First Friends Day Nursery - Eastleigh

The nurseries Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Coordinator (SENDCO) supports practitioners in Early Identification and will work with parents and staff to ensure children's needs are being met. Every child is accessed in the first 8 weeks using the Early Years Foundation stage which will highlight whether they are meeting milestones. All staff have some training around SEN children and the SENDCO for the setting is working toward her level 3 in Special Educational needs.

If you feel your child may be delayed in an area of their development or you are worried that there ay be an underlying health condition, it is best to talk with the settings SENDCO and find out how best they can support your child. The SENDCO of the setting can signpost you to outside agencies and work closely with you and your child.

Your child will be assigned a key person who will be responsible for your child's development and care needs. They will plan and implement activities tailored for your child using their interests.

They will also work closely with the SENDCO to ensure Individual Educational Plans are in place using the graduated approach. 

The SENDCO will work closely with you and give advice on how best to help your child at home so that there becomes consistency between both settings.

We use the Early Years Foundation Stage to track our children's progress. We use their interests to plan activities that are suitable for their age and stage of development. The SENDCO will work closely with practitioners to ensure your child is well catered for and that activities are tailored to meet the needs of your child. Your child may have an Individual Education Plan which 

Every child's development is tracked using an Online Learning Journey. Using this online system to observe each child we can identify whether not a child is meeting the correct mile stones according to their age. If we identify clear delays, an initial meeting with the parents will be made and permission sort in order to get in contact with outside agencies who will offer support and advice and ensure the child is referred to the correct specialist.

Regular meetings with parents will be held so that they are aware of each step of the process. 

Strong relationships are built between your child and their key person and we ensure these are maintained even through transitions through the setting. We make time to listen to each child and carryout activities that encourage confidence and self esteem. Practitioners will take small group activities throughout the day where they focus on feelings and emotions using puppets and books. 

Regular observations are made on each child and record on the child on line learning journey. If we were concerned about your child's well being we would invite the parents in to discuss. 

When a child has an ongoing medication, we ensure we receive the correct training on administration. All staff members are first aid trained and can administer Epi-pens. 

Many of our practitioners are either working towards or have gained a level 3 or equivalent in child care. We have all been in childcare for many years and therefore have a vast amount of knowledge on child development. 

We have access to resource on the Early Help Hub and have good links with our Area Inclusion officer, Portage Workers, Speech and Language Therapist and Community Nursery Nurses.

The settings SENDCO is currently completing a Level 3 SEND Award. 

The SENDCO provides in house training for all staff when need through training days or staff meetings. All staff have access to online training which they complete when needed.

First Friends enjoy taking all children out for walks in the local community. Every trip is risk assessed to ensure that extra precautions have been put in place when needed to minimise any risk to children and staff. The safety of every child is paramount and if we felt we could not ensure this other arrangements would be made to keep your child safe in the setting alongside a small group of children.

First Friends Nursery is on one level. We do have the ability to open both main doors ensuring it is accessible for wheel chairs. We also have an assessible toilet. The outside area is not a great size and there is a step going down onto it therefore we would look at getting a ramp if required. The corridors are wide and tables and chairs and furniture is at children's height.

We all know how important transitions are. We take great care in ensuring that this process is taken slowly and and at the pace of your child. If a child is finishing their time with us and moving on to Primary School, we ensure a detailed handover is made. This will include a one page profile of your child detailing their strengths, their likes and their interests and their areas of need. We would also pass on their Individual Education Plans so that the school have a starting point to work with and any baselines, assessments and reports from outside agencies.

First Friends also invite reception teachers into the setting to introduce themselves to the child and get to observe them in a more comfortable environment for that child. It is also the best opportunity for the SENDCO to discuss your chil's needs.

In some cases your child may require an Education Health Care Plan which will go with them to school. It ensures your child is receiving the correct support and all strategies are in place and are effective ensuring your child will achieve their best possible outcomes.

We are an inclusive setting and part of this is by ensuring all children have the same opportunities. We may need to adapt activities to meet the needs of every individual but every child will be welcomed to each activity. 

Our staff team is also a one of our best resources. We ensure the staff are trained when needed so that they are confident in their abilty to meet the needs of your child. 

Every child develops at different rates and every child is unique.

If your child is coming to us with a special educational need we would ensure their transition goes as smoothly as possible. This might mean that your child needs more settling in visits or more 1-1 time with their key person.

During the transition period we welcome as much information as possible about your child and their needs. This could be in the form of reports from Paediatricians or other therapists and observation records from previous settings.

If we felt that your child needed extra support during their time with us, we would seek advice from our Area Inclusion Officer who would sign post us to the correct agencies. Depending on the level of support your child needs we may be able to seek funding so that your child can have 1-1 support within the setting.

We pride ourselves in positive partnerships with parents and carers and always welcome new ideas from them. Parents and carers are involved in every step of their child's progress and support and advice is given as needed. Practitioners give feedback to parents on a daily basis about how their child has been throughout the day and celebrate 'Wow' moments at nursery with them.

We hold coffee mornings, Mothers and Fathers Day events as well as a Christmas Nativity. We hold regular parents evenings which is a great opportunity to discuss your child's progress with their key person  and to raise any concerns with them about your child.