Arrival/Departures The Parish Centre doors open from 8.50am. Parents are welcome to sit and wait in the parents information room or the cloakroom on either side of the stairs. Please do not wait on the stairs, as we are concerned about the safety of the small children. Before the session begins the children are still in YOUR CARE. Each child has a named peg in the cloakroom, please help your child find their peg and hang their coat. The outside doors are locked at 9.00am. Latecomers should ring the bell or come down the side entrance to pre-school, to be let in through the fire exit. Parents with pushchairs may prefer to use this entrance as there are fewer steps. The register is marked on arrival and again on departure. Please inform the Playleader if you will be collecting your child early or if someone other than the regular parent/carer will be collecting your child. We prefer to be personally introduced to different faces to ensure the childrens safety. Keyworkers All children are allocated a Key worker when they start at pre-school, who will have a special responsibility for your child, recording their progress and writing a play plan with you, Key workers are available and willing to discuss your childs progress. Our aim is to work together in the interest of parent and child so please feel free to approach play staff with any worries, concerns, ideas or suggestions. Children with special needs We have long experience of working with children of varying Special Needs and do our best to cater for their needs. Speak to our special educational needs inclusion coordinator if you feel your child may have a special need at this point in time. Settling new children Parents are welcome to stay for as long as they feel necessary to settle their child into the routines of pre-school. We ask that all parents stay for at least one full session so that they know the routines of the pre-school session, before thier child is alone. Keyworkers will give guidance about when you could go and how long for. We always suggest that parents go and sit upstairs for a while for the first time, so that they can be retreived if necessary. When you leave your child at pre-school for the first few times, please go home or make sure we have a contact number. Please try to ensure that you are back at pre-school at the correct time so that you get a chance to see what has been happening at pre-school and so your child does not become distressed when everyone else’s parents appear. Unfortunately our registration requires that we ensure all children are out of the pre-school room by 11.45am and 3.00pm. Facilities In addition to our large, bright playroom we have an outside play area that is available daily. We have child size toilets, hand basins. The children do not have access to the store room where we have a wide variety of play equipment and art materials. Snacks On registration you will have been asked about specific dietary needs your child may have, please inform staff if any of these change. Toilet Training St Johns pre-school respects childrens individual needs and will work in partnership with parents with regards to toilet training should the need arise. A member of staff is always there to assist and positively encourage children should little accidents occur. Spare clothes are kept in the group, but you may like to put a spare set in their personally named drawer. Do talk to your keyworker about your child’s stage of toilet training. Holidays Our holiday closures usually follow St Johns School pattern. Details are displayed on the Notice Board. Sick Children Sick children should not be brought into pre-school. A sick child will not be able to participate in the activities and may pass illness to others. When children are taken ill during the session we do our best to contact parents/ carers to collect the children and in the meantime make them as comfortable as possible.
	St Johns Pre-School is registered by Ofsted to provide sessional daycare, enabling pre-school to offer free child places to children from the term after they are 3. You can view our most recent 2007 full inspection report on the ofsted website