Mulberry Bush Nursery, Walshaw - Newsletter August 2009 Welcome We would like to welcome all new parents to the nursery. We hope your children enjoy their time with us and that you feel happy with the care they receive. Refurbishments We have recently had a new roof fitted to the existing building. As well as improving the appearance of the building, it will help keep it better insulated, both in the summer and the winter. Charity Event 2009 Our annual charity event was a huge success. Tottington Nursery School, Mulberry Bush Nursery, Whitefield and Mulberry Bush Nursery, Walshaw raised a combined total of £4,520. Thank you very much for al your generous donations. This year we’d like to donate £3,000 to ‘The Good Life Orphanage’. This charity, set up by a Bury couple, has built and maintains an orphanage in Mombasa, Kenya. We have set up an ongoing link with the orphanage so we can see exactly how the money is helping. We would also like to support another local charity called Hurdles. Hurdles is a Bury based, registered charity which supports children and young people who have
disabilities and additional needs. £1,520 wil fund a day trip to Knowsley Safari Park for over 100 children and their carers. LEA Autumn term grant Pre-school children aged three and upwards are eligible for a government grant in the term after their third birthday. Those entitled to the grant will pay reduced fees for a period of 15 weeks starting Monday 07/09/09. Swine flu The number of ‘suspected’ cases of Swine flu across the country has now dropped significantly. We would suggest that you keep yourself informed (television, internet, radio, press) on how to protect yourself and family from Swine flu. Remember to CATCH IT, BIN IT, KILL IT! The symptoms of Swine flu are the sudden onset of fever, cough or shortness of breath. Other symptoms can include headache, sore throat, tiredness, aching muscles, chills, sneezing, runny nose or loss of appetite. If your child is diagnosed with suspected or confirmed Swine flu and / or prescribed Tamiflu or any similar medication, the current nursery policy is for your child to be kept away from nursery for a minimum of five days, or longer if the symptoms persist or if medical advice recommends. We will keep this policy under review and update you accordingly. Hand cleanser The staff at each of our nurseries have always been and will continue to be vigilant in relation to hand washing, hygiene and cleanliness. Virtually every single room in the nursery has a sink for hand washing. If there is no sink in the room the staff have always been provided with a quick acting, non-tainting food safe, alcohol hand rub. All staff have read and understood the risk assessment that has been completed on this cleanser and it is always kept out of the reach of children. A bottle of this hand cleanser is now available for parents and visitors to use by the entrance to the nursery on a high level shelf. Mobile telephones Our mobile telephone policy has always stated that phones must be kept in the staff lockers during the day and may only be used on
morning break or lunchtime. Staff have never been allowed to use their mobile telephones whilst looking after the children. Any visitors to the nursery wil now be asked if they have a mobile phone with a camera facility and told it may not be used on site and a warning
sign is now displayed. Leavers’ dates Many of our pre-school children are leaving us to start primary school. We wish them wel and hope they wil continue to enjoy their
early years education and make new friends along the way. If you know which date your child wil be leaving the nursery this summer, please let Nicola or Sarah know as soon as possible. This will allow them to amend your Direct Debit and to take into account your two-
week advance payment. It also al ows us to keep those on the waiting list informed of a possible start date. Transfer of units Many children transfer units at this time of year. They have several tasters in their new unit and the vast majority of children settle in
immediately. A member of staff from your child’s current unit will go with them on these taster sessions to help reassure them in the new unit. If you have any concerns please speak to the Head of Unit.
Questionnaires
Thank you to the parents who have completed the parents’ evening and the leavers’ questionnaires. We agree with the popular sentiment that our staff are our best asset. The questionnaires completed with the children have also been very nice to read.
Children’s photographer The photographer will be back in nursery to take individual photographs of all the children on Wednesday 7th October 2009, just in time to give out as Christmas presents!
Planning permission We are pleased to announce that we have been successful in obtaining planning permission for an extension to our nursery. The older Toddler and Pre-school children will be based in the new, detached modular building. The Kindergarten unit will expand into the current Pre-school room. Plans for the new building and the outdoor play areas will be displayed in the near future. The building should be in operation for January 2010. Outdoor play Work has started on improving the children’s outdoor play areas. The tree house and tree seat have already proved very popular with the children. A sea life mural has been painted onto the playground wall, which has brightened up the space. Work will soon start on a more structured vegetable patch and planting area. Further work on a hill, a tunnel and a slide will be completed after the new modular building has been craned into position. Parent observations Thank you to al the parents who have written down any ideas, suggestions or observations of their own children. Whenever possible we will implement any such suggestions. If you do give us any feedback or observations please add your name to the note so we can thank you or explain why it is not always possible to introduce the idea into a busy nursery environment. Parking Wherever possible could we please ask you to park on the nursery side of the road or to use the nursery car park so that local residents can park outside their houses. Nursery fees / Payment process Fees are displayed at the entrance to the nursery. The vast majority of parents pay fees by Direct Debit. You will be given a slip showing
the amount due to be taken from your account ten working days before it is taken. This should give you opportunity to check the amount and to ensure enough funds are in your account.
Song of the month: Leo the Lion
Leo the lion, he’s the king of the jungle
and his jaws are big and wide! When he roars it’s a warning so you’d better all run and hide,
you’d better all run and hide……. 1… 2… 3… ROAR!!!!!
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