Kiddi Caru Nursery

As well as key carers, we also have a Special Educational Needs Co-Ordinator (SENDCo) and Behaviour Management Co-Ordinator (BECo). We have support from our Head Office, and all staff are trained in the curriculum and behaviour management. We aim to train staff in areas such as Makaton and Sing and Sign and we aim to be as Inclusive as possible by adapting the environment, the resources and the activities. “Child A’s father is a soldier and so has to be away from home for periods of time which can impact on our family. We have always had an open relationship with the staff at Kiddi Caru which has meant that when we have had to discuss strategies of how best to support our child we have done so together as a team, ensuring a consistent approach between us.”- Parent testimonial

Each key carer has a clear knowledge of what their key children’s capabilities are. They use observations they have made; to steer the planning in such a way as to be individual to their own development, and allow for extra support or enhancement. Each child has their own development folder which is maintained by their key carer and this allows for them to identify areas of strength that we need to support and/ or any potential need for an Individual Education Plan to be put in place. Our nursery has membership with the SEN Resource Library, which we source from regularly to broaden our resources.

Each child has a learning map, which is shared regularly with parents and allows for their input so that there is a consistent approach to the child’s learning. We invite parents/ carers to attend stay and play sessions and parent’s evenings. These provide an opportunity for parents to meet with their child’s key carer and discuss their development. 2 year old checks take place as the child turns 2, which gives the key carer the chance to get an overview of the child’s learning and the way in which they learn. This information is shared with the parent prior to them meeting with their Health Visitor. We offer an open door policy where parents are welcome at any time to make an appointment to meet with their child’s key carer, the Manager, the SENDCo. We can offer advice and practical ways that parents can help their child at home. We offer different forms of communication. Staff are readily available each day for a verbal handover at drop off or collection time. We offer daily diaries that detail what each child has done that day so that learning can continue at home. Bags of Support are available in our lending library and parents are encouraged to make use of these. They vary from supporting biting, to ditching the dummy to toilet training. They offer practical suggestions from both the nursery and other parents who have chosen to submit their experiences, as well as detailing useful websites and books.

All staff have a suitability check carried out before starting at the setting. We are a purpose built setting with a good front door security system and measures in place such as fire doors, door handles which are out of the children’s reach, safety catches on lower cupboards, and medicines stored under lock and key. Medicines are only administered by a permanent and qualified member of staff. Any critical medicines, such as Epi-pens and inhalers are to be kept out of the reach of children in individual clear boxes with the child’s photo, name and details of their condition on the front. If a child has an allergy or medical condition that warrants a critical medicine then a Care Plan is put in place and all staff are made aware of the triggers, symptoms and procedure they should follow. All permanent staff are expected to have up to date paediatric First Aid, and a number of staff also have Epi-pen training. Risk assessments are in place for all areas of the setting and different tasks and activities. Staff are trained in Safeguarding and understand the correct reporting procedure. Children’s sense of wellbeing and importance is promoted by staff including them in decision making and encouraging them to be social and become involved in group discussions and activities, sharing their views and ideas. The nursery takes a positive approach to behaviour and parents are involved with any instances of challenging behaviour so that we can work together to resolve any issues.

We work very closely with our area InCo who provides support for both our setting and the family, and helps us provide a consistent approach. Her role is to oversee that we are maintaining correct paperwork such as IEP’s and that we have effective strategies in place to best support the children. We work with many other outside agencies; such as Portage, speech and Language therapists, Health Visitors, Social Workers, Occupational Therapists, Educational Psychologists and Paediatricians. We attend SENDcO support groups for regular updates on current best practice. Our BEcO has undertaken training in ‘Positive Approaches to Challenging Behaviour’ and is also qualified to Degree Level in Human Psychology. Our SENDCo has completed her SEN Induction, Introduction to Makaton, The Key Aspects of Communication and A Mind of Their Own. She is also trained in ‘PECS’, ‘Squints and Spectacles’, Speech and Language referrals, IPA’s and Transitions. We also have a Deputy SENDcO. She has also completed her SEN induction and ‘I CAN workshops’. Parents may find this link useful: http://www3.hants.gov.uk/childrens-services/childcare/parents/parents-sen.htm

As well as training staff with specific roles, we like to ensure all staff have a good understanding and knowledge of how to support the children in our setting, and therefore ensure that everyone is trained in Manual Handling, and how to write IEP’s. We aim to train our staff in Makaton and Sing and Sign. Our affiliation has recently expired and we are currently waiting to hear when our refresher training will be. We receive specialist training from Community Nurses for children in our setting who have a medical condition that warrants a critical medication. Staff also receive internal training and updates on Behaviour management, including the correct reporting procedure and how to complete relevant paperwork. Staff are guided on how to communicate any behavioural concerns with parents in an appropriate way. “When we have had discussions about managing difficult behaviour over Child A’s time at the nursery, the management team along with his key carers and Room Leaders have always given us some great ideas about how to be consistent between us, to change the behaviour around.”- parent testimonial

>All areas of the nursery, and activities we carry out require a risk assessment. The same applies for any walks or outings that we do. We take into account the needs of all children when completing these risk assessments, and ensure any appropriate adaptations and/ or limitations are put in place. When leaving the setting we always reduce our ratio to 1:2 regardless of the age of the children. However, risk assessments such as these allow us to make an informed decision on needing any 1:1 support. All activities are detailed on our planning sheets which are accessible for parents/ carers to look at. Parents/ carers are always invited to join us on any off site activity and permission for children to attend such trips is needed prior to the day. In the unlikely event that it is considered unsafe for a child to take part in an activity outside of nursery, then alternative activities that will cover the same areas of learning; will be provided at nursery.

Parents are given a key fob allowing them entry into the building. There are double width doors, appropriate for pushchairs or wheelchair users. The downstairs playrooms and foyer allow for wheelchair access and rooms are laid out in such a way to provide clear exits and accessibility to resources and facilities. We have a wonderful Sensory Room downstairs which is available for all children and parents to use. We have a downstairs disabled toilet; large enough to allow for changing. Unfortunately we do not have lift access to our upstairs playrooms, however if an older child is temporarily in a wheelchair, we cater for them in a downstairs room. We bring resources down to ensure there is minimal detriment to their learning. For parents unable to manage the stairs; staff are readily available to bring their child down from upstairs and provide a full handover. Parents are frequently offered the opportunity to see planning for their child’s room, their child’s work and development folders. We use lots of visual aids, such as photos and signs to ensure families with English as an additional language feel welcome and involved. We use Makaton in everyday tasks and activities ensuring a consistent approach and familiarity. If any of our families require any translations we can liaise with the Ethnic Minority Achievement Service who will assist us in doing so. We have access to language support books which include key words from each child’s home language. Parents may find this link helpful: http://www3.hants.gov.uk/education/emtas.htm

When a child starts at the nursery we allocate a key carer for them and invite the parents/ carers in to meet them and discuss their child’s specific needs. Parents are given a welcome pack which includes photos of nursery and the staff that will be in their playroom. We offer settling in visits prior to their start date, free of charge. We have other strategies in place, to help children settle in, such as our journey bears and bags of support, encouraging them to bring in photos or something familiar from home that can be of comfort to them. When a child moves onto another playroom parents are given 4-6 weeks’ notice so they can discuss any concerns or requirements they have. They are given the opportunity to see the next room and meet with their child’s new keycarer. Each child has visits in their next room during their normal attendance hours. When moving onto school; we help prepare the children by engaging in role play; bringing in lunch boxes, putting items of uniform in the dressing up area etc. On a child’s last day we hand over their development book and advise parents to pass it onto the school. For children with additional needs; a transition meeting/ IPA (Inclusion Partnership Agreement) is set up to ensure current measures and strategies the nursery has put in place can be mirrored in the new setting. Professionals working with the child, and their parents/ carers will be invited to that meeting.

We carry out frequent audits within nursery to make sure that our resources cover all areas of learning and are both safe and age appropriate for the children. If we feel that we need additional/different resources we can purchase these using the budget given to us by our head office. We can also apply for different types of funding when needed following guidance from outside agencies. If CHIF funding is awarded this can be used in any way that we see fit to improve inclusion throughout the nursery as opposed to the SEN funding which is awarded to a specific child to either buy resources to meet their individual needs or to get extra staff to provide some one-to-one support.

The Child’s key carer, along with the nursery SENDcO and parents/carers will discuss the child’s needs and what support would be appropriate. Where appropriate an IEP would be put in place and this would be shared with parents and any other outside agencies. Furthermore these are reviewed termly to see if the support that has been put in place has had the desired impact on the child. Any necessary changes, or in some cases referrals can then be made.

Parents are actively encouraged to get involved with their child’s learning at nursery. They are shown their child’s current learning map and are asked to contribute their ideas and own observations. Parents are asked to help review policies and procedures, and our open door policy allows for parents to voice any suggestions they may have, as and when they might arise. Questionnaires are given out to all of our leavers and we use these to inform future practice.