Heathfield House Day Nursery Ltd

Schools Extended Local Offer Response

How does the setting/school/college know if children/young people need extra help and what should I do if I think my child/young person may have special educational needs?

Our nursery is not a specialist nursery however, we do cater for children with additional needs for example speech and language, hearing, delayed development. Our children need to be competent in the use of stairs by the time they are ready for our preschool room as it is on the first floor, although we are able to give children support in climbing the stairs.

We identify our children’s needs through observations and work closely with parents/carers. If any concerns arise, discussions with parents/carers take place then with their permission, outside agencies become involved i.e., speech and language therapist, health visitors, doctors, etc. We then work closely with other agencies such as the Child Development Centre, Warrington Borough Council, speech and language and hearing advisor to gain the best possible outcome for your child.

We have an open door policy where parents/carers are welcome to come and look at their children’s learning journey’s and speak to their child’s key worker or the manager at any time during our opening hours. 

How will early years setting/school/college staff support my child/young person?

If a parent/carer thought their child had special educational needs (SEN), we would hope they would approach the child’s key worker, either verbally or through the child’s link book. 

 

How will the curriculum be matched to my child's/young person's needs?

The parents/carers and child would have support firstly from their key worker who will also work with one of our SENCos.

The Keyworker and the Senco will oversee the child’s play plan.  If we feel we require additional support we would contact  Warrington Borough Council or the Child Development Centre who will visit the setting and assess the child's needs and the provisions in place. 

The manager/owner would become involved if funding or  additional provisions were required.

How will both you and I know how my child/young person is doing and how will you help me to support my child's/young person's learning?

Within the setting each child is observed individually, play plans will be put into place for your child to be followed by the keyworker and SENCo working together.  We work within the guidelines of the EYFS.

What support will there be for my child's/young person's overall well being?

We have an open door policy, so parents/carers can call in at any time of the day (avoiding lunch time for obvious reasons). If a key worker was not available, we would arrange a date and time for a meeting that suits both the parent/carer and the keyworker to discuss their child and go through their learning journey, observations, individual play plans and display work. Here the parent/carer will be able to look at their child’s progress though our observations and the child’s tracker. This would be explained in full and a leaflet explaining the EYFS book will be given to the parent/carer.

The parent/carer will be informed of any progress or observations done by the CDC before it takes place, either by email, telephone call or on their child’s hand over. Any requirements needed by the parents/carers to support their child within their home will be fully explained and put in place by the SENCo. 

What specialist services and expertise are available at or accessed by the setting/school/college?

We offer care for children from 0 to 5 years, and will fully support their daily routine and assist with all care and daily needs as well as promoting independence. Prescribed medication will be administered once correct paper work is completed by staff and parents/carers.

We support children’s behaviour by treating them all the same, having time out when really necessary, asking the child to think about their behaviour and ask for apologies where necessary.

What training have the staff supporting children and young people with SEND had? Are any being trained currently?

We have two SENCo staff, one of whom has Makaton. We also have another staff member who has ECAT.

How will my child/young person be included in activities outside this classroom including school trips?

All staff attend training that Warrington Borough Council supply through various courses throughout the year in order to support the children at Heathfield House.

How accessible is the setting/school/college environment?

We are a private nursery and only very rarely go on large trips with the help of all staff and parents/carers (ratio). The children are regularly taken on outings around the nursery area, i.e. to the duck pond, the shopping center or Forrest Park and this is aided by pushchairs, wagon or a walk-o-dile (a piece of equipment that the children are fastened to for safety whilst being able to walk independently). Permission is asked regarding outings when the child first starts at our nursery.

How will the setting/school/college prepare and support my child/young person to join the setting/school/college or the next stage of education and life?

Our building is not wheelchair accessible as we have steps at both front and back doors and have two flights of stairs leading to our pre-school.

We are lucky as those children and parents/carers whose first language is not English can speak good English. If we had parents/carers and children who could not speak English, we would endeavour to translate through letters, etc.

How are the setting's/school's/college's resources allocated and matched to children's/young people's special educational needs?

Before a child joins our setting, we ask the parent/carer and child to attend two settling in sessions for an hour or so. The first session we ask the parent/carer to stay with their child and fill in any documentation regarding their child and their routine and possible Special Educational Needs (SEN). The second settling in the child will stay on their own for a short period of time.

When a child moves to a different room, we make the transition as easy as possible. We are very lucky to be a small nursery and all the staff and children know each other, therefore transition to other rooms tend to run smoothly! The child’s key worker will go with their child to the new room for short periods of time during transition and relevant routine forms given to the new rooms and staff.

When a child has to go to a new setting, we ask the new teacher to come and visit them in their old setting to see them at play with who they are used to, to look at their learning journey and for any SENCo to discuss the child.

How is the decision made about what type and how much support my child/young person will receive?

The SENCo will discuss with the owner what a child may need and resources, toys or equipment would be amended accordingly to meet the needs of children with Special Educational Needs (SEN).

How are parents involved in the setting/school/college? How can I be involved?

We give all children as much support as we possibly can. SENCo will speak to the relevant authorities regarding the child and if they can get funding in place, etc.  The manager will help to do this via emails and letters, etc.