Belsay Pre-School
Belsay First School
Belsay
Newcastle Upon Tyne
NE20 OET
Telephone 01661881704
Mobile 07732907059
Contents
About us
Aims
Admission
Staffing
Key Person System
Record Achievement Together
Early Years foundation Stage
The Session
Working with Parents
Links with Schools and Settings
Fees and Funding
Accident and Illness
Library Books
Snack Time
Clothing
Attendance
Behaviour
Safeguarding Children
Policies and Procedures
Complaints Procedure
About us
Belsay Pre School was established in 1997 and is a registered charity run by a parent management committee. We are a friendly village Pre School, situated in a mobile building in the grounds of Belsay First School. We have a well equipped indoor and outdoor space. We are registered with OFSTED with a maximum of 22 children per session.
Aims
Belsay Pre – School aims to:
• Provide high quality care and education for children aged 2 years 6 months to 5 years.
• Teach social skills and provide opportunities for children to learn through play.
• Work in partnership with parents to promote their child’s learn and development.
• Offer children and their parents a service that promotes equality and diversity.
• Provide a safe and secure environment and assist in the progression from home to Pre- school and from Pre- School to School.
Admission
We hold sessions Monday – Friday from 9am –3pm.We accept children from 2 years 6 months on a fee paying basis. Priority is given to children who will be attending Belsay First School.
Pre School accepts applications for children with additional needs.
We will endeavour to provide appropriate provision and extra support where necessary.
If you would like us to include your child/children on the waiting list please contact any member of staff or a member of the management committee.
Staffing
We currently have 4 permanent members of staff who are:
Lisa Rogerson – Pre - School Manager
Carol Pass – Deputy and Inclusion co – coordinator
Joana Hodgson –Nursery Assistant NVQ 3 Qualified
Tracy Birbeck – Nursery Assistant NVQ 3 Qualified
We recognise the value of a high staff ratio and provide a minimum ratio of 1 – 8 but in practice this is generally higher.
Together the staff have many years experience of working with children.
We support staff in further development of their skills by attending appropriate training courses.
Key Person System
Your child will be assigned a key person for the duration of their time at Belsay Pre School. This key person will help your child settle in and will make observation of your child’s achievements and interests.
Recording Achievement Together
Children have their own ‘Recording achievement Together’ File. This is used to record achievements and milestones the child reaches. Examples of the child’s work are collected in it. The children are encouraged to be interested and proud of their file. They can take it home to add photographs, drawings and record milestones from their home with their family and friends.
Early Years Foundation Stage
Our setting uses the practice guidance Early Years Foundation Stage to plan and provide a range of activities which help children to make progress in all areas of development.
We assess how children are learning and developing through observing and taking photographs of the children.
Also we believe it is important to work with parents/carers as well as other settings, children attend to find out what they like to do at home/settings and how they support their development. This enables every child to reach their full potential.
All areas of development are:
Personal, social and Emotional
Communication, Language and Literacy
Problem solving, Reasoning and Numeracy
Knowledge and Understanding of the world
Physical
Creative
By planning for all these areas of development its gives every child the opportunity to;
PERSONAL, SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT
To develop self confidence and self esteem
Build relationships with adults and peers
Become independent in self care
Have a sense of community
Develop positive behaviour and attitudes
COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY
Develop language for communication and thinking
Learn sounds and letters
Show an interest in books, rhymes, songs etc
Draw lines and circles
PROBLEM SOLVING, REASONING AND NUMERACY
Use numbers and labels for counting
Show an interest in number problems
Become familiar with shape, space and measure
KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD
Explore and discover their environment
Use tools, equipment and materials to build and construct
Show an interest and ability to use ICT resources
Have a sense of time, place and communities
PHYSICAL
Have an awareness of keeping healthy
Develop skills of co – ordination, control, manipulation, movement and use of space.
Use equipment and materials.
CREATIVE
Being creative through exploration and play
Expressing thoughts and ideas through music, movement and dance
Developing imagination and imaginative play
Use a wide variety of media and materials.
The Session
We organise our sessions so that every child can choose from, and work at, a range of activities. By doing this they can build up their ability to select and complete a task.
The children are also encouraged to take part in adult – led small and large group activities which introduce them to new experiences and skills.
Working with parents/carers
We value the contribution parents make to the running of the pre- school. As well as having staff with responsibility for day – day management of sessions, we have a very important committee of which all parents are members.
We hold an annual general meeting every November with plenty of notice given for parents to attend and become a committee member if they wish too.
We are always welcome to new members of committee, help and new ideas for fundraising as Belsay Pre – School is a registered charity.
Parents are welcome to visit Pre – School or attend sessions whenever they wish.
Links with school
We have developed excellent relations with Belsay First School with the Pre School Manager and Head Teacher holding meetings to discuss and promote every child’s development in the Early Years Foundation Stage further.
In the term before entry to school children are given the opportunity to stay from Pre- School, have lunch and spend the afternoon in the Reception class with the Pre School Manager. Parents are invited to visit the school and meet the staff.
Joint celebration days are held throughout the year which Pre – School children are included in the school Harvest Festival and Christmas Concert.
Fees and Funding
Fees are currently £9 per session.(9-12/12-3pm)
We are registered to receive the Governments Nursery Education Funding which will pay for 15 hours per week. You can share the funding between any pre – school facilities.
Your child is eligible for this funding form the term after their third birthday.
Accident and Illness
We ask parents to complete a registration form for their child attending Pre – School.
This must contain a telephone number or address where someone can be contacted in case of an emergency.
If your child does have an accident while at Pre – School the staff complete a form in the accident book which we ask parents/carers to read and sign.
If your child is unwell, please keep them at home. It is not fair to your child, other children or staff to have ill children attending.
If your child or anyone in the family has sickness or diarrhoea, please keep your child at home for please keep your child at home for 48 hours.
Any medicines given are recorded in a medicine book which is signed by parent/carer and a member of staff.
All medicines are locked away out of children’s reach.
Library Books
The children are encouraged to develop an interest and love of books so we operate a lending policy. The children choose a new book each week to share with their parents/carers.
Snack Time
At snack time we provide milk free of charge to all children. We also provide crackers and cheese, bread stick or biscuit.
We ask if all parents could provide one piece of fruit/vegetable each week to share with their friends at snack time.
Clothing
Many of the activities, which we feel are very important to your child’s development, involve getting ‘messy’. We therefore recommend that you dress your child in suitable clothes that will not be ruined by glue, paint, scissors, soil etc. Pre – School does have an unofficial uniform that parents may wish to consider and we stress that this is voluntary. We also advise clothes that are easy to take on and off so the children can attend to their own toilet needs with growing independence.
Please provide a spare set of clothes that are to be left at Pre – School on your child’s peg.
Attendance
When your child attends Pre – School they should not be left before 9am as the insurance does not come into force until the session commences at that time.
At the end of the session could you please try to be prompt when collecting your child, as they can become distressed if you are late.
Behaviour and attitude
Children are encouraged towards positive, good behaviour and attitude for which they will be praised. They are provided with stimulating activities to help develop their social skills through play and positive role models.
They are encouraged to treat others with courtesy and kindness.
Behaviour displayed in appropriate to the setting will be dealt with in a consistent and calm manner ensuring that the child is aware that this is the behaviour and not the child that is unacceptable.
Safeguarding Children
Belsay Pre – School works in line with ‘Northumberland Guidance on Safeguarding Children for Early Years and Childcare Providers’.
We have a duty to contact the local authority if we feel a child is being abused.
We notify OFSTED of any incident and any changes in our arrangements which may affect the wellbeing of children.
If a referral is to be made to the local authority social services department, we act in line with the ‘Northumberland guidance on safeguarding children’ in deciding whether we must inform the child’s parents at the same time.
The Pre – School Manager is the designated safeguarding officer and all the staff has regular training on safeguarding children.
Policies and Procedures
During your induction for you and your child we ask parents/carers to read a copy of our policies and procedures. We inform you that there is always a copy available to read at Belsay Pre - School whenever you wish to look at them.
Unfortunately due to cost we are not able to provide each parent/carer with a individual copy.
Complaints Procedure
The Pre – School Manager is always available to discuss concerns regarding the provision for your children. We seek to promote a positive dialogue between staff and parents.
If anyone wishes to make a complaint it should be raised with the Pre –School Manager, full details are given in the Pre – School Complaints Procedure. If parents are still dissatisfied with the outcome, or the complaint is of a serious nature then OFSTED can be contacted directly on;
03001231231
www.ofsted.gov.uk.
