Jiminy Crickets Pre-School

All children within the pre-school are monitored through observations, ensuring that any concerns developmentally or otherwise are picked up as soon as possible.  If a concern is raised, a meeting will be arranged with the parent/carer to discuss the next steps.  This meeting will involve the child's keyworker, and Pre-school Manager or SENCO where appropriate.

If a parent/carer has a concern about their child and wishes to discuss this, they may do so at any point; via email, phone call or a face to face meeting can be arranged also.

On registration to the pre-school you will be provided with a welcome pack which tells you all the information you need, our policies are available to read as a hard copy or on our website.

The Manager of the pre-school will meet you and your child to discuss how many sessions are required and what extra funding or staffing may be needed. As we are run by a committee, the Chair will be kept informed of any extra financial requirements.

Our SENCO, Pre-school Manager and your child's key person will liaise with you and any outside agencies involved,  in order to monitor your child’s progress.

Our SENCO is familiar with the SEN code of practise, monitors records and ensures that they are kept up to date regarding information about your child’s learning and progress. She will ensure that all staff are familiar with the SEN policy and that it is reviewed annually.

Our SENCO establishes and maintains positive relationships with our parents, keeping them involved every step of the way. She attends SEN support groups and helps with the transition to school.

The amount of support is tailored to fit the individual needs of each child.

All activities are planned and adapted to cater to the individual needs and abilities of every child. We plan our activities weekly and incorporate any activities that the children initiate themselves.

We use 'Development Matters' alongside the Early Years Foundation Stage Statutory Framework as a guide for a child’s development.  All staff have a broad understanding of child development with many years experience between them.

Our SENCO helps children who need extra support. We work as a team to provide each key person with support and activities for your child to learn within the area of need. Progress will be monitored and recorded by writing observations on your child which will be kept in their learning journals. We will then discuss with parents the appropriate next steps of each child. If there are any concerns these will be catered for and the planning will be adjusted to suit your child. Individual Education Plans (IEP’s) are planned when necessary.

Each child will have a learning journal, these include observations, photographs, your child’s creative work, assessments and termly reports. Through these we are able to create a picture of your child’s progress and time at pre-school. We hold regular parents evenings to discuss development and progress and to see the children’s art work that we display on our walls. This is also a chance to meet all the staff and other parents.

You may, of course book an appointment with your child’s key person at any time, staff are available at the beginning and end of each session for a more informal chat if any concerns arise.

We send out regular newsletters to keep you informed of events happening at the pre-school.  Our main communication tool is our private Parent/Carer Facebook page.  This can be accessed once your child joins the setting. 

Our website is Jiminy Cricket's Pre-School | Ashford Hill (jiminycricketspreschool.com)

Home to preschool communication books will be arranged as and when needed.

External agencies that are involved with your child are able to visit the pre-school to observe or work with your child.

At Jiminy Crickets all staff are responsible for the safety and security of your child, both emotionally and physically. We carry out a risk assessment check every morning, we also complete regular fire drills.

We are a small setting with a great staff ratio.

We have a positive approach to behavioural routines using timers, encouragement and the way we speak to your child. If there are any behavioural issues we try to look for the causes and solutions.

All staff are first aid trained.  Staff are willing and able to train in the use of Epipens, insulin injectors, and most other vital regular medication.

All allergy information is displayed for staff awareness only. All medication is stored away from the children in a secure place, a record book is kept with the dosage and any other instructions needed which will be signed by the parent.  Daily vital medication needs will be discussed/trained/inputted on a case by case basis.

All staff are DBS checked, and regularly updated with safeguarding training. The pre-school policies can be viewed on our website at Jiminy Cricket's Pre-School | Ashford Hill (jiminycricketspreschool.com)

All staff at Jiminy Cricket's are highly experienced and trained in Early Years childcare and Education we have 5 members of staff who are fully qualified in NVQ level 3 to QTS.

All staff attend regular training courses to update their knowledge and remain current. Staff have basic Makaton (a signing method of communication, supported by spoken language) training. The pre-school liaise with speech and language therapists, occupational therapists, physiotherapists, special advisory teachers, portage and any other professionals in order to support our children.

We have a weekly story read with the use of Makaton, by a local resident of the village, who is also a governor to the local school. 

Training is undertaken to equip staff with the necessary knowledge as the need arises, as well as continuous personal development.

Most staff are trained in Makaton and undertake regular online course via Educare such as 'Speech, language and communication', 'Supporting early language development', SEND code of practice', 'Supporting children with SEND in the early years' 'Equality and inclusion', 'Understanding and addressing behaviour'.

All staff will work closely with outside agencies to learn specific skills to support children with additional needs.

As we are situated in a rural setting we have a lovely field that the children have access to. We regularly go for walks and to the local park which is situated right next to the pre-school. These are risk assessed for any individual needs and adjusted as needed to make this accessible to all children; this might mean an extra staff member.

The pre-school have special days throughout the year these include a Christmas party, school leavers party, visits from outside companies such as sports companies or travelling farms etc graduation ceremony, and a day trip out at the end of the 'school' year to celebrate the older children's completion of preschool.

Our committee organises events to raise funds for the preschool.  In the past these have included a casino night, a bingo evening, a Christmas Fayre and an outdoor cinema! 

These are usually a great success and lots of fun, raising much needed funds for the preschool, to purchase equipment and such for the children.  Most of the local residents also partake, which is really lovely. 

The building is accessible for prams and wheelchairs, we have a ramp up to the front door and a large gate into the garden.

There is a large toilet with nappy changing facilities within the building. Guidance from specialists would need to be sought if specialist equipment is needed as we share our building with Ashford Hill cricket club.

We operate from one room,  we also have use of a long hallway for small group or one to one work.

We have a large car park, which is accessible for all

The children have access to a secure garden which leads to a large field. This is risk assessed daily, and for individuals as and when needed.

When starting at Jiminy Cricket's we like the children to have at least two pre visits, one with parents, this can be extended if needed. Parents can stay until their child has settled or can wait in the meeting room to be available if their child needs them.

Transition to school: Teachers from the local schools usually come to visit your child before they start school. In the summer term we arrange additional visits to Ashford Hill Primary School for the children who will attend there so your child will be even more familiar with the teacher and the school before starting. The Reception teacher for Ashford Hill Primary usually visits a few times to meet the children and discuss any issues with the Manager and SENCO, as necessary.

All learning journals are passed on to the teachers for their information, these will be returned to you once the teacher is satisfied that she knows your child. If your child requires extra support to access the local main stream school we will work with outside agencies to make the transition as smooth as possible.

All children receive up to 570 hours per funded year of 'free' early years education starting the term following their third birthday. Jiminy Cricket's Pre-school includes children who are in receipt of 2 year old funding.  Additional funding may be available for children with special educational needs. The funding is allocated to enable your child to achieve their full potential, this could be used for one to one support and/or additional resources.

An Individual Educational Plan (IEP) will be put into place to support your child.  Parents/carers and all staff will be aware of the 'targets' we will be working towards. This will be updated regularly with next steps and achievements documented.  Observations are taken and will be shared with you regularly.

It may be possible to apply for extra funding to support your child, if they meet the criteria we will let you know and arrange a meeting to discuss how best to use the funding.

Jiminy Cricket's Pre-school is run by a committee of current/past parents. All parents are invited to join the committee who hold regular meetings regarding the preschool. They organise fundraising events and are involved in every aspect of the day to day running of the pre-school.

Parents are asked to contribute towards the children’s snack time, which the children love to talk about whilst eating! We invite parents to our special days; Easter sing along, Christmas nativity, graduation ceremony to name a few. We hold parents evenings and all staff are available for meetings or informal chats regarding your child’s progress at any time. We encourage parents to come in and share specialist abilities or interesting jobs/hobbies.