Pre-Schools and Day Nurseries

The following information provides a summary of the requirements of registration for pre-schools and day nurseries.

Staffing the Centre
There is a minimum adult child ratio that must be met at all times, which  is:

• one adult to 3 children for each child aged 0 - 2 years;
• one adult to 4 children for each child aged 2 - 3 years;
• one adult to 8 children for each child aged 3 - 5 years.

A minimum of two adults must be on the premises at all times, or with a group of children.

A suitably qualified manager, or deputy manager, must be in charge of the Centre at all times,
 

• in a day nursery the manager must hold an occupational qualification at Level 3 plus Management at Level 4;
• in a pre-school the manager must hold an occupational qualification at Level 3 plus Management at Level 3

Of the total staff present at any one time, 75% of them must be trained or completing a plan of training.

The remainder may hold the minimum basic training requirement of having completed a basic course.

All staff employed to care for children must hold a current first aid certificate, and have completed child protection, aids awareness and infection control training.

Play Space
The maximum number of children that can be accommodated in the pre-school or day nursery centre at any one time is calculated on the basis of the following minimum play space available to each child;

• children aged 0 - 2 years = 40 sq ft (3.7 sq metres);
• children aged 2 - 3 years = 30 sq ft (2.8 sq metres);
• children aged 3 - 5 years = 25 sq ft (2.3 sq metres)

Health and Safety
The following are requirements for the registration of pre - school or day nursery Centre:

• there must be a telephone on the premises that is in working order at all times;
• an outdoor play area must be provided, and this must be safely enclosed;
• the indoor premises must be warm (i.e. above 18 C), well lit and there must be an acceptable level of hygiene and safety in relation to all furniture and play equipment used in the premises;
• no more than 25 children should be present in an area at any one time;
• one toilet and washbasin with hot running water must be available to every 10 children;
• suitable hand drying facilities must be provides, or a separate hand towel for each child;
• regular checks are required on all toys and equipment, and equipment and toys must be regularly washed;
• a written safety audit must be made available for inspection;
• cots, beds or mattress must be provided for younger children's rest, and a separate sleep room for babies;
• safety surface/mats must be provided under climbing equipment;
• a clear fire procedure must be in place and displayed in a prominent place, and regularly practiced with adults and children 

Pre- Schools that hire premises, which have to be set out and cleared away, are required to do so before and after children are in their care, so that children are not at risk during this event.

Provision for Play and Learning
The following play and learning experiences are a requirement to be provided for children each day;

• imaginative play activities;
• creative and sensory experiences;
• quiet area for reflection, rest and problem solving;
• language area, with opportunities for scribble, emergent reading and writing, plenty of stories in small groups or an individual basis, pencils and paper freely available to the child;
• opportunities to recognise text in context, such as containers labelled with the content, child's own name;
• daily opportunities for vigorous play indoors and out;
• long periods of sitting or pencil work is not seen to be appropriate to the children in early years settings 

Play and learning experiences must be provided in accordance with the stage of development of each child. Adults are required to carry out observations of children in order to plan individual experiences on the basis of this information. Parents must have free access to this information at all times.

Records
Each pre-school and day nursery is required to hold information on every child in their care, which includes;

• name, address and contact telephone number of parents;
• health details of the child and doctor's name and telephone number;
• a named person who may be contacted or can collect the child in the absence of parents;
• a record of accidents which parents must sign;
• written parental permission for administration of medicines, first aid and outings.

Only prescribed medication, which is in the original pharmacy container, can be given to children in registered pre- schools and day nurseries.

Policies and Information for Parents
A number of policies are required in pre-schools and day nurseries Centres and these must be shared with parents, for example;

• a clear statement of the aims of the Centre;
• details on the age range accommodated;
• the times and hours the facility is available and type of meals served;
• the admission procedure, for example if the Centre is not registered to care for children below the age of 2 years;
• the procedure for introducing and settling children that is carefully planned to avoid stress to both parent and child;
• a management of behaviour policy, which includes ways the staff team respond to both acceptable and unacceptable behaviour;
• an equal opportunities policy, which makes clear the groups response to cultural background, issues of gender and special needs;
• details of illness that requires children to be excluded or collected from the Centre;
• a child protection policy;
• information on the business aspect, such as fees

Centres are encouraged to circulate regular newsletters to parents, or have a parent's notice board to provide information on the play and learning experiences provided for children.

The Key Worker System
Pre-schools and day nurseries are required to operate the key person system to ensure the more personal care of young children.

The key person system is when:

• one adult takes special responsibility for knowing the child;
• a key person may have three to eight children for whom they have special responsibility, depending upon whether the child is a baby or pre-school child. However, with older children this does not mean the child only spends time with this person;
• the parent is introduced to the child's key person prior to starting at the Centre;
• they will be invited to share details of the child's likes, dislikes and any other special information, so they will be able to give comfort and support to the child when they are left in their care;
• information about the child's day and any special messages, will be given by the key person at the end of the nursery or pre-school day;
• the aim of the key person system is to provide a relationship in which the child may feel secure when the parent is not with them, and it is someone who can give cuddles and support at times of distress, and will know when the child is not his/her usual self.

The child's key person will work closely with the parent in the various stages of development, such as bottle feeding to solids and potty training. It is the key person who completes the observations on the child and plans the appropriate experiences that will stimulate their development. The special relationship and knowledge the key person has about the child helps in this planning.

When the child is due to leave the pre-school or day nursery Centre to enter primary school the key person is required to send a short profile of the child to the headteacher of the school they are to move onto. The parent will be invited to discuss what the key person has written and be asked to read and sign this profile before it is sent onto the school.

If your key person is concerned about any aspect of the child's development, this will be discussed with the parent and possibly other professionals will be consulted.

PLEASE NOTE: Specialist opinion will only be sought with parental consent.

Play and Learning
Experiences at pre-school and day nursery Centres are planned to stimulate the child's development and are often referred to as the curriculum, which is the same term that is used for the planned experiences which occur during the formal school years.

However the curriculum for children under five years of age is planned in a less formal way so that children, regardless of age, will be involved, interested and curious about the activities that are offer through play, which is not adult directed.

Children are presented with a range of opportunities to learn and practice skills, either with other children, adults or on their own. The younger child is usually much happier doing this in the company of an adult, whereas, the child of three plus enjoys exploring new experiences with children near their own age.

Towards the end of the child's time at pre-school or day nursery, it is hoped that he/she is able to choose and take control of their activities, in preparation for independent learning at school.

Organisation of 'Curriculum' to Meet the Developmental Needs of Children in a Pre-School or Day Nursery Centre.

The following information provides a summary of requirements for the organisation of play and learning experiences in a pre-school or day nursery.

Babies and Toddlers
When not being attended to for the physical needs of eating, sleeping and nappy changing,  babies are presented with experiences which appeal to his/her senses, such as touch, sight and hearing.

When the baby is able to sit without support, but not walk, day nurseries are encouraged to have a treasure basket available for individual exploration, with their key worker nearby. The basket contains a range of safe everyday items that have a variety of textures, such as heavy, smooth, soft, and a variety of shapes and smells.

Toddlers may be presented with a range of play opportunities, such as heuristic play, which is when large drawstring bags containing a range of natural every day items, such as tins and boxes for putting inside each other, cardboard rolls of different sizes for building, rolling or putting objects in, are made available for exploration.

As toddler become more independent they must be given the opportunity to explore activities that are freely available to older children, under the guidance and supervision of their key person, for example sand, water, painting, play dough and imaginative play.

Equipment appropriate to the stage of your child's development will also be made available for independent exploration, to develop his/her curiosity, such as blocks and puzzles.

A range of outdoor activities such as slides and push and pull along toys, must be provided under adult supervision as must exploration of natural and  outdoors experiences.

Children aged two years to school entry.
The minimum range of play and learning experiences that must be provided for the older age of children in pre- schools and day nurseries Centres are;

Imaginative Play and Home Corner
In this play and learning experience, emotional and imaginative development is developed by recreating real life experiences, as children use this opportunity to explore their own feelings and those of others by imitation. It is quite usual in these play situations for children to wear costumes of the opposite sex and explore similarities and differences between boys and girls.

In addition to recreating roles in the home corner, children dress up and act out other roles when provided with the props for example:

• a post office;
• the hairdressers;
• a hospital;
• a supermarket.

To the observer imaginative play may appear to be of little value to learning, but children understand many difficult concepts through acting out experiences, and this understanding forms the basis for understanding and future learning.

Language Development
From babies to school entry age, the adults in day nurseries and pre-school Centres are aware of the importance of speaking to and listening to the child.
In preparation for entering school the aim is to provide opportunities for the child to develop the following skills;

• be able to follow simple instructions;
• be able to speak to and listen to others;
• be able to listen to stories and talk about them;
• be able to join in small group discussions

Emergent Reading and Writing
In order to prepare the child with these skills in readiness for entering school, the adults in pre-school and day nursery Centres must provide the following learning opportunities:

• access to a wide range of writing materials, which also may be used as part of imaginative play;
• opportunities to make patterns using crayons, paints and pencils, which develop the small muscles in the hand in preparation for writing;
• recognition of their own name;
• have access to a wide range of books and be helped by the adult to appreciate the left to right direction of the text by reading on a one to one basis;
• access to jigsaws and construction games to develop hand eye coordination and develop the muscles in the hands.

Mathematics
In keeping with the idea that play experiences can help the child understand difficult concepts, so the adults in pre-schools and day nurseries must provide the following learning opportunities as a basis for mathematical learning;

• outdoor activities which involve wider spaces, with the opportunity to use their body to explore and understand space, for example climbing on large equipment or through barrels;
• outings to provide experience of distance, and to explore the wider environment;
• building bricks and shapes to encourage problem solving;
• counting games and measuring to help understand the concept of numeracy;
• comparing, matching and sorting games to develop mathematical language and ideas;
• setting the table to aid matching and problem solving, and serving out their meal to determine size;
• jigsaws and construction games to develop hand eye coordination, and develop the muscles in the hands.

Science and Technology
Curiosity and understanding is developed in the child by the opportunity to handle and explore various materials, so they can learn what they are made of, and how they work, for example:

• nature tables, which includes living creatures and growing;
• sand and dough, in various colours and textures;
• ordinary everyday observations being discussed and explored, for example "Where has the puddle gone?" (after the sun has dried it up.) "Where did it come from?" or "Will it come back?";
• a woodwork bench with child sized real tools for hammering and sawing (under adult supervision);
• cooking activities, which are an early introduction to the concept of change, as in chemistry;
• access to computers for the children

Art and Craft
By being able to freely discover art and craft materials, the child's creative expression will be encouraged by:

• painting, which provides the opportunity for individual expression, the naming of colours and an understanding of the differences between them;
• the opportunity to explore different shapes, through the use of brushes or printing with boxes and sponges;
• craft activities, which provide the opportunity to develop scissor control and collage and junk modelling, which provide a good starting point for technology at school

Music
An early appreciation of rhythm is developed in your child by the adults providing:

• the opportunity to listen and learn to distinguish between different sounds, either on tape or in the environment;
• games to distinguish between high and low sounds;
• joining in with singing, playing instruments and movement

Physical Activities
Physical Activities are often linked with those previously mentioned, as movement is an important aspect of learning through play and developing an awareness of space, for example;

• skipping, hopping action songs and dance;
• climbing, walking on beams, playing with balls for catching and kicking and bean bags for throwing.

Social Development
The adults in  pre-school and day nursery Centres are aware that once the child leaves their group to enter school, he/she will not have the same level of attention from the adult, because there is usually one teacher and possibly a nursery nurse for each reception class of school children.So they pay particular attention to the importance of developing self confidence and independence in preparation for school to develop the skills of independence, which are;

• being able to dress and undress on their own (including shoes);
• being able to use the toilet properly and wash their hands on their own;
• being able to share toys and equipment and clear them away after use;
• setting out, serving and clearing away snacks and meals;
• being able to pour drinks and estimate volume of liquid in the cup

Teachers in reception classes consider independence and self confidence are the most important skills to be developed as a foundation for learning and preparation for the transition to school.

Pre-schools are assessment for re-registration on an annual basis by the Foundation Stage /School Age Officer, and day nurseries by the Manager for Day Care Registration, and unannounced follow up and pop in visits are carried out between these times. Parents are consulted as part of the audit for annual re-registration.