We offer three free settle sessions when your child joins. We recognise this is a big step and all children are different and so we base children’s transitions and settling in around individual children’s needs and we will discuss this with you on the first day of nursery.

We take children from the age of one year to three years old. Our classrooms are spacious where the children can walk around and play with a wide variety o toys available to them. The rooms have an outside veranda attached that is available to the children all day. The children have supervised access to sand and water play, and art throughout the morning. The tables are all set up with various activities every day and there is a book corner filled with picture books. When setting up the classroom, we follow the EYFS guidelines. Dovecote Nursery follows an approved structure and curriculum providing carefully planned activities to ensure that the children learn while having fun. A range of languages are spoken by our staff with the emphasis firmly on English as the language of tuition.

Every morning the children have the opportunity to play in the garden. As the weather starts to cool down, we spend more time in the garden.

The nursery staff work closely with the children encouraging their language development and understanding. We also begin to teach numbers, colours, stories and puzzles through songs and general play.

The environment is unstructured with the children given the freedom to move around and choose the activities they wish to participate in.

We hope your time in Dovecote will be a happy one for your child. If you ever have any worries, concerns or queries please do talk to us. We will always do our best to help. We want to make sure your child has the happiest start to nursery life at Dovecote, so we have put together this plan to ensure this happens. Teachers and parents should work together to guarantee this happens. Here at Dovecote, we feel that it is a partnership between home and nursery and never hesitate to contact us if you have any questions.

Step 1

The teacher will be responsible for your child and take care of them each day at nursery. Please fill the child’s questionnaire, so the teacher knows as much as possible about your child to support their start in the nursery. You could take a photograph of your child’s teacher during the first visit so you can start talking about your teacher at home and your child will have a familiar face on their first few weeks. We recognise that children feel more secure when they know and trust their teacher.

Step 2

Your child will then begin at Dovecote Nursery. We have a strict policy that parents need to leave their child with their teacher and not stay too long in the classroom when they first begin. With all our years of experience and trials we now know that the best way for your child to separate from you is with a confident goodbye and not to stay too long. The longer the parent remains, the harder it is for the child and the teacher. If your child is unsettled or unhappy, the teacher will always call you to discuss and if your child has settled quickly the teacher will call and encourage you to not return until collection time. We believe that a gentle start is best, hence why we recommend three mornings a week to start. We ask parents to stay near the nursery so that we can contact you if your child becomes upset or distressed.

Step 3

You will work very closely with your child’s teacher and decide what is best for your child. Each child is different, and some children settle in very quickly into nursery life, while others find it harder. Some children might step up to four or five mornings, whilst others will stay with three mornings. Your child’s teacher will guide you on what is best for your child. Many children will settle in within one morning at nursery whilst others might take up to a term. This is very normal. Patience is vital and a consistent routine at home and the nursery makes a big difference.

Parents and staff must communicate and work in partnership to ensure we build a good foundation for your child’s time at Dovecote Nursery. Please respect our experience in this process as we believe that this is the most successful way for your child to have a happy start to nursery life. As always thank you for your support.

Our aim at Dovecote Nursery is to tap into children’s natural curiosity and eagerness to learn. Small class sizes and experienced teachers ensure that every child is given individual care and attention.

Our experienced Early Years team combine a careful blend of numeracy and literacy with a wide range of other subjects, as well as a varied selection of extra-curricular activities.

Our curriculum offers the core of EYFS English and Maths, with Arabic, Spanish and creative arts being an important part of the programme. A typical week includes arts, games, PE and visiting the mud kitchen.

In Dovecote, little ones enjoy a safe, stimulating and fun environment where they are gently introduced to a routine for learning through play and child-led activities, helping them to grow in independence.

How will my child be learning at Dovecote Nursery?

Your child will be learning skills, acquiring new knowledge and demonstrating their understanding through 7 areas of learning and development.

Children would usually develop the 3 prime areas first.

These are:

• Communication and language
• Physical development
• Personal, social and emotional development.

These prime areas are those most essential for your child’s healthy development and future learning.

As children grow, the prime areas will help them to develop skills in 4 specific areas.

These are:

• Literacy
• Mathematics
• Expressive arts and design
• Understanding the world

These 7 areas are used to plan your child’s learning and activities. Your child’s teacher will make sure that the activities are suited to your child’s unique needs. This is a little bit like a curriculum in primary and secondary schools, but it’s suitable for very young children, and it’s designed to be flexible so that the teachers can follow your child’s individual needs and interests.

Children at Dovecote learn by playing and exploring, being active, and through creative and critical thinking which takes place both indoors and outdoors.

Whilst the English language is the primary language that we communicate with at Dovecote Nursery, we believe that the children of the future need an awareness of additional languages to support their future experiences.

We encourage all children to express their individuality through play, and social experiences.