Council Family Information Service can also provide you with support and advice.
Section 1 - How do you communicate with the parent/carer whose child has SEND?
1a) How they can arrange a visit and/or see you in action?
To enrol in the nursery you would need to call and speak with the Nursery manager who can talk you through the process and arrange a visit to look at the nursery and discuss any concerns or questions you may have. The SENCO is also contactable through Tops Day Nurseries. The BCP
Phone: 01202 679799
Email: info.poole@topsdaynurseries.co.uk.
Website: www.topsdaynurseries.co.uk.
1b) What are some of the things they will see to welcome them to your setting?
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Welcome sign
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Greeting by staff
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Signed into the setting
1c) What different ways do you use to communicate with parents?
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Verbally face to face
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Phone contact
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Facebook
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Emails
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Eylog emails/ messages
1d) How can parents contribute or share ideas for you to consider to make communication with you more effective?
We welcome all feedback at the setting. We have an open door policy and we encourage parents to feedback and suggest on regular basis and also annually through our parents questionnaire.
1e) If the parent/carer is unhappy with your provision, what should they do?
If a parent is unhappy with our provision we have a complaints policy/procedure which parents can contact the setting with, and this will be dealt with by the manager of the setting.
Section 2 - How will you help to settle the child into your setting?
2a) State some of the things the parent/carer will see when their child first starts at your setting
After a parent has completed a show round of the setting, and they would like to enrol their child. Once we have received the enrolment form, we will book settle sessions. The first initial settle will be 2 hours long, and this is free of charge. During the first hour we complete a ‘my world’ form which documents the child’s routine and we also complete a development baseline assessment, which documents the child’s current secured development.
Once this is completed, we then encourage parents to go for a short period of time, so that the child can be used to their parents/carers leaving and returning. We can accommodate more settle sessions for varying amounts of times after this depending on how the child settled in the first session. This will vary depending on the child.
Section 3 - What help and support does your setting offer to SEND children to move rooms or move on to school?
Transition is a “change or passage from one stage to another” here at Tops Day Nurseries we recognise that all children will experience transitions in their early years especially in relation to their care and education. Whilst transition is necessary and a part of our natural development it can also be stressful and upsetting for both parents and children.
Mini transitions happen daily as children change from home to nursery or from activity to activity. Large transitions happen less frequently and will need greater support and planning for. Practitioners will work with your family to support your child’s journey before, during and after the transition. Our aim is to help the child and family deal with these changes to ensure they feel comfortable, confident and emotionally secure during times of transition. We will support this in a number of additional ways, parents will be requested to provide the nursery with their child’s development record from their previous setting (where available) to support in planning for your child’s development and learning. With parental permission Tops practitioners will contact the previous setting to share information that will help us to care and plan for your child’s education and a new child form will be completed by the nursery administrator/key person.
We want to be involved in supporting other transitions that happen for our children outside of the setting and aim to create an environment where parents can communicate information regarding such circumstances to enable us to work together. We use play as a medium to support the children through these times and believe through working together we will be able to make transitions as smooth as possible.
3a) How do you ensure the child is happy and learning as they move from room to room?
When a child moves room we ensure that they are happy and learning by observing them in them in their new room, through assessments/observations we can see if their learning is developing. We will also observe their personal, social and emotional skills looking at their body language to ensure that are happy, safe and secure.
3b) How do you ensure the child remains happy and learning as they move from you on to another setting?
When children move onto other settings, we will contact the future setting. We complete a summative report progressing their development at this point in time and all the support resources/tools we have in place that we currently complete with the child. We actively encourage other settings and invite them to the setting to complete handover meetings, alternatively this can be done by phone call.
Section 4 - How do you understand and discover how the child learns?
4a) How do you measure the child’s learning to try to discover any additional educational needs they might have?
We are aware that some children may have additional needs and are proactive in ensuring that appropriate action can be taken when such a child is identified within the provision. Sensitive and appropriate steps are taken to promote the overall welfare and development of the child within the setting and consultation with parents or carers is paramount. All children are monitored individually throughout their time at Tops. We understand that every child develops at an individual rate and way, with this in mind we are keen to identify any gaps in your child’s development and ensuring they are supported to close any developmental gaps. We are skilled at identifying when children require further support to close gaps in their development and able to contact specialist support to meet the child current needs and develop plans to assist their learning.
We have a dedicated Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCO) who is fully trained to support children with additional needs, they also have secure links with the Local Authority. The SENCO can be accessed by any parent for support or discussions as needed, the SENCO is also available for all staff within the setting to discuss any concerns and to seek support or guidance. All our practitioners have completed basic awareness of special educational needs and have clear expectations of their role in highlighting and supporting children who may require additional support either short term or for the long term. All staff within the setting are committed to lifelong learning and development and attend courses and training to update their skills and knowledge.
4b) How will you make sure that what you are teaching meets the needs of the child?
The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) is used with children from birth to 5 years of age. The EYFS guidance has four underpinning aims that run through the framework, these are:
Besides these aims, clear principles are set for working with children: that each child is to be regarded as unique; that children learn to be strong and independent through positive relationships; that the environment in which they learn should be stimulating, using play and appropriate learning opportunities; and that they learn and develop in different ways. This allows us to tailor the children learning experiences depending on their current needs and developmental levels.
On entry to the nursery a development starting point is formed, from this we target support to progress the children further. If at this stage gaps or delays are identified we will work with the parents/ carers to discuss potential support or professionals that can support your child whilst at the setting. The staff use the EYFS to plan age and stage appropriate activities that spark imagination, conversations, excitement, awe and wonder. The EYFS has 7 seven areas of development which are divided in to: Prime areas: fundamental areas of development, the building blocks of learning Communication and language Personal social and emotional development Physical development
Specific areas; these are introduced at the age 2 years old, this can be related to fine tuning their knowledge.
Mathematics Understanding the world Literacy Expressive arts and design
These developmental areas are designed and set out so practitioners can easily highlight when support is required and adapt activities to support the children in a way that suits their needs. All planned activities are play based and lead from the children’s interest regardless of special education needs, disability or English as additional language. We use body cues and facial expressions to gauge children’s interest levels to ensure they are retaining information as planned from the activity. We use every child’s a talker tracker sheets to ensure we monitor
4c) How will you make sure that the child is having fun and enjoys learning through play?
We ensure that the child is having fun by making sure that we plan from that child’s interests so that this is enjoyable for the child. We will adapt activities around the interest of the child, and link this to the area that the child is working towards.
It is very important that the environment that we provide is stimulating and interesting as this is when the best possible results can be achieved with any child.
4d) Which experts and other professionals do you liaise with?
4e) When some children need a higher level of SEND support how do you go about making sure they get the support they need? Outline your inclusive practice process and specify how you refer to other agencies: LA Early Learning & Inclusion Team, Health Visiting Teams, Children’s Centre, Speech and Language Therapy, Occupational Therapy, CDC, etc
All children’s individual needs are reviewed and monitored and we ensure through its procedures and ethos that all practice are inclusive. As a setting we will ensure that appropriate equipment is kept within the setting to meet your child’s needs, and if items need purchasing we will do this, this is to again provide the best suitable care for the children within the setting.
4f) How do you ensure that the views of parents/carers and children are included in this specialist work?
We believe that parents know more about their children than anyone else and that they have a right to be involved in decisions relating to their child’s care and education. Whilst your child is in our care we are committed to involve parents in the following ways:
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Sharing up to date records on your child’s development,
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Hold termly meetings to discuss achievements and areas of support being provided for your children,
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Provide a termly summary of your child’s achievements and future focuses,
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Up to date newsletters, website and social networking opportunities.
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Parents display boards,
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Opportunities to join the site parent committee,
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Parenting training support and courses
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An open door policy for all parents to be able to drop into the setting at any time.
All these ways can ensure that you get all the information you need about your child and the nursery while your are with us all these methods allow you to share your views and opinions with us along the way.
Section 5 - Inclusive Practice and SEND training and expertise within this organisation
5a) What range of training and expertise do your staff have?
Within our setting we have a SENCO, this person has attended specific training to ensure they have the correct knowledge and understanding in all aspects. Regular updates and training are given to this person and the Area Inco is always available for help and support. There is a deputy SENCO who steps up to take on the role when our SENCO is not present. We also have access to lots of different professionals who can support us when needed, these include speech and language therapists, occupational health, health visitors. We are able to contact many outside professionals to support when needed these are called upon when we deem the children, staff or parents need support.
The SENCO will have attended an accredited course in Special Educational Needs (SEN). They will co-ordinate the provision for all SEN pupils and give advice and support to staff members and families. They will liaise closely with the child’s keyworker and oversee the child’s records along with outside professionals. The Manager holds an up to date list of relevant staff training that has been completed as well as the local council courses that are available, they will liaise with the SENCO to ensure that training opportunities are maximised for the setting and for the individual staff members.
Each nursery has a minimum of one member of staff fully trained to be a SENCO and aims to have two. All nursery nurses qualified to Level 3 have completed basic awareness of special needs as part of their training, including observations and evaluations of children’s development. Our staff team are all committed to continuous professional development to further develop their skills. Recently all staff have attended a Makaton session to support the children speech and communication development, along with a refresher on the importance of commenting and role modelling speech throughout their daily routine.
5b) What are the ways in which you fully involve children with SEN and/or disabilities?
Indoor - all activities that are planned in the setting are ensured that they meet the needs of ALL children within the setting. All staff take into account all children’s needs and requirements when planning trips and outings to ensure it is all inclusive. Our setting is two story building with access on the lower floor through a secure door entry system. To access the upper floors there are stairs, with handrails. We also have a lift which provides access to the upper area.
Outdoor - the garden is accessible through the ground floor. The garden is a flat area, with various equipment in it, all equipment is suitable for all children with varying needs.
Trips out of the setting - all staff take into account all children’s needs and requirements when planning trips and outings to ensure it is all inclusive. We endeavour to adapt where needed to ensure these planned and spontaneous trips meet the children’s emotional, social and physical needs and supports their current developmental stage. All trips and outings are fully risk assessed, we risk assess the route we will be taking and the new surroundings, we also consider the children that will be attending the trips to ensure safety for all and needs are meet whilst out on the trip.