Hello and welcome to our website.
Our Ethos
We, at Warmley Preschool provide a safe, secure and enriched environment where your children can grow into independent, confident children. Our enviroments', both indoors and outdoors, are exciting and stimulating and offer choices for the children to experience playing and exploring, being active and creative thinking.
Each child is unique and an individual. We plan the sessions to meet the needs of the child and you as a parent. We build upon their experiences and learning opportunities to extend and develop their learning. This also builds the child's confidence, independence and social skills and also preparing each child to be ready for school.
Mission Statement
By working in partnership with parents, we will provide a stimulating, challenging environment which is a warm, friendly extension of home, where children and adults can explore, have fun, play, talk and learn together, developing as happy, confident and independent individuals within our community.
Welcome to the new Warmley Preschool Website. A massive thank you to Lee Davies for setting this up for us.
Early Years Prospectus
Overview
Warmley Preschool is a registered Charity, Registration no: 1017300, Ofsted no: 136112 and a member of the Early Years Alliance. We are an independent charitable business that receives advice, guidance and access to subsidised training via South Gloucestershire Education and other government supported bodies.
We are managed by a group of volunteer parents and receive our income via the Government Grant Scheme, fee paying parents and fund-raising. At the Annual General Meeting, a committee is elected to administer and be responsible for the policies of the group, but we need all our parents to be involved and we value your ideas and help. Please feel free to join the Committee.
Our preschool is located in the main hall of the Warmley Memorial Community Centre. We are open daily, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 9.00am – 3.30pm and Friday from 9.00am – 1.00pm, Lunch is at 12.15pm, so if your child is in preschool then, please provide a packed lunch. We offer a “Forest Play” session on Monday mornings, which is available to children who qualify for the 15/30 hour grant. We can take a maximum of 30 children at one time and staff ratios of 1 adult to 8 children between the age of 3 and 4 and a ratio of 1 adult to 5 children at the age of 2 are well maintained.
We have access to a lovely outdoor area, which allows the children to play outside, experience growing plants and vegetables in our pots, we love to explore and investigate the nature area.
With parental permission we plan walks to visit the local community; buying milk in Tesco’s or posting letters in the Post Office. We encourage people from our community to visit the pre-school which helps enrich the children’s understanding of the world; for example lollipop ladies, police, fire fighters etc.
We shape our practice by using the four guiding principles from the Early Years Foundation Stage Framework. These are:
Unique child
Positive relationships
Enabling environments
Learning and development
We give choices around the children’s interests and links to their learning and development. We observe, assess and plan around the individual child’s interests and needs extending it to provide further learning. By looking at our evidence our aim is to ensure every child is making good progress.
We encourage the children to be independent learners, problem solvers and finding solutions to conflicts; good behaviour is encouraged with praise and good role modelling.
We provide a fun, exciting and enriched setting, both indoors and outdoors, keeping the children challenged and wanting to learn.
Key persons and your child
Our setting uses a key person approach. This means that each member of staff has a group of children for whom they are particularly responsible. Your child's key person will be the person who works with you to make sure that what we provide is right for your child's particular needs and interests. When your child first starts at the setting, their key person will help your child to settle and throughout your child's time at the setting, they will help your child to benefit from the setting's activities.
The first six weeks will be your child’s settling in period, allowing your child to get to know their key person, other members of staff and familiarise themselves with the setting and session structure.
Your child will be observed by their own key person and other staff members during the pre-school session. The children are observed both inside and in the outdoor area. The children will be encouraged to become independent learners, either on their own, in small or large groups.
Learning Journeys
The setting keeps a “learning journey” for each child. Staff and parents working together on their children's “learning journey” is one of the ways in which the key person and parents work in partnership. Your child's “learning journey” helps us to celebrate together her/his achievements and to work together to provide what your child needs for her/his well-being and to make progress.
Your child's key person will work with you to keep this record. To do this you and your child’s key person will collect information about your child's needs, activities, interests and achievements. This information will enable the key person to identify your child's stage of progress. You and the key person will then decide on how to help your child to move on to the next stage.
Working together for your children
In our setting we maintain the ratio of adults to children in the setting that is set through the Welfare Requirements. This helps us to:
Give time and attention to each child;
Talk with the children about their interests and activities;
Help children to experience and benefit from the activities we provide; and
Allow the children to explore and be adventurous in safety.
How parents take part in the setting
Our setting recognises parents as the first and most important educators of their children. The team see themselves as partners with parents in providing care and education for their child. There are many ways in which parents take part in making the setting a welcoming and stimulating place for children and parents, such as:
Exchanging knowledge about their children's needs, activities, interests and progress with the staff;
Helping at sessions of the setting;
Sharing their own special interests with the children;
Helping to provide, make and look after the equipment and materials used in the children's play activities;
Being part of the management of the setting;
Taking part in events and informal discussions about the activities and curriculum provided by the setting;
Joining in community activities in which the setting takes part; and building friendships with other parents in the setting.
The setting's timetable and routines
Our setting believes that care and education are equally important in the experience which we offer children. The routines and activities that make up the day in the setting are provided in ways that:
Help each child to feel that she/he is a valued member of the setting;
Ensure the safety of each child;
Help children to gain from the social experience of being part of a group; and
Provide children with opportunities to learn and help them to value learning.
The session
We organise our sessions so that the children can choose from, and work at, a range of activities and, in doing so, build up their ability to select and work through a task to its completion. The children are also helped and encouraged to take part in adult-led small and large group activities which introduce them to new experiences and help them to gain new skills, as well as helping them to learn to work with others.
Outdoor activities contribute to children's health, their physical development and their knowledge of the world around them. The children have the opportunity, and are encouraged, to take part in outdoor child-chosen and adult-led activities, as well as those provided in the indoor playroom.
Policies
Copies of the setting's policies and procedures are available for you to see at the setting or on this website.
The setting's policies help us to make sure that the service provided by the setting is a high quality one and that being a member of the setting is an enjoyable and beneficial experience for each child and their parents.
Safeguarding children
Our setting has a duty under the law to help safeguard children against suspected or actual ‘significant harm’. Our leader, Angela Maddocks, is Child Protection Lead.
Our employment practices ensure children against the likelihood of abuse in our settings and we have a procedure for managing complaints or allegations against a member of staff. All staff has had training to ensure they recognise the symptoms of possible abuse and neglect.
Our way of working with children and their parents ensures we are aware of any problems that may emerge and can offer support, including referral to appropriate agencies when necessary, to help families in difficulty.
As required by the Social Services Department and to comply with South Gloucestershire Child Protection procedures, we operate a non smacking policy. We must record and advise you of any accident or injury to your child whilst at preschool. We will also ask you to record any noticeable injuries to your child, which has occurred at home, to acknowledge that they have not happened at preschool.
Please ensure that you shut the outside door whenever you come in or go out. Smoking is not allowed in the Community Centre. When you collect your child at the end of the session please be prompt. The staff will not mind if you are late, but your child may. In order to ensure the safety of your child at preschool, if someone other than yourself will be collecting your child then please inform staff and ensure that they have a password.
Special needs
As part of the setting's policy to make sure that its provision meets the needs of each individual child, we take account of any special needs a child may have. The setting works to the requirements of the 1993 Education Act and The Special Educational Needs Code of Practice (2014).
Our Special Educational Needs Co-ordinators are: | Angela Maddocks & Joanne Winter |
Sickness/Holidays
Please telephone the preschool if your child is going to be absent on 07951 309201. To assist in keeping sickness to a minimum within the preschool, if your child has suffered from sickness or diarrhoea within the last 48 hours then please refrain from attending the group.
Fees
We charge a registration fee of £50 and a weekly consumables charge of £5, billed monthly. Your child is eligible for free grants from the term after their 3rd birthday; the preschool leader will let you know when this will be.
Some children are eligible for “2 years old free funding” please speak to the preschool leader to check if your child is able to claim this.
If your child is not eligible for free grants there is a fee of £7 per hour for 2 year olds and £6.50 per hour for 3 and 4 year olds; with a minimum 3 hour session. These fees can be paid monthly by cash or bank transfer, please speak to the preschool leader on how you would like to pay. If your child is away from the group, fees still need to be paid; as the running costs of the Preschool will be the same. If your child has to be absent over a long period of time, please talk to the Leader.
The preschool implements a £5 fine if you are more than 10 minutes late picking up your child, without pre-warning the setting; £5 every 10 minutes will be charged thereafter.
Snacks and meals
The setting provides snacks at which children eat together. Do tell us about your child's dietary needs and we will make sure that these are met.
Lunch
Our lunch starts at 12.15pm. Please ensure your child brings their own food in a lunch bag or container and a drink, clearly marked with their name.
The management of our setting
A parent management committee - whose members are elected by the parents of the children who attend the setting - manages the setting. The elections take place at our Annual General Meeting. The committee is responsible for:
Managing the setting's finances;
Supporting the leader to employ and manage staff;
Making sure that the setting has, and works to, policies that help it to provide a high quality service; and making sure that the setting works in partnership with the children's parents.
The Annual General Meeting is open to the parents of all of the children who attend the setting. It is our shared forum for looking back over the previous year's activities and shaping the coming year's plan.
Please see a committee member or leader if you have a complaint. If after this, you are still not satisfied, then you can contact the Early Years Complaints Help Line on 0300 123 1231.
Starting at our setting
The first days
We want your child to feel happy and safe with us. To make sure that this is the case, the staff will work with you to decide on how to help your child to settle into the setting.
Clothing
We provide protective clothing for the children when they play with messy activities, however, they will get dirty and messy, we love to explore paint, glue, playdoh and the mud kitchen outside etc. Old clothes recommended :)
We encourage children to gain the skills that help them to be independent and look after themselves. These include taking themselves to the toilet and taking off, and putting on, outdoor clothes. Clothing that is easy for them to manage will help them to do this. Warmley Preschool uniforms are on sale; polo shirts are £12 and sweatshirts £15; please ask a member of staff if you would like to buy uniform.
We hope that you and your child enjoy being members of our setting and that you find taking part in our activities interesting and stimulating. The team are always ready and willing to talk with you about your ideas, views or questions.
Monday | 9.00-3.30 |
Tuesday | 9.00-3.30 |
Wednesday | 9.00-3.30 |
Thursday | 9.00-3.30 |
Friday | 9.00-1.00 |