Settling In
Once you have chosen to take a place for your child at Seahorse Nursery we would ask that you come along to visit the nursery and meet the staff. Your child will be allocated a key worker who will take you through the settling in process. This will include completing a care plan of your child’s individual needs and preferences. We offer your child up to 3.5 hours of settling in time at Seahorse Nursery, this is for you to meet and greet with your child, we strongly recommend you use this settling in session to ensure transitions into nursery is smooth.
Wraparound service
At seahorse we are committed to providing the best possible service we can. The wraparound service is for the children who attend school nurseries. The areas we currently cover are Prestonpans, Cockenzie, and Aberlady. This is on a first come basis as the space in the car does go quick. If your child has been attending the nursery previous to starting with school nurseries they will have priority. We have a fully insured nursery car that the children will go to school in. We also recommend that if you wish your child to go to school nursery that you speak to your chosen schools when your child turns 2.
Clothing
Your child should come appropriately dressed for the weather since all the children are outside each day. Please send your child with a warm hat and clothing as soon as the weather gets cold. During the winter children need jackets and boots every day. You should also send a complete change of labelled clothing (underwear, socks, t-shirts etc.) to be kept in their bags. Please label all outside clothes such as boots, coats, etc. We suggest that you send a large bag or backpack with your child each day for the purpose of clothing nappies etc. your child will be required to bring a pair of indoor shoes to be changed into before they enter the play room these can be kept at nursery if you wish. During the summer months children require a sun hat and sun cream
Snacks
We at Seahorse Nursery are very conscientious about the nutrition of our children. We suggest that our parents think carefully before providing snacks for nursery. Water or milk, whole-wheat crackers, home baking, cheese, fruit, and vegetables are some of the snacks we offer. We are sure you can think of other healthy foods that children enjoy.
Our menu
We provide lunch for the children who attend our setting. Allergies will be taken into account and these will be accommodated for. However if your child does not like lunch that is provided or you do not wish for them to eat a certain food you are asked if you could provide an alternative. If you wish for your child to have dinner at nursery then you are also asked to provide a meal which can be heated in the microwave. Please note that we will not reheat rice.
please click here to see our menu
Dropping off and collecting your child and Passwords
We ask for a password on Application Forms for collection of a child. If it is another person other than the parent picking up, then they will be asked for this password. We expect all parents to inform us when another person is going to collect your child.
If person arrives and cannot remember password, we will ring prime contact/parent and get some more information and will ask person picking up to show us some identification.
If they do not have identification we will not let the child go and we will inform parent and ask for some other security questions.
Your children’s safety is paramount to us at Seahorse Nursery to ensure that the children safety is upheld please follow the procedures for picking up and dropping off your child.
Main entrance- please ensure that you close both doors and the gates when arriving and departing from the premises
We would like to stress the importance of prompt arrivals and departures. Bringing your child too early upsets planning and preparation time that the supervisors and staff have.
The staff team need to set up for the next session. Late departures make it difficult for staff to prepare for the next day. Late pick up also interferes with our regulations regarding child: staff ratios. Parents will be charged a fee if they drop off their children early or pick them up late (See section on late Fees).
Accident
In the event of an accident your child will be treated accordingly, all staff at Seahorse Nursery are First Aid trained. We have an accident form that will be filled in and you will be asked to sign this at the end of the day.
If we felt that your child’s injury needed to be seen by a professional we would then contact you and ask if you can collect your child. You will always be provided you with a copy of the accident report for future reference.
Sickness & Medication
For the health and welfare of all the children who come to nursery we request that you do not bring your child into nursery if they are ill or have an infectious disease E.g. sickness bug. Keep them at home for at least 48HRS until symptoms have passed with no signs of sickness/diarrhoea. Prescribed medication can only be administered for the reason the medicine was prescribed e.g., antibiotics for the infection it was given for etc. Non-prescribed medication can only be administered when there is a genuine need for the child to have them’. Examples of non-prescribed medication includes: teething powders, cough and cold medication, ibuprofen, paracetamol, creams. Medicine will always go home with the parent/carer at the end of the day and will not be held within Seahorse nursery except long term medication. You will also have to fill in a medication form to which you will have to sign when you collect your child in the evening. In the event of illness, we have the right to send any child home, if senior staff feels that they are not well enough to attend Seahorse Nurser
Your monthly fees will be due upfront on the day your child starts nursery and on the first of every month after that. If you miss a payment on the first of the month your child will be refused their place. Please speak to a member of the management team if you are worried about payments.
Late charges
If you are late picking up your child you will be charge for the time you are over this will be as follows:
5minutes late- £5
10minutes late £10
15mins late £15
Toys from home
Occasionally children like to bring a toy from home to show other children or an adult in the Nursery. Could you please discourage this as much as possible. Treasures can easily be lost or misplaced which can be very upsetting for the children. However children may bring one in if they use this as a comforter for sleep or times where they may become upset.
Driveway
We have a driveway into the nursery this is a one way system please ensure you use it the correct way. When dropping off and picking up your child please ensure you drive your car to the end of the drive way (near the exit) to allow other parents to park in the driveway as well. Please be prompt if using the driveway at the busiest am /pm collection times so we do not have a traffic jam. Please park across the road if you need to talk to a member of the team.
Involvement with the local community
In Cockenzie there are various places to visit. Everyone enjoys visiting the library and going down by the beach. We visit the local food banks during the Harvest festival. The nursery holds a number of fundraising activities throughout the year. We also enjoy visits to the local post office and dentist where the children are able to learn more about the services that they provide.
Complaints
We hope that during your child’s stay with us you will be happy with the nursery, and be able to discuss any worries you may have with your child’s key carer. If however you do feel it is necessary to talk to someone else please come and talk to one of the management team who will endeavour to resolve the problem or issue?
If concerns are not resolved they can be forwarded in writing to the Care inspectorate.