Barn Owl Day Nursery

The nursery is committed to the inclusion of all children. All children have the right to be cared for and educated to develop their full potential alongside each other, through positive experiences to enable them to share opportunities and experiences and develop and learn from each other. We provide a positive and welcoming environment where children are supported according to their individual needs. Through regular observation and interaction with the children the staff identify any area of concern.

The nursery is committed to working alongside parents in the provision for their childs individual needs, to enable us to help the child to develop to their full potential. The nursery is committed to work with any child who has a specific need or disability to enable the child to make full use of the nursery and it’s facilities. All children with special needs have a right to a broad and well-balanced education.

We feel it is paramount to find out as much as possible about a particular child’s condition and the way that affects his/her educational needs by:

liaising with the child’s parents
liaising with any professional agencies
reading any reports that have been prepared
attending any review meetings with the local authority
regularly monitoring observations carried out on the child’s development.
 

All children will be given a full settling in period when joining the nursery according to their needs.

Through initial assessments when a child comes to us, we are able to determine the child’s capabilities. We ask the parents for information on the child’s needs during the registration and induction process. We would put enough support in place for the individual child and would seek further advice from other professionals as and when needed. Gaining independence is a huge part of nursery life and it is encouraged in everything we do, we can adapt activities via planning and assessment. The SENCO is there to support our staff team with planning particular activities to meet the needs of children with SEN. Each key person plans for the needs of each individual child in our setting. The children’s learning journeys and the staff’s own knowledge of the children help to inform the planning of activities and daily routines for the children. Parents are actively encouraged to be involved in their child’s day by looking at the planning, looking through their learning journeys.  We also hold Parent’s evening twice a year to discuss children’s development in more depth.

If additional strategies are identified, we will work closely with the parents and SenCo to develop what is required.  In the past we have used picture cards, such as PECs, and visual timetables.

Within the setting we ensure that we plan for the unique child, ensure that we can best support the needs of the child within the environment making adjustments where reasonably possibly.  For example, if a child had a hearing loss we would evaluate the noise levels within the environment, allow the key person to have more time with your child and access additional resources.

We set regular targets that are met through daily planned activities. These activities will encompass your child's key interests to ensure that they learn and develop to the best of their ability. We listen to you as a parent to identify possible changes in interests to keep learning fun and rewarding for your child.

Within the setting we will carry out a 2 year check for your child that we ask you to make a contribution towards. This is one of the ways that helps us to form a positive relationship with parents and carers.

We liaise with other settings if your child should be attending more than one. We would do this by sharing documentation, visiting the relevant settings, and also via information from other professionals linked into your child.

The process of monitoring a child’s progress is described in all of the previous questions. Good relationships with parents is one of our main priorities, the nursery understands and recognises the importance of the parents role and we would always ask for parents involvement when planning for their child, and ask them for specific targets to help their child to progress whilst they attend the nursery.

Where possible children can be involved in setting their own targets and have their say in the activities which are developed for them. We always take children’s current interests into account when we are planning for them.

In cases where a child attends another setting as well as ours, we would share transfer forms and development summaries to gain overall knowledge of the child we would regularly communicate with other settings and in past cases we have been able to visit the child at their other setting to see how they get on there and what they get up to.

We ensure we make reasonable adjustments for children with SEND through having an understanding of their needs. Annual risk assessments are carried out within the nursery environment. We communicate and involve parents in preparing for and undertaking nursery trips and other activities outside the child's usual environment through information and guidance given to us by the parents. Considerations are always made with adult to child ratios to meet the needs of the child taking part.

We do have wheelchair access in most areas, although some parts we don't including upstairs. Reasonable adjustments are made to suit all needs to access equipment.   We borrow equipment from professionals for example from the OT we have standing frames and adapted chairs, visual timetables are used with some children and staff who are familiar use Makaton. Baby signing is also used with children. Bilingual books for children and parents are available to use at the nursery and at home.

Transition reports are sent to the next setting, if a child is moving onto school the teacher will visit the setting and have a discussion with the key person.  Visits are encouraged between settings.  If a parent chooses to send their child to our setting, meetings will be held with the parents before the child starts to ensure that the Nursery is able to meet all their needs.  If necessary staff will be trained accordingly and specialist equipment brought in.  The SENco will be involved in all the meetings and will ensure that contact is made with outside agencies if and when necessary.  Regular reviews will be made once the child has started to ensure we meet all their needs.

We assess our effectiveness through feedback and regular discussions with parents/carers and other professionals who work directly with us. We carry out a yearly questionnaire giving parents the opportunity to express their views and feeling. Regular discussions with the team give practitioners the opportunity to reflect, voice their opinions and in prove the SEN provision.

You can either e-mail barnowldaynursery.co.uk or telephone the nursery on 01189 425555 and ask to speak to the manager or deputy.

Staff are always available during the day to listen to parents. If our nursery Manager is not available, our Deputy Manager will be available to speak to parents regarding your child.  Any compliments received, both verbally and in writing are shared with staff during one of our regular staff meetings or used in staff appraisals if they are specific to a staff member. We hope that we provide a positive and effective service but if you are unhappy with the information or service we offer you we can provide you with information on how to make a complaint to Ofsted.

We inform parents of who they should approach as a first point of contact during their induction to the nursery, this also tells them who to contact in their absence.

We hope that we provide a positive and effective service but if you are unhappy with the information or service we offer you, here is a copy of our Complaints Procedure:

Complaints Procedure

Our nursery believes that parents are entitled to expect courtesy and prompt, careful attention to their individual needs and wishes. We hope that at all times you will be happy with the service provided and that you might like to voice your appreciation to the staff concerned.

Complaints should be dealt with professionally and promptly to ensure that any issues arising from these complaints are handled effectively and to ensure the welfare of all children.
 

We welcome any suggestions from parents on how we can improve our services, and will give prompt and serious attention to any concerns that you may have by following our complaints procedure as outlined below:

Stage 1

If any parent should have cause for complaint or any queries regarding the care or education of their child they should in the first instance take it up with the child's key worker or a senior member of staff/room leader. 

Stage 2

If the issue remains unresolved and there is not have a satisfactory outcome, then the manager should be contacted. These concerns must be presented in writing to the nursery manager. The manager will then investigate the complaint and report back to the parent within five days (in line with the Ofsted 28 day requirement). This will be fully documented in the complaints log book and will detail the nature of the complaint and any actions arising from it. 

(Most complaints will be resolved informally at stage 1 or 2.)

Stage 3

If the matter is still not resolved a formal meeting should be held between the manager, parent and the senior staff member to ensure that it is dealt with sufficiently. A record of the meeting