Early Education and Childcare
The Castle Nursery
High Quality Nursery Education and Childcare for Children aged 0 to 5 Years.
Head of Centre
Kathy Stevens Cert, Qualification in Social Work, NPQICL
Nursery School Leaders
Joanne Whyte BA., PGCE Deputy Head of Centre. Adele Ghai BA (Hons) in Education
Day Care Manager
Tracy Slater NNEB. Cert Management (Health and Social Care)
LEA Nursery School
Term time only (Monday to Friday) Morning Session 9.00am - 11.30am. Afternoon Session 12.45pm-3.15pm. Free places for 3 & 4 year olds. Contact 3-5 Nursery School on 01924 303377
Day Care
All year round except bank holidays 8.00am - 6.00pm Full Day or Half Day 0-5 years, funded places for 3 & 4 year old. Contact Day Care Manager on 01924 303378
Price list
The fee structure is as follows:-
Children aged 0-2 yrs £32.10 per day (including lunch and tea)
Children aged 0-2 yrs £20.20 per session. Sessions are 8-1 (inc lunch) or 1-6 (inc tea)
Children aged 2-5 yrs £29.60 per day (including lunch and tea)
Children aged 2-5 yrs £18.60 per session. Sessions are 8-1 (inc lunch) or 1-6 (inc tea)
Our Vision
To provide a continuous learning experience for all children in an environment which values equality of opportunity, celebrates diversity and promotes the joy of learning.
We have high expectations of our children and aim to secure a high standard of learning across the foundation curriculum.
We encourage our children to think for themselves, question and enquire and become increasingly independent in their approach to learning.
We help our children to develop tolerance, respect and empathy for others.
We provide a secure and caring learning environment where all children are truly valued and encouraged to maximize their potential.
We aim to ensure that all learners have equality of opportunity and individual needs are met.
Children in Action
At the Castle Children's Centre we believe that children achieve the most when they are interested, excited and motivated to learn. Early Years Curriculum should be carefully structured, with well planned learning opportunuties both indoors and out, that are creative, motivating, imaginative, enjoyable and relevant: where each child feels included.
This was recognised by our recent Ofsted inspection, where we were judged to be 'outstanding' in all areas. Ofsted said "Children make rapid progress in their learning, this is because of the high quality of teaching and learning, the effectiveness of teaching staff and family workers and the extremely well planned curriculum."
We have a generous staffing ratio in our nursery and our practitioners encourage a positive attitude and disposition to learn, promoting an atmosphere of mutual respect where children feel secure and confident. The nursery staff ensure that all children have access to a rich and stimulating learning environment where exciting and challenging experiences are thoughtfully planned and build on what a child already knows and can do.
The Centre Policies
We have a full range of curriculum policies that clearly explain how we deliver the 'Foundation Stage Curriculum' in all the areas of learning. This includes how we assess children's learning and development and ensure they continue to make progress. All policies are available for parents/carers to read at any time.
Child Protection and Safety
The staff at the Centre take the safety and protection of children very seriously and we have Health and Safety, First Aid and Child Protection co-ordinators who all undergo specific training. We make sure that all our equipment, resources and premises are well-maintained and of high quality and we help children to develop awareness of thier own safety. We always complete risk assessments for any trips away from the Centre and have high ratios of staff to children.The Centre has a child protection policy that sets out the Centre's roles and responsibilities and parents are very welcome to read this and discuss it with staff.
Special Educational Needs
Some children have special or additional educational needs. We do value every child individually and we start from what they can do, ensuring that the curriculum is adapted as necessary to make sure that they are being helped to reach their full potential in the nursery.
The Centre works very closely with other agencies that have responsibility for under fives: e.g School Medical Service, Social Services, Speech Therapists, Health Visitors and Educucational Psychologists.
Behaviour
As part of our Centre policy we actively discourage physical aggression in the nursery. Conflicts, however are a natural part of children's lives & learning and we believe that children should be given opportunities and support to resolve them. Adults will intervene to protect a child's rights to sustain a piece of work or set limits in taking turns and sharing. Children will experience many opportunities throughout their time in nursery to learn how to develop positive and effective problem solving skills and to develop an understanding of 'feelings' and empathy for others. The staff deal with behaviour difficulties by reasoning with children and introducing simple conflict resolution strategies. If parents are experiencing behaviour problems with their child. help and support is available at the Centre. Above all we want children to be happy, have fun and enjoy learning and making friends.
Nursery Visits and Outings
It is recognised that many of the most rewarding educational experiences take place outside the classroom. The visits that we take children on are an extension of the nursery curriculum. These may vary from walkabouts in the local community e.g. to the shops, post office, baby clinic, to more formal organised outings to local areas of interest e.g. to the farm, Sandal Castle, Newmillerdam etc. We encourage parents to enjoy these visits with us.
Religious Education
Because children at the Centre are below statutory school age, we are not expected to carry out daily worship. or give children religious instruction. Through play and discussion we encourage children to care for, respect and value each other and their environment. As part of our curriculum we aim to give children an understanding and awareness of others beliefs and cultures. We do this by ensuring that our setting reflects these cultures in the resources and books provided throughout the curriculum and presenting positive images of families who have different beliefs/race etc., we also celebrate various festivals such as Diwali, Christmas, Eid, Chinese New Year and Easter. The recent introduction of our 'Celebration Assembly' has proved extremely popular. Children, parents and staff come together to celebrate our children's achievements and learning through art, music, drama and dance.
Parents as Partners
We truly value parents as partners in their child's education and provide many opportunities to share and enjoy learning together. Information is shared regularly on a daily basis and also at special times such as 'Stay and play and make days', ' Consultation evenings', New parent's meetings, Celebration assemblies and at 'Graduation'. We also run family learning courses in conjunction with 'Skills for Families', for parents/carers and their children to enjoy learning together.
The Castle Day Care Nursery
Parents can access daycare for their children, subject to availability. This is based within the Castle Children's Centre and provides a 59 place, full day, and sessional childcare for babies and children from birth to 5 years in new and fully refurbished provision. The 0-3 daycare operates from the Sandal Building and has a comfortable, secure and inviting baby room and also an extensively resourced 2-3 nursery in its own beautifully refurbished unit. The 3-5 daycare is based in the Castle Building and integrated into the nursery school, providing 'outstanding' education and care in a delightful setting.
In addition, the Castle Nursery staff are responsible for the Breakfast, Dinner and Tea Club and so are available to provide wraparound care for existing and new children at the Castle Children's Centre, Local Education Authority sessional nursery.
For the children attending The Castle Children's Centre nursery, the wraparound will be offered at very competitive prices (please ask for details at the Centre)
Childcare vouchers are accepted (Accor, Busy Bees, Imagine and Care 4)
Please note that a 50% retainer will be required if you choose not to use your nursery place during the school holidays.
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