As a parent, you want nothing but the best for your child. This is especially true for their nursery, as you will be leaving them there for several hours a day to help prepare them (and you!) for school.
That’s why you need to know ahead of time that you’ve made the right choice, and that your child will be supported and ready for school when the time comes.
If you like the feel of somewhere on an open day, here’s a list of seven important questions to ask that can help ensure that it is the right fit!
If you’d like a different perspective, check out our podcast episode on this topic where the experts from our enquiry team take a look at the real-life questions parents ask us most! Listen here on Spotify.
1. What is Your Curriculum Like?
Possibly the most important part of nursery, the curriculum will detail what and how your child will be learning. For nurseries, it is crucial that the curriculum is carefully sequenced to enable children to build upon their learning over time.
It is also important that it provides opportunities for children to make connections between newly learned facts and skills with what they already know. It should cover core life skills, promotes good habits, and helps to prepare them for a positive transition to school.
The Happy Days “Where Children Shine” curriculum is split into four key aspects that help your child develop socially, physically, intelligently, and personally. These are:
- Strong and Confident Communicator – Supporting children to listen, understand and communicate.
- Inquisitive and Ambitious Thinker – Fostering curiosity, understanding and an appreciation of the natural world.
- Healthy and Independent Explorer – Developing active and healthy habits for the future to promote lifelong health.
- Resilient and Motivated Individual – This aspect of the curriculum develops a positive sense of self, supporting confidence, and developing strong relationships.
2. What Activities will my Child Participate in?
Nursery is all about creating safe and enjoyable learning experiences, so it’s important to know that your child will have a good time while they are there. Plus, children often learn best by doing, so ensuring that they have fun and relevant activities can help stimulate their brains and support their learning and development!
At Happy Days, we provide a wide range of learning opportunities as part of our daily teachings, including singing, outdoor play and exploration, cooking programmes, exercise, yoga, and more.
3. How do you Support Child Learning?
A child learns best if they are engaged and comfortable, and some may require additional support for various reasons. It is important to know how a Nursery will ensure your child feels safe, secure, and ready to learn every day.
We instigate a range of procedures to ensure the children in our care feels happy and secure at nursery, including a designated key person who will help them settle in and specially curated environments to stimulate early brain development.
4. What Qualifications Do Your Staff Have?
You want to be sure that the quality of care and education your child receives exceeds expected standards. While some of that is down to the curriculum, a lot of it is the responsibility of the staff.
At least half our staff hold Level 2 qualifications in Childcare, with the entirety of our senior teams holding a Level 3 qualification or above. We maintain the number of unqualified staff below the required 50% rate.
We also have paediatric first aid trained staff members at every nursery, which is renewed every three years.
5. How Do You Promote Healthy Eating?
It’s important for your child to eat a nutritionally balanced diet, but it’s also good to know that they are enjoying what they eat, too. If you don’t know what your child is eating, it can be hard to plan outside of nursery.
We work closely with a specialist early-years nutritionist to develop our menu year-round, which operates on a four-weekly, seasonal schedule. Our trained cooks and chefs use fresh ingredients every day to prepare these meals, designed to help introduce your child to a range of tastes and textures.
Is your child a fussy eater, or perhaps they have a specific allergy? No problem, our team will always find a way to provide them with tasty and healthy meals and snacks regardless of their preferences or needs.
6. Will I Find Out How my Child is Doing?
Being involved in your child’s learning is key, as you don’t want to be left out and feeling like you’re watching them develop from the sidelines.
We make sure to incorporate you into the development of your child, providing tips and advice to continue your child’s education at home and ensuring constant communication so you can follow along and understand their progress.
We utilise the ParentZone app so that you can see weekly observations of your child’s learning and development, be sent photos and videos of their activities, and share or save your child’s significant developmental milestones and special memories.
7. What is Included in the Fees?
It is best to establish exactly what is included in your fees, what extras have to be paid for and what you have to supply yourself, such a nappies and wipes. Take close attention to the hours the fee covers as some nurseries charge extra for early or late collection. If the nursery isn’t transparent about their fees, you may want to investigate closer!
Our fees vary from nursery to nursery and will be impacted on the government support available. We always encourage parents to discuss the fees with the nursery manager when they visit the nursery as everyone’s circumstances are different.
Please visit our Affordable Childcare page for more information or speak to your local nursery manager for assistance.
Find A Happy Days Nursery Local to You
Do you think Happy Days Nurseries could be the right choice for your child? Find your local branch with our dedicated nursery finder tool and attend the next open day to find out more!
Alternatively, check out our other guides for parents, including our list of five things to look for in a nursery and how to prepare your child for nursery to be as prepared as possible for their big day.
Have more questions? Get in touch with us today on 0800 783 3431 or email enquiries@happydaysnurseries.com and a member of our team will be happy to help as soon as possible!