The nursery that really lives up to its name
Children First Nursery
and
Forest School
Children First Nursery and Forest School
Introduction The nursery at Worthing College is called Children First Nursery and Forest School. The college has successfully run a nursery for more than 10 years. The fantastic facilities complement the well qualified and highly enthusiastic team.
The nursery is managed on a day-to-day basis by the nursery manager who is responsible for childcare and daily supervision of staff. The manager is well-supported by a strong team of highly qualified and experienced staff. Staff hold a range of qualifications up to and including degree level and Early Years Professional status. All staff within the nursery are trained in paediatric first aid and food hygiene.
Worthing has played a key role in responding to the Government’s national Childcare strategy. Childcare places are open to the whole community.
Our aimsS-
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We aim to encourage all children in our care to grow, develop and flourish in a kind, caring and stimulating environment. We respond to children’s individual needs and treat them with sensitivity and respect. We work closely with parents ensuring this relationship enables us to provide the best possible care for each individual child. We aim to encourage every child to reach his or her full potential through, observation, communication and imagination.
Opportunity Achievement Success Progression
Children First Nursery
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Forest School
Children First Nursery provides: chool day care facilities for children aged 3Registered 6 weeks - 5 years between the hours of 7.30am 6.00pm, Monday to Friday. All year round except Bank Holidays and the 3 working days between Christmas and New Year.
3 Full-time and part-time childcare places. 3 A variety of sessions: Full day
7.30am
-
6.00pm
1/2 day
7.30am
-
1.00pm
or
1.00pm
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6.00pm
3/4 day
7.30am
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3.30pm
1/4 day
1.00pm
-
3.30pm
qualified and experienced staff from a 3Highly wide variety of backgrounds. All staff complete an enhanced DBS check to work in the nursery. safe, secure, happy and stimulating 3Aenvironment. wide range of activities and opportunities to 3Adevelop children’s emotional, physical, social and intellectual capabilities with creative and imaginative play. meals, drinks and babies’ milk; SMA 3Snacks, and Cow & Gate are included.
3Disposable nappies. 3
Children First Nursery and Forest School
Our ethosSLearning is a process, not a product. What a child brings home in their head is more important than what they bring home in their hands. Staff behave in the way we expect the children to behave: by modelling intrigue children will investigate, by modelling kindness children will be kind, by modelling enthusiasm children will be enthusiastic.
“We hear and we forget, we see and we remember, we do and we understand” Confucius Children First Nursery and Forest School provides a child focussed and initiated environment that encourages children to take control of their own learning experience. Staff within the nursery are committed to and believe that young children learn most effectively when they are: • Trusted and listened to • Safe and secure • Valued and included • Allowed to take risks • Given time to build relationships and settle in • Positive about themselves and have pride in their achievements They are entitled to: • Have their success celebrated • Have key adults in their lives • Have as much independence as possible • Have their early years recognised • Play inside and out • Have time to reflect on their experiences • Have a child focused environment
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• A range of stimulating resources and experiences • A strong consistent team approach by adults • An environment which celebrates diversity and individuality • Flexibility, all children and situations are different • Have their interests acknowledged and extended • Try things out investigate and explore • Parents/Carers who are actively involved in their learning
Children First Nursery
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Opportunity Achievement Success Progression
Forest School
Nursery organisation Children are cared for in four main areas of the nursery depending on their age and stage of development. We have a light and bright baby room that caters for 12 children under 18 months old; the staff to child ratio is 1 to 3. In this room we have created a home from home. The room is self contained. This enables staff to take care of the children’s needs without having to leave the room. Everything that is needed is within easy reach. Within this room there is a place to eat, play, rest and explore. We have double and triple buggies to take babies for walks and also access to the baby garden every day. Our baby 2 rooms provide very flexible spaces that cater for 14 children aged from approximately 17 months to 2 years. They have direct access to the garden throughout the day. The ratio in this room is 1 to 3. Our lively toddler room has space for 16 children aged 2 to 3 years. the ratio for this age group is is 1 to 4 and children also have access to the garden all day.
Fully qualified and experienced nursery nurses, room leaders and deputies are employed in each area to closely supervise the work of staff teams in the nursery and to support the work of the manager.
Progress recordsool Records for individual children are a positive way of identifying what children have achieved, what they understand and can do. Over a period of time they also indicate how children have progressed, the rate at which they have progressed and where children may need further help and support or extending in their learning. Our aim is to continually monitor and assess children’s progress to enable us to take their individual needs into account when planning activities in the nursery. Each child within the nursery has a progress and development folder which includes observations, their interests, activities and photos. Activities within the nursery are planned and designed to meet the needs of children within all age groups. Further information is available from the nursery manager.
Our pre-school rooms are for our eldest group aged 3 to 5 years. These rooms can accommodate up to 28 children. The ratio is 1 to 8. They also have acces to the garden all day. All of our rooms encourage independence and choice. The resources are all at child level which children can access freely all day. 5
Children First Nursery and Forest School
Free flowol At Children First Nursery and Forest School we operate a free flow approach with children over approximately 17 months old. This means that we have our doors open for most of the day leading to the well-resourced, inviting and stimulating garden. We offer a wide variety of opportunities in the outside environment including painting, drawing, dens, climbing, role play, sand, water, digging and construction in fact everything that you would find inside. We believe that some children learn and develop better outside and should be given the opportunity to be outdoors as often as possible. The environment is well planned based on observations and children’s developing needs. Children can choose whether they want to be outside or inside, we have found through experience that children choose both, it has a very positive impact on children’s behaviour, learning and development. We access the outside environment in all weathers, we provide splash suits for wet weather and have a sheltered area of the garden.
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Babies’ garden Our younger babies also enjoy the outside environment on a daily basis; they have their own well-resourced garden with a shaded area and artificial grass to allow our crawlers to crawl around safely. They have a growing area and enjoy tending their plants and flowers. They also have many ride-on toys, sand, water, role play, den, seating area and slide. We also take many of our indoor resources outside depending on children’s needs.
Extra activities We have many extra activities at the nursery including yoga, Caterpillar music, baby massage, signing, karate, dance, the library bus, visits from the fire service, police and ambulance crews. We also have many outings including local trips to the woods or park either walking holding hands, using the reigns or the triple/double buggies. We also go further afield on trips to the beach, theatre or Drusilla’s. As part of our commitment to fund raise for our community we have Summer and Christmas fairs when we raise money for charity.
Children First Nursery
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Opportunity Achievement Success Progression
Forest School
Forest School
The Forest School is professionally run with its own set of policies and risk assessments. There are strict boundaries and rules which all children and staff consistently adhere to.
At Children First Nursery we have a very successful Forest School within our grounds. It is a secure fenced off area surrounding some large trees. It has a seating area made of tree stumps, a fire area which has a boundary and is only ever used under close supervision, a tyre swing and an extensive nature area. We run a variety of activities in this area including tool usage. The tools are used on a one to one basis and only ever with one of our trained and qualified Forest School leaders. The Forest School only operates when one of our Forest School leaders is present.
Forest School philosophy The Forest School philosophy is to encourage and inspire individuals of any age through outdoor experiences by participating in engaging, motivating and achievable tasks and activities developing motivational, physical and social skills. The Forest School offers our children the opportunity to learn about the natural environment, how to take and handle risks and how to use their initiative to solve problems and communicate with others. The Forest School operates all year and in all weathers (except very extreme conditions). We hold regular parents meetings and various opportunities to discuss and learn about our Forest School. We also encourage parents/carers to come and join in on a Forest School session.
Other activities include collecting coloured and textured natural items, making a leaf press out of wood, making wooden necklaces, making mini beast houses, making charcoal, making masks and willow weaving. The children’s favourite activity is cooking and eating in the Forest School. They love making hot chocolate and drinking it around the fire or making toffee apples.
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Children First Nursery and Forest School
Food Meals and snacks Our own qualified chef is employed to provide a wide variety of meals which are freshly cooked and prepared in the nursery every day. Special diets are catered for and parents are encouraged to provide information to the nursery about children’s favourites.
Food policy in the nursery Food prepared for children in the nursery will comply wherever possible with the following principles: • The nursery menu ensures that the children have a balanced and healthy diet. • Food is eaten on the same day as it is cooked. • For lunchtime menus only lean meat, fish, fresh and frozen vegetables, lentils and pulses are used. • Fresh fruit is served and vegetarian and other diets are provided for, if requested. • No salt, pepper, colouring, flavouring or other additives are added, and the use of additional sugar is kept to a minimum. • Any packaged foods used do not contain controversial colourings or preservatives. • We reflect a multicultural menu and encourage children to try new tastes and flavours. When planning menus we follow guidance from the following websites: https://www.infantandtoddlerforum.org/littlepeople-plates http://www.childrensfoodtrust.org/pre-school/ eat-better-start-better
We only use wholemeal bread and provide fresh fruit and vegetables to all children every day. The nursery displays details of meals provided every day including how much or how little children have eaten. For babies we provide formula feeds and individually prepared meals to assist with weaning (Cow & Gate or Aptamil formula only - if you wish to supply your own you may do so). 8
Opportunity Achievement Success Progression
Children First Nursery
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Forest School
Meals and snacks are provided at the following approximate times: Breakfast Bread and butter, fruit, cereal and yoghurt with a drink of milk or water (7.30am) Mid-morning snack Fresh fruit and drink (9.15am) Bread and butter or breadsticks Lunch with dessert A wide variety of cooked meals with a vegetarian or dietary option (11.15am) Afternoon snack Fresh fruit and drink (1.00 – 1.30pm) Bread and butter or breadsticks Afternoon tea A variety of high-teas, hot or cold (3.00pm) Sample menu (menus normally operate on a 4 week rota) Week 1 Dinner
Tea
Monday Lasagne Banana custard
Variety of sandwiches (marmite, cheese, tuna and jam) Homemade shortbread biscuits
Tuesday Paella Pineapple sponge with cream
Home made pizza Yoghurt
Wednesday Roast turkey with parsnips, veg and roast potatoes Peaches and custard
Vegetable soup with bread and butter Melon
Thursday Macaroni and sweetcorn Stewed apples
Crackers with cheese and marmite Jam sponge
Friday Chicken curry, peas and rice Fruit crumble and custard
Jacket potato with beans Ice cream cones
Babies: Wherever possible babies will have the same menu as other children, or pureed fruit or vegetables.
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Children First Nursery and Forest School
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Children First Nursery
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Opportunity Achievement Success Progression
Forest School
Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS)S) This is the framework that not only sets out the statutory and legal requirements for the nursery but also offers guidance on development, practice and early learning goals for all children aged 0 to 5 years or the end of reception year. We use the themes, principles and practice from the Early Years Foundation Stage every day. We believe that by implementing these your child will recieve the unique and individual care and attention they deserve and help them become independent and motivated individuals.
We believe that the characteristics of learning are key to ensuring children become excellent learners for the whole of their lives. These guiding principles work together to underpin effective practice. They put the legal requirements into context and describe how practitioners should support the development, learning and care of young children. For the full Early Years Foundation Stage or any other information including information on Every Child Matters please speak to the nursery manager.
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Children First Nursery and Forest School
Nursery policies Working in partnership with parents/carers Parents/carers are the most important people in a young child’s life. We want to work in partnership with parents and carers to enhance and support their role at this very significant stage of development for their children. We encourage parents to be aware of our aims, policies and procedures. We have an open door policy where parents are encouraged to share information with staff and staff will share nursery day information and information about their children’s development with parents. Parents are also invited to volunteer to join in with activities at the nursery, by prior arrangement with the nursery manager. Progress meetings are held to enable staff from the nursery to speak directly with parents and effectively address their needs. Parents will be involved in shared record keeping about their own child, verbally or from examples of work and play. Parents should have regular contact with staff and are always welcomed into the nursery. Feedback from parents is welcome and important. We will regularly carry out surveys to assess and inform improvements. We have 2 parents’ workshops every year. We decide on these based on parents’ feedback and requests. Workshops have covered the EYFS, heuristic play, music and movement and Every Child a Talker.
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We also have a Christmas and Summer fair which we encourage parents to be actively involved in. Any parent can request a meeting with the manager or their child’s key person at any time.
Equal opportunities We are all different, but in many ways the same; it is our differences which make us unique and special. Children are unique and special as developing individuals and it is important that we recognise the individuality of each child. All children will be made to feel valued and good about themselves. We will promote equal opportunities with regard to employment, training and admission to the nursery and access to resources, activities and facilities available. We welcome all children.
Inclusion We are aware that some children may have additional needs. We will work closely with parents to assess and make reasonable adjustments for children with additional needs. There is an Inclusion Co-ordinator (SENCO) in the nursery who is specially trained to offer suggestions and advice on caring for a child with additional needs and provide support to other staff and parents.
Child protection We aim to create an environment in which children are safe from abuse and in which any suspicion of abuse is promptly and appropriately responded to. We aim to work with other appropriate agencies eg social services, the police child-protection committee and other agencies in upholding the terms of the Children Act (1989). For a full copy of these or any of the other nursery/college policies please speak to the manager.
Children First Nursery
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Opportunity Achievement Success Progression
Forest School
What our children and parents say about us…. “There are lots of friends here, because my little brother goes here, because I make lots of friends here.” Freya 4 years “I like the garden it’s got sunflowers and seeds.” Chloe 3 years “Your support, care, patience and love is a constant reassurance.” Katie 40 years “Our son has had the best time and we as happy parents want to thank you for helping to make him the social, outgoing happy boy he is.” Sam and Danny aged late 30s “I like the nursery because of the garden and there are slugs.” Jacob 3 years “I like Forest School making hot chocolate and making a fire.” Amber 2 years 11 months “Thank you for educating and nurturing my children, for helping them to become the wonderful individuals they are, for providing so many opportunities for them to play and learn, exploring the world, for keeping them safe ensuring they were fed and felt loved and cared for when we couldn’t be there ourselves for making us feel reassured as parents and for all the lovely times and laughs.” Emma and James 40ish!!! “I like walking round the field running and seeing the bunny rabbits.” Maya 4 years
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Children First Nursery and Forest School
What happens next... If you have not already done so, please call the nursery manager to arrange an appointment to visit the nursery. This will give you the chance to get a feel for the place and see the staff and children in action. You will also have the opportunity to ask any questions you may have. If you would like to request a place, please fill in the application form and send it back to the nursery. You will be contacted and informed about whether a place is available. Once a place is offered a small nonrefundable deposit is needed to hold the place (£150 for part time £265 for full time). A couple of weeks before your child’s start date we will arrange an initial settle visit for you and your child. During this time we will complete the paperwork. This will include contact details and emergency contact details. We will also need the name and number of your child’s GP and health visitor (if appropriate) and information on your child’s immunisations. We will ask about any dietary requirements, additional needs or medical conditions. This is to ensure we can provide the best care for your child.
You will be asked to sign some permission forms for photographs, activities, trips etc. The room leader will fully explain all the forms during the session. We will also discuss your child’s likes, dislikes, favourite things, family members, languages spoken and routine. This will give us an excellent picture of your child and enable us to plan carefully for them right from the start. We will also plan a settling in strategy based on this information. Once all the paper work is done you can leave your child with us for up to an hour, when you return you can discuss how the session went for yourself and your child and develop a plan from there. We will settle children on a flexible basis, depending on you and your child’s needs.
Fees Session
0 to 2 years
2 to 5 years
Full week
£233
£218
Full day
£49.75
£47.50
3/4 day (7.30 to 15.30)
£43
£41
1/2 day (7.30 to 13.00)
£31.25
£30
1/2 day (13.00 to 18.00)
£29
£27.75
Correct at time of printing
Students may qualify for funding to help support childcare costs, while they are attending a course at Worthing College - details are available from the college finance team.
Applying for a place 14
If you wish to apply for a place at our nursery, arrange a visit or ask any questions please contact the nursery on 01903 275750
Children First Nursery
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Children First Nursery and Forest School el:
Children First Nursery
and
Forest School
01903 275750 Email: nursery@worthing.ac.uk 1 Sanditon Way, Worthing, West Sussex, BN14 9FD
www.worthing.ac.uk
Designed and produced by the Worthing College Marketing Team. Correct at time of printing. October 2013.