Hello!
This is just a short 'newsletter' to bring you up to date with life at pre-school following our partial re-opening on 15th June 2020.
First here are some dates for your diary;
Friday 17th July - Last day of Summer Term
Wednesday 2nd September - INSET Day
Thursday 3rd September - Back to Pre-School
Wednesday 7th October - Photo Morning
w/c 19th October - Cake Sale Week
Friday 23rd October - Last Day of Term
Monday 2nd November - Start of Term
Friday 18th December - End of Term
Monday 4th January - Start of Term
As we start to plan more for the upcoming academic year there will be more dates to add to the above list.
Thank You
We would just like to say a big thank you to all our parents for bearing with us over these last few uncertain months and for working with us to enable a partial re-opening this week for those children most in need of childcare. Due to the guidance issued by the Department of Education and Derbyshire County Council we find ourselves having to adopt to new ways of working and with a limit on numbers of children able to attend. As we move forward and new guidance is no doubt issued we will do our best to keep all parents as up to date as possible.
We would also like to thank all those parents of returning children for their prompt response to numerous emails, understanding the need for our new parent agreement and for doing their part to help ensure that our new routines run smoothly; these are certainly unusual times we all find ourselves in and we appreciate everyone's understanding and patience as we get accustomed to our new pre-school life.
'The Ladies' are getting to grips with a different approach to how we do things and as we move along we are sure we will become more adapted to our 'new normal'. This does mean changes to our usual routines and activities with a greater emphasis on the personal, social and emotional aspect of our curriculum. This time is all about re-introducing the children to pre-school after such a long absence and giving them chance to play and interact with others.
Fees
Please note that as from September our hourly rate will be increasing to £4.50 per hour. All other charges remain unchanged.
Sessions for September
Please keep an eye out for an email confirming your session allocation for September; hopefully these will be with parents by the end of this week.
Contact Information
It is vitally important that the information we hold for you is up to date and accurate. If anything has changed please remember to let us know as soon as possible; this includes phone number, email, address and emergency contacts.
Going forward we intend to issue all newsletters, invoices and any other communications via email it is vitally important therefore that email addresses are correct and that pre-school is 'marked as a safe address' to avoid emails disappearing as junk! Thank you.
Changes
It is also vitally important that parents let us know of any changes that may affect their child's time with us; allergies/medical conditions, changes to home life, involvement of doctors/social care etc.
Claiming a Funded Place for your Child
If your child turns 3 between 1st April and 31st August then they will become eligible for a government funded place from September.
All children aged 3 & 4 are entitled up to 15 hours of Universal Funding per week, with some children entitled to a further 15 hours of Extended Funding per week (often referred to as ‘30 Hours Funding’). We advise all parents to visit www.childcarechoices.gov.uk to find out what they are entitled to and how to claim it. It cannot be stressed enough how important it is that parents find out this information and action it promptly. Without correct codes, obtained within specified deadlines, parents may find they miss out on their full entitlement. The deadline for applying for the '30 hours Funding' for the first time is 31st August 2020.
Parents who already claim the Extended Funding are reminded of the importance of re-confirming your ‘30 Hours Code’ every 3 months as failure to do this will result in the funding being withdrawn.
We will need all parents claiming funding to complete an FE1 Funding Form which will need to be signed. We are currently assessing the best way to do this under the current circumstances.
Transition to Reception Year
We are in touch with most of the local schools with regard to which children are moving where. Ordinarily schools would be visiting us during this term but as this is not possible this year, we will liaise with them over email and phone. We would advise all parents of children leaving for Reception Year to look at Derbyshire's Ready for School - https://www.derbyshire.gov.uk/education/early-years-childcare/ready-for-school/ready-for-school-in-derbyshire.aspx# We are confident that all our school leavers are achieving all of these 'keys for unlocking school readiness' and more besides.
Should you have any questions regarding moving into Reception year please email (springfieldpreschool@hotmail.co.uk) or use Tapestry to chat with your child's keyperson.
Tapestry
Parents are encouraged to share with pre-school the activities that their children are getting up to at any time. Tapestry can also be used as a means of communication between parent and keyperson. We will be issuing a link to all parents in the coming weeks so that you can download your child's learning journal for the last academic year.
Any questions please drop us an email 🙂
Thank you
