Frequently Asked Questions

Along with our Parents Handbook, which you will receive before your child arrives on their first day, you will also be given a Nursery Folder in which to keep everything we share with you whilst your child is with us. This will include a range of important documents, not least of which an overview of our various policies and procedures (full copies of which you will find available to you any time in the nursery).

The folder should then be used to keep all future correspondence – along with examples of your child’s work and their Learning Journey, once their time with us comes to an end.

Staff will discuss with you the most appropriate way to introduce your child to idea of spending time in our nursery. You will be invited into the nursery before your child starts and will be asked to agree a programme of settling in, where you accompany your child to nursery for an agreed (but flexible) time, before you gradually reduce your presence.

Staff are very flexible and will work around your child’s needs. Some children settle relatively quickly and parents can leave after a short time in the nursery. Others are more reluctant to part from their parents and need at least two weeks. It is best to gauge your child’s level of confidence and work out a system that keeps everyone happy. We find that a child who is supported to settle at their own pace quickly adapts to the nursery routine.

We have an open door policy and you are invited to ask questions at any time. When you come to collect your child, the staff on duty will have been briefed about each child so they can share any available information with you. Some nurseries provide a ‘communication board’ where they write the main events of the day next to each child’s name. Other nurseries have communication books to let you know about the day’s activities.

In addition to our regularly planned parents’ evenings, the nursery manager will always offer an appointment to discuss your child’s progress if you wish. We hope that from your child’s very first day in the nursery, you will build up a good rapport with the staff and feel comfortable to speak to any one of us. While your child’s key person is best placed to give a detailed insight into your child’s progress, all staff are very aware of how each child is progressing generally.

All children vary in their need for rest or sleep. We will observe them before speaking with you about whether they should be encouraged to sleep or not, and if so for how long.

Lunch is followed by quiet time in the nursery. Your child may have a sleep or rest, or instead engage in quiet activities in a small group. Children can sleep at any time of day, not just after lunch.

Research has shown that a sleep during the day equally benefits older children and does not affect their night time sleep pattern.

Babies usually move from the baby room to a room with older children around the age of two. We realise this is a big step for many children, who will be going from being one of the eldest in a small group of children, to being the youngest in a larger group – and with children who are already more confident. To make this transition as smooth as possible, we help your child get used to the new space and new children by taking them for visits. We then gradually increase the number of hours they spend with the older children until they are ready to make the move permanent. At this point, your child will have a new key person who will make sure they are fully settled.

Yes. We encourage children to play outside every day, even if it is just for a short time, for example in bad weather. Most of our nurseries have outdoor space and where they do not, staff take children on frequent trips to local parks or gardens. We consider our outdoor areas an extension of the indoor learning environment.

Yes. Please bring spare clothes for your child. When your child is being toilet trained, we would also appreciate it if you could bring plenty of spare underwear.

We strongly advise that you dress your child in sensible everyday clothing, so they are not worried about getting dirty. Many of the activities provided are messy, perhaps one reason why they give the children such great pleasure! We also suggest that your child is dressed in clothes which are easy to manage, especially when they are learning to use the toilet independently.

In the winter your child should come to nursery with warm clothes including hats, gloves and wellington boots so they can play happily outside. In the summer they will need a sun hat and sun cream.

We ask that your child does not wear jewellery in the nursery, as we cannot take responsibility for any possessions that may be lost or damaged in the course of the day, although we will of course take reasonable care of children’s belongings at all times while they are in the building.

Your child’s name should be clearly marked in all of their clothing.

The nursery has clear boundaries for children and staff, with an emphasis on the importance of caring and being kind to each other. We hope that children will learn to be considerate to each other, through following the example of staff and other children. We teach children to take responsibility for their actions and involve them in making the rules, so they can take direct ownership of them.

There are stages in a child’s development when they can be quite antagonistic with each other. We work through this, identifying a programme in partnership with you so that we are consistent in our approach to the inappropriate behaviour. We never smack children or use any form of physical punishment and try very hard not to raise our voices. We believe that a calm environment is more conducive to relaxed and settled children.

The nursery manager will negotiate start and finish times with you during your settling-in meeting. Staff like children to arrive at the agreed time so they do not miss out on any planned activities, but equally so they are able to settle into a stable routine.

If you are going to be late dropping your child off, please ring the nursery as soon as possible. This is especially important where we need to submit numbers for lunch or check that nursery staff have not taken children on an outing because they have unexpectedly low numbers.

Likewise, if you are going to be late collecting your child, please phone the nursery as soon as possible. We regrettably have little choice but to charge a fine for every 15 minutes you are late collecting your child.

If you or your child’s designated carer are unable to collect them promptly when nursery finishes, again please inform the Nursery Manager or other member of staff as soon as possible, giving details of who will be collecting your child in your place.

The individual collecting your child must be an adult or sibling over the age of 14. In emergencies we will accept a phone call together with a password, but prefer parents to inform us in person or give a letter of consent in advance where possible. We will not release a child to anyone else without your consent.

In case of emergency, where we are unable to contact either parent, it is vital that we have a trusted emergency contact, such as a friend, grandparent or neighbour who will come and collect your child.

If we are unable to contact you or your emergency contact at the end of the nursery day, we have no choice but to contact the relevant authorities.

If your child is unwell, we recommend you keep them at home. Please ring the nursery as soon as possible to let us know. If your child becomes ill while at nursery, we will call and ask you to collect them.

We can only administer medication if it is prescribed by a doctor, with the dosage written by the pharmacist on the bottle. We will not administer medicine that has been bought over the counter or which has been decanted into another container.

If your child has been prescribed antibiotics, they must stay at home for the first 48 hours before returning to nursery. We will then happily administer the rest of the course once your child is well enough to return to nursery.

If your child has had diarrhoea and/or been sick they must stay away for at least 48 hours to avoid passing the infection on to other children.

We encourage all staff to gain a Paediatric First Aid certificate and help them keep their training up to date. A First Aid box is kept in the nursery and we need your consent for staff to apply simple first aid (e.g. cold compress, plaster).

If your child has an accident in the nursery, the details will be recorded in the accident book and you will be asked to sign it once you arrive. If your child has a more serious accident and needs to go to hospital, we will ring for an ambulance and ask you to meet us there.

Please let us know if your child has had an accident at home.

We have an official policy to help us deal with situations where a child may be suspected of being neglected or abused. We have a duty to ask about potential safeguarding issues and we take our responsibility to protect the whole family seriously. The Children Act 2004 states that the welfare of a child is paramount and makes it clear that staff have a professional duty to take action if they are concerned a child may be at risk of physical or sexual abuse or in danger of harm. Parents will be contacted by the relevant authorities if this policy is implemented.

To assess how well we are doing at meeting EYFS requirements, all our nurseries are inspected by Ofsted every three years.

Inspectors look at the quality of the care we provide, the number of adults we have working in each nursery, as well as health and safety, available space, equipment, play materials and facilities. They check the way we plan children’s activities and inspect our organisational policies and procedures. Inspectors also consider staff attitudes, experience, training and qualifications, as they understand the vital role the adult has within the nursery.

We take our responsibilities for data protection very seriously and keep the limited information we hold on you and your child secure at all times, including:

• Your original application and other consent forms
• Your child’s Learning Journey which they take with them when they leave the nursery
• Medical records, details of allergies and so on

We are confident you and your child will enjoy your time with us, but if you are unhappy for any reason, please make an appointment to discuss the matter with your child’s key person as soon as possible.

Every effort is made to resolve the situation at this stage. However, if this is not possible, please ask to speak directly with the Nursery Manager. They will be happy to explain our full complaints procedure and advise you on what happens next.

We understand that families sometimes get into financial difficultly. If this happens to you, or looks like it might happen, please speak to your Nursery Manager immediately. We will always do all we can to help you keep your child’s place in our nursery, and this gives us the chance to work with you to prevent your nursery fees from getting into arrears.

However, if your fees remain unpaid after two weeks with little prospect of a solution, your place will be at serious risk of being terminated and your case will be referred to our Head Office Finance team. We take non-payment very seriously, as this jeopardises the service we provide for hundreds of other London children.

Yes, you still need to pay fees as normal if your child is sick or on holiday, as we will not be able to change our staffing or recoup the fees from another child while you are away.

Ninety percent of our staff are in training or qualified to NVQ Level 3, with a growing number studying for their Early Years degrees. Our staff are crucial to the consistency and quality of what we do; they are recruited because of their experience, knowledge, enthusiasm and commitment to caring for children.

Our Annual Staff Conference is one of only five planned days in the year when each nursery is closed (in addition to Bank Holidays). The other four consist of three days between Christmas and New Year, plus a day for individual nursery team training. At least six weeks’ notice is given ahead of any closure due to training, so you can make alternative childcare arrangements. Refunds are not given for these days as this is taken account of when setting the annual fees.

We may also occasionally close early for special staff meetings, but again will do all we can to minimise the disruption this may cause you and your child.

We welcome all children of every race, class, faith, culture and ability. We are extremely proud that our staff represent the communities we serve. We positively celebrate this diversity and believe that such an approach enriches the life of the nursery both for the children and the staff. Every child is treated fairly and we avoid negative stereotyping. We ensure a broad selection of equipment and resources which adequately reflect our diverse community.

We currently require at least four weeks written notice when you wish to leave. The same applies if you want to reduce your hours, for example from full-time to part-time.

It is important to give as much notice as possible, so we can prepare your child for their move and complete their Learning Journey so it is ready to take with you on your child’s last day. We also like to have a ‘leaving tea’ to celebrate your child’s time with us at nursery and say goodbye properly.