All about us
Manager: Annamarie Tel: 07851 359 739
Where we are: Busy bees playgroup is held at St. Andrews Church Hall, Yeovil. We provide indoor and outdoor activities. |
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The times we are open are (Term-time only):
• Mon-Thurs 9:00- 11:45
• Fridays 9:00- 3:00
Age range: The playgroup takes children from 2.5 - 4 years old. The children are split into two groups. The younger group attends on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. The older group attends Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
Fees: Our fees are £8.00 per session (All day friday = 2 sessions). Payable weekly or half- termly in advance.
Funding: Busy bees supports government funding for fees and all children can apply for funding the term after they turn 3. (Forms will be sent home with your child when they are eligible).
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Our setting aims to:
• Create a happy, friendly and stimulating environment for all children, staff and parents.
• Provide high quality and education for children below statutory school age.
• Work in partnership with parents to help children to learn and develop.
• Offer children and their parents a service that promotes equality and values diversity.
• To provide the best care and education that we can within our limitations.
Parents:
Parents are regarded as members of our setting who have full participatory rights. These include a right to be:
• Valued and respected.
• Kept informed.
• Consulted.
• lnvolved, and
• lncluded at all levels.
We aim to ensure that each child:
• ls in a safe and stimulating environment
• ls given generous care and attention, because of our ratio of qualified staff to children, as well as volunteer parent helpers.
• Has the chance to join with other children and adults to live, play, work and learn together.
• ls helped to take forward her/his learning and development by being helped to build on what she/he already knows and can do.
• Has a personal key person who makes sure each child makes satisfying progress.
• ls in a setting that sees parents as partners in helping each child to learn and develop.
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 introduces 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.
Snacks
The setting makes snacks a social time at which children and adults eat together. We plan the menus for snacks so that they provide the children with healthy and nutritious food. Do tell us about your child's dietary needs and we will make sure that these are met.
Policies
Copies of the setting's policies and procedures are available for you to see at your setting.
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 her/his parents.
The staff of the setting work together to adopt the policies and they all have the opportunity to take part in the annual review of the policies. This review helps us to make sure that the policies are enabling the setting to provide a quality service for all its members and the local community.
Working together for your children
ln our setting we maintain the ratio of adults to children in the setting that is set through the Welfare Requirements. We also have volunteer parent helpers where possible to complement these ratios. 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.
The times we are open are (Term-time only):
• Mon-Thurs 9:00- 11:45
• Fridays 9:00- 3:00
Knowledge and understanding of the world
Our programme supports children to develop.
• Knowledge about the natural world and how it works.
• Knowledge about the made world and how it works.
• Their learning about how to choose, and use, the right tool for a task.
• Their learning about computers , how to use them and what they can help us to do.
• Their skills on how to put together ideas about past and present and the links between them.
• Their learning about their locality and its special features, and
• Their learning about their own and other cultures.
Physical Development
Our programme supports children to develop:
• lncreasing control over the large movements that they can make with their arms, legs and bodies, so that they can run, jump, hop, skip, roll, climb, balance and lift.
• lncreasing control over the small movements they can make with their arms, wrists and
hands, so that they can pick up and use objects, tools and materials, and
• Their understanding about the importance of, and how to look after, their bodies.
Creative Development
Our programme supports children to develop:
• The use of paint, materials, music, dance, words, stories and role-play to express their ideas and feelings, and
• Their interest in the way that paint, materials, music, dance, words, stories and role-play can be used to express ideas and feelings.
Assessment
We assess how young children are learning and developing by observing them frequently. We use information that we gain from observations, as well as from photographs of the children, to document their progress and where this may be leading them. We believe that parents know their children best and we ask them to contribute to assessment by sharing information about what their children like to do at home and how they as parents are supporting development.
Records of achievement
The setting keeps a record of achievement for each child. Staff and parents working together on their children's records of achievement is one of the ways in which the key person and parents work in partnership. Your child's record of achievement 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 she/he 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.
The 'parents' rota
The setting has a dated rota which parents can sign if they would like to help at a particular session or sessions of the setting. Helping at the session enables parents to see what the day-to-day life of the setting is like and to join in helping the children to get the best out of their activities.
Joining in
Joining the rota is not the only means of taking part in the life of the setting. Parents can offer to take part in a session by sharing their own interests and skills with the children. We welcome parents to drop into the setting to see it at work or to speak with the staff.
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 she/he is 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, she/he will help your child to settle and throughout your child's time at the setting, she/he will help your child to benefit from the setting's activities.
Safeguarding children
Our setting has a duty under the law to help safeguard children against suspected or actual 'significant harm'.
Our employment practices ensure children against the likelihood of abuse in our setting and we have a procedure for managing complaints or allegations against a member of staff.
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.
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 (2001).
Clothing
We provide protective clothing for the children when they play with messy activities. 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 do this. During winter months we ask that you bring in wellie boots for your child. A playschool logo-ed poloshirt can be purchased for your child to wear while attending busy bees, please speak to Annamarie if you would like further details and to order.
Fees
The fees are £8.00 per session. Payable weekly or half- termly in advance. Fees must still be paid if children are not present without notice for a short period of time. lf your child has to be absent over a long period of time, please talk to Annamarie the manager.
For your child to keep her/his place at the setting, you must pay the fees. We are in receipt of nursery education funding for three and four year olds; where funding is not received, then fees apply.
We hope that you and your child enjoy being members of our setting and that you both find taking part in our activities interesting and stimulating. The staff are always ready and willing to talk with you about your ideas, views or questions. |
