Settling in at preschool policy

Mental health and wellbeing at preschool are fundamental to who we are and what we do, it is this holistic approach that is central to children settling well in our setting and making the most of their time with us.

We know it is very important that families receive the right kind of support when they join our setting to allow both the child and their family to feel connected to and welcomed at preschool. The transition into preschool can be a breeze for some and more of an ordeal for others. Our role is to make you and your child feel excited and comfortable about joining us so that everyone gets the best experience and children can feel settled and safe quickly, allowing them to take advantage of all that we have to offer, building bonds and friendships, having fun and learning.

Some children need more support than others to settle into preschool. Our team is experienced with helping children to feel safe and comfortable to be at preschool and can advise on useful strategies. We would always encourage a swift goodbye, prolonging this point of separation can be upsetting for both parent and child. Staff are on hand to care for your child, they will comfort, engage and distract them. We always advise that, where possible, children leave happy, it makes them more keen to return.

We message the parent during the first three sessions with us to update them on how their child is getting on.

Please be aware that if your child finds it difficult to settle and gets unduly distressed, we will ask you to return to pick them up and we will work out a bespoke strategy of settling in. This will usually include a reduction to your child’s sessions and then a gradual build up.

While we are very experienced at helping children to settle and will do all that we can to support them and you, we do not have the staff to support a child one to one for a whole session for a long period of time. We are not trying to make your life difficult, but prolonged upset and rushing to settle a child can have a very negative impact on your child’s mental health and wellbeing.

If your child cannot fully settle into our setting they cannot take advantage of all that we offer and it may be damaging to future transitions. The better we can support you and your child and give them a positive experience to starting with us the better they will make progress and develop in our care.

If your child is very young, they may find it particularly difficult to do a full day at our setting, please be aware that we may suggest reduced hours even though you have requested full days.

If your child is due to start with us and has asked to join Adventure Fridays in the first term, they will need to be settled at preschool and meet the requirements to enable them to join these more demanding sessions. (They must be out of nappies.) This will be discussed with you at your Start Date session.

Coming to our Stay & Play settling in sessions really helps with the transition to preschool.

Stay & Play sessions

Once the Placement fee has been paid and your child’s place secured, parents are invited to bring their child along to our settling in Stay & Play sessions which run every Tuesday in term time from 9:15 -10:30. These are free and no need to book. We find that those children able to attend in the terms leading up to joining us, find it much easier to settle into preschool.

Start Date session

You will be emailed the term before your child is due to start with a start date. Please respond as soon as possible to confirm you are available to make this date. In this email you will be asked to read carefully and complete a Preschool Agreement online form. Please ensure this is done BEFORE you arrive for your child’s Start Date session. Failure to do so will delay your child’s start with us.

How the Start Date session works

• Parent and child are invite to preschool for 9:30, finishing by 12, for their first session

• You should both be appropriately dressed for the weather

• The child is free to explore the setting - staff will be on hand to support them

• You will get the opportunity to chat with the key worker and discuss your child and the key worker will complete some paperwork with you

• A manager will complete enrolment paperwork with you

• We will complete a funding form with you if required

• You will be asked at this point to pay the Enrolment fee

• Staff may suggest that you leave your child in the setting for a short time

• On pick up, at 11:45, a manager will discuss your child’s next sessions depending on how they have settled

Please note also that you will be charged for your child’s full session (3 hours) even if your child has their session hours reduced to support settling in as staff must be on hand to cover for the whole session.

We hold the Healthy Child Healthy Workforce accreditation from Central Bedfordshire Council which celebrates all the hard work and support we have in place to support our preschool community

We discourage the use of dummies in the preschool because of the effect they can have on the development of a child’s speech and language skills, however, we acknowledge the role these and other comforters can have in helping a child settle into a new environment. We therefore work with parents to help reduce the need for these in setting.

Jun 24