful motivator encouraging children to be creative and to develop their ideas, understanding and language.
Personal, Social and Emotional Development
Children will be provided with experiences and support that will help them to develop a positive sense of themselves and of others. They will be encouraged to work and play with others establishing relationships with other children and adults. Support to manage their feelings and to understand appropriate behaviour will be given.Children will be helped to develop a positive disposition to learn through provision of stimulating fun activities.
Communication and Language
Children will be given extensive opportunities to experience a rich language environment through games, activities, stories and play. Children will be encouraged to talk and hold conversations, to take turns and to listen to others. Sign language will be used in everyday routines to support the child’s communication skills and understanding. Talking with children is one of the most valuable ways we can spend time with them, both as teachers and as parents. Hearing stories, poems and rhymes read to them also enriches the child’s experience of language. Children will be encouraged to recall and recreate traditional tales. Imaginations are inspired as they use storytelling props to revisit tales as well as inventing their own stories with their friends. Resource boxes are shared between home and nursery including story books, puppets, mirrors and telephones.
Physical Development
The physical development of babies and young children will be encouraged through providing opportunities for them to be active and to improve their skills of co-ordination, control and movement. They will be encouraged to use all of their senses to learn about the world around them and to make connections between what they already know and new information. Positive views on healthy food choices, healthy exercise and way of life will also be promoted.
Literacy
A broad approach is taken to reading. The children will have extensive pre-reading experiences including the sharing in discussions of many delightful books. The children cannot yet read the words, but they are learning all the time, picking up picture clues, guessing what will come next, getting the story in the right order, using context to work out what is happening. Gradually, letters and their sounds will be recognised then whole words. This is a very complex process and should be supported with confidence building, praise and patience.We also follow the phase 1 phonics programme in line with the Government initiative ‘letters and sounds’ This helps to develop children’s listening and attention skills as well as letter recognition and awareness of rhyme.