Day Nurseries
Day Nurseries
Nurseries
A clean, caring safe and stimulating environment is essential for your child’s happiness, providing them with plenty of opportunities for fun and learning. When you visit nurseries do you notice lots of pictures on the wall? Is the equipment in good condition? Are the children busy and enjoying themselves?
Day nurseries are flexible, year-round providers, supplying full day care for the under-fives. Part-time nurseries or pre-schools may accept children from the age if two or three, and offer only regular school hours, so may be inconvenient for working parents. Both kinds need to be registered with and inspected by Ofsted for health and safety, and for the children’s education and welfare. All staff must be police-checked, and at least half must hold official childcare qualifications and first aid certificates.
All children aged three and four are entitled to six terms of free, part-time early education. This begins at the start of the term following their third birthday and at the moment covers 12.5 hours a week for 38 weeks of the year. Of course you have to pay extra if your child does more than those hours, but you may be eligible to receive some Working Tax Credit towards this if you are employed. In its latest survey the Daycare Trust found that the typical full-time nursery place for a child under two is £167 per week, but it is often higher in the South East.
Nurseries receiving funding have to adhere to government guidelines on childcare, and follow the Foundation Stage Curriculum. This means that your child’s activities will be structured around six areas of learning which include personal, social and emotional development; maths, language and literacy; knowing and understanding the world; physical play and creativity. They will get used to following routines, which help them prepare for school, and a key worker will monitor your individual child’s progress.
There are many advantages to sending your child to nursery, the chance for your child to learn and play with others being the most obvious, but there are downsides; the hustle and bustle may not suit a shy child; there may be not enough one-to-one attention for a small baby; it can be expensive, with added costs if you are late picking up; you will still have to pay if you go on holiday; and they will not accept ill children!
You should also find out whether you have to pay extra for snacks, or if you have to provide them yourself, and make sure you are aware of notice periods before signing a contract.
For advice on Working Tax Credit or Childcare Voucher schemes please click the links at the end of this article. To locate a nursery in your area visit www.childcarelink.gov.uk and www.daycentretrust.org.uk
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