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We hope that you find the information below useful. If you have any questions which are not answered below, please do not hesitate to contact us.
At Robert Wilkinson Pre-School we view children as strong, competent, capable and powerful with enormous potential for learning. The environment that we provide enables the children to foster and develop these skills and so our teaching and learning are mainly child led. This means that staff closely observe how the children are engaged in their chosen activities and come alongside them to then teach them and further their learning “in the moment”. This enables children to learn whilst they are doing what they are particularly interested in and are, therefore, more highly motivated and engaged and more likely to learn.
Children have long periods of uninterrupted play in an indoor and outdoor environment that encourages them to be independent yet collaborative, to take risks and develop perseverance and resilience and to learn to problem solve and challenge themselves. We place great emphasis on Outdoor Learning and enjoy using our Pre-School garden as well as the vast outdoor facilities and environment that our school is fortunate enough to have.
Some activities are adult initiated and led. These activities tend to be to ensure the teaching of specific skills and an adult can model specific learning strategies to aid learning.
We believe that creativity can be found in any activity and is strongly encouraged. Pre-School staff observe and listen to the children as they play and learn and encourage them to be creative through effective, sensitive questioning and modelling alongside the children.
Activities are documented on a whole class and individual basis through photographs and written observations and these are then collated into a class display with a written commentary and also celebrated through each child’s individual Learning Journey via a system called Tapestry. This Learning Journey follows the child through from the beginning of their Pre-School time until they leave to move into the FS2 class.
All teaching and learning are underpinned by the Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum. More information on this can be found on the “Early Years Curriculum” page of our website https://rwprimary.co.uk/early-years-curriculum/
We are fully inclusive of children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and children who have other additional needs. All staff work alongside these children and their parents, as well as the SEND Team within school to employ various supportive strategies so that the children make progress and enjoy successful outcomes and access the curriculum alongside their peers.
Our uniform is very flexible. However, we do ask that all children wear a red sweatshirt or jumper or cardigan. Most parents have chosen for their child to wear full uniform as it saves their own clothes from being spoilt. Official school clothing can be ordered via the uniform website: Click here for School Shop. However, we do suggest that plain jumpers, cardigans or sweatshirts are more economical and can be found in Sainsbury’s, Asda, Tesco etc.
We really value our garden and going to Forest Schools and as such we go out in all weathers! We believe that there is “never any inappropriate weather, just inappropriate clothing”! We ask that all of our children bring a pair of wellies and a waterproofs that can be left at Pre-School. Parents can buy the Forest Schools kit from the school uniform website and the Forest School bag to keep it all in or alternative waterproof protective clothing.
We suggest that all children bring a backpack to school with them (this can be brought to each session or stay on their coat peg) containing some spare items of clothing, including underwear and socks/tights. There may be occasions when children get wet from playing in the water, dirty from playing in the mud or painting or sometimes have a toileting accident. We do have some spare clothes but our supplies do tend to be very limited. We have also found that children prefer to have their own clothes to change into if they need to. Again, please ensure all items of clothes are named.
If your child is in nappies, spare nappies, wipes and nappy bags should also be included in their backpacks.
We strongly believe in building up strong relationships with parents and carers, and members of staff will be available to speak to you each day when you drop off and collect your child. Please feel free to speak to us about anything that you feel we need to know about your child – achievements, family news, how they are feeling etc. All of this information is important to us so that we can know and understand your child fully. We love to share news about your child too, so we may pass onto you what they have been doing during the session and what kind of day they have had. We also use Parent Hub and Tapestry to communicate electronically with parents to keep you updated.
Children are eligible to join our setting at the beginning of the term before they are 3. For this term and for the term in which they are 3, fees need to be paid for the sessions that they attend and these youngest children are eligible to attend afternoon sessions only. Our hourly rate for sessions is £5.40
Our session rates are currently:
Before children are eligible for funding, sessions are paid for. Our hourly rate is £5.40 making our sessions £16.20 and a whole day £35.10
Once eligible for funding, this may be used to pay for up to 15 or 30 hours, depending on eligibility. Any sessions above this amount will need to be paid for.
Parents may also pay for sessions using Childcare Vouchers or the Governemtn Tax Free Childcare Account.
Invoices for any fees are sent out each month for the month ahead and we do ask that they are paid in full, if possible, and promptly. Should the invoice not be paid by the date stated, your child would have to reduce to the Universal 15 hours until all fees were paid and cleared. If you do not claim any funding with us, your child will not be eligible to take up their place at Pre-School until the fees have been paid in full. If you wish your child to have a hot dinner there is a charge of £2.75 per day for the meal. Meals are booked online and a month in advance via the online ParentPay system. An access code will be generated when your child is officially registered with school.
Please see our Terms and Conditions for more information. We will ask you to sign a copy of our Terms and Conditions when your child starts with us. These are available from the School Office.
At the beginning of the term after your child has turned 3, they will be eligible for Government funding. There are 15 Universal Hours available to all 3 and 4 year olds. However, you may also be eligible for 15 Additional Hours. This is subject to completion of an online application form and the fulfilment of various criteria. The application form can be found by the following link:
Click here for Gov.uk Childcare Support
Once you have completed the form, you will receive an acknowledgment e-mail. If you are eligible, you will then receive an electronic voucher with an 11 digit code which you will then need to bring into school. We will need to see this code to allow your child to access any hours above the 15 Universal hours to which all children are entitled to. This is still the case even if your child has had a place with us prior to the funding.
We will also ask you to sign a Parent Declaration Form each term. This declares to the City of York Council how many hours of free childcare you are claiming and how many settings you will be claiming with. You may spread the hours across 3 settings. Please don’t hesitate to ask any questions about fees or funding. Any conversations regarding this topic will be held in the strictest confidence.
How Tax-Free Childcare can help working families
The government are currently promoting Tax Free Childcare to families and parents, so please could you encourage your parents them to visit the Childcare Choices website to find out if they could get Tax-Free Childcare. It is available to over a million working families, including many who don’t get other types of government support. The website includes a childcare calculator which parents can use to work out how much they could get. As with the 30 hours codes, once a family has applied for Tax Free Childcare, parents must check and reconfirm their details with HMRC every 3 months. Reconfirmation is simple and quick to do. It is parents’ responsibility to reconfirm on time, although they will get a reminder email from the childcare service.
To help your child settle quickly and happily into our Pre-School we have arranged some Transition Visits. You are welcome to stay with your child or you may wish to drop them off so they can become used to being here without you. Each transition session lasts for one hour. We are entirely flexible and are more than happy to work with you on whatever you think would be the best for your child.
Telephone communication to Pre-School is via the main school office – please telephone 01904 806414 or you can email direct to preschool.rws@ebor.academy.
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