The Ambleside Centre
The Centre aims to offer a seamless service of education, childcare and support for children aged 0-5 years and their families together with training and support for practitioners across the district.
The Centre celebrates diversity, is committed to the inclusion of all and uses a problem solving approach to meet individual needs.
Registration Procedure
Please call in to the Centre to register your child.
- If you wish to register your child for a place in The Meadows, or wish to find out more, please speak to the administration staff in reception.
- Registration may be made from your child's 2nd birthday - please bring along their birth certificate.
- The Senior staff offer a tour of the Meadows each month, answering any questions you may have.
- Places are offered on a termly basis.
- You will be invited to visit the Meadows weekly with your child for 4 weeks before taking up her/his place.
Please contact us to register and to arrange a tour.
Admission to The Meadows for 3 - 5 year olds
The Meadows is the maintained Nursery School aspect of The Ambleside Centre.
Families living within the Wokingham Borough Council area are eligible to apply for a place at The Ambleside Centre. However, families intending to send their child to a primary/infant school that has an attached nursery are urged to use that nursery.
Five sessions a week are offered and these will be either 5 mornings or 5 afternoons.
Registration to the waiting list is taken after a child's 2nd birthday.
Places will be offered in the following order of priority:
- Children who live in the Wokingham borough and have a special educational need or disability
- Children with a hearing impairment whose Statement of Educational Needs names The Ambleside Centre Hearing Impaired resource as the appropriate placement.
- Children who attend the Pastures Nursery during the term in which they reach their third birthday
- Children living within the Woodley RG5 postcode area
- Children of other families in the Wokingham Borough
Children are eligible for government funded early education and care from the term following their 3rd birthday until the September following their 5th birthday. We strongly recommend that children spend as long as possible in one setting. Two terms is the absolute minimum time to attend The Ambleside Centre, although it is preferable for children to attend for at least 3 terms. The exception to this is when families have moved from outside the area.
Children take up their place in the 3-5s area of The Ambleside Centre soon after the beginning of the autumn, spring or summer term. From 2011 there could be restricted availability for the summer term (April to July) as children will no longer be leaving the nursery at the end of March to go to Primary school. Places may be available at other times after consultation with the Head of Centre.
The government provides funding for early education places for 3 and 4 year old children. If a child has a place with a local education authority provider, such as The Ambleside Centre, funding is paid into the nursery's budget. This means there is no additional government funding for the child to attend any other pre-school provision.
From September 2010 the government will fund 15 hours of early education offered flexibly across the week for all 3 and 4 year olds for 38 weeks per year.
As a step towards this offer, local authorities are required to make the offer available to 25% of the 3 and 4 year olds within the Borough. We have been selected to be in this first roll out. Therefore, from September 2009 children will be able to have 15 hours of funded early education per week in the Meadows.
You need to select the sessions you would prefer, indicating a second choice.
The government's rules about the times/sessions are:
- You must take the hours over at least 3 days per week and 38 weeks per year.
- You must take at least 2 hours in any 1 day.
Sessions are available as below:
| 8.00-8.30am | 8.30-9.00am | 9.00-11.30am | 11.30-12.30pm | 12.30-3.00pm | 3.30-4.00pm | 4.00-6.00pm |
So you could start at 8.00, 8.30, 9.00, 11.30, 12.30 or 3.00 and finish at 11.30, 12.30, 3.00, 3.30, 4.00 or 6.00.
Food: If attending at 8.00 am, you can purchase breakfast at 85p.
If attending 11.30 am to 12.30 pm, you can purchase a hot meal (currently 1.90) or provide a packed lunch.
If attending 4.00 pm to 6.00 pm, you can purchase tea (1.00).
If you wish to discuss your options, please speak to a member of the administration team.
Additional sessions may be purchased. The charges are available upon request. Please indicate the sessions you wish to purchase on the Session Request Form.
Contact Details
The Staff Team
All sessions for 3-5 year olds are staffed by a professional team with high level and relevant experience and expertise.
The statutory adult : child ratio is 1 : 13 when there is a qualified teacher working in the nursery and 1 : 8 when there is not. We exceed this ratio during core sessions.
Liaison with Other Settings
There is close co-operation with the staff teams of local pre-schools and primary schools who meet regularly and who have common aims. Children's records are passed from one setting to the next.
The Early Years Foundation Stage requires that any professionals who work with children must liaise closely to offer a seamless experience for children.
Additional Sessions
The Centre is open 48 weeks of the year from 8.00am to 6.00pm. Sessions may be purchased in addition to the funded sessions offered to your child. The charges are available upon request
A separate application is needed for this service; please see the administration team for a form.
Additional Services
Children's Centre
We offer services to support families, including a Family Room open 8.30am to 5.30pm. Please see Children's Centre booklet click here to view booklet
or ask for further information.
The Pastures Nursery
for babies and children 3 months to 3 years. High quality care, learning and development opportunities open 8.00am to 6.00pm, 48 weeks per year. Please ask for a booklet and further information.
The Neighbourhood Team
A multi-professional team from education, health, social care and more, offering integrated services for families with children 0 to 19 years old who need them.
Children's Records
All staff and the child contribute to the learning record for each individual child, photographing/writing observations of children's learning. These are assessed and plans for possible next steps made. Parents and children are encouraged to read and contribute to these records regularly. They are available to children and their parents at all times. The statutory Foundation Stage Profile is used after the child's 4th birthday.
Language and Communication Support
A speech and language therapist works alongside staff for 2.5 days per week supporting the development of speech and language for all children. Children already receiving or awaiting speech and language therapy will be specifically supported by her. Parents are welcome to seek her advice and request an assessment if appropriate.
Special Educational Needs and Disabilities
The Centre welcomes all families, celebrating individual differences.
The whole team makes every effort to ensure that children with disabilities/special educational needs are able to access the appropriate curriculum. The Meadows is specifically resourced for children with a hearing impairment.
Keeping Children Safe
We believe that every child regardless of age has, at all times and in all situations, a right to feel safe and protected from any situation or practice that results in a child being physically or psychologically damaged.
We recognise our legal and moral duty to promote the well being of children and protect them from harm and to respond to child abuse.
We will respond to any concerns raised by children, parents, or other adults and will take appropriate action in accordance with the procedures issued by Wokingham Safeguarding Children Board.
Diversity
We are part of a rich, diverse cultural society. We celebrate individual differences and help everyone to express their feelings and needs whilst respecting others.
We invite everyone in the Centre to demonstrate their unique personality and express their feelings. Everyone is supported to negotiate for the things they need and to solve the problems that occur when a group of people work together.
Partnership with Families
Parents are children's first and most enduring educators and each family is unique. The staff team aim to work in true partnership with parents to help each child's development. Staff understand children, but parents are the experts for their own children.
Parents are encouraged to share information regularly. There is a warm welcome to spend sessions in the Centre.
Many opportunities are offered to share learning between home and school, e.g. library books and story sacks.
Governing Body
The Centre has a full governing body which is made up of representatives of staff, parents and the community. It has overall responsibility for the Centre's activities.
Care, Learning and Development
The Early Years Foundation Stage is the mandatory framework for all settings and individuals working with children from birth until the September following their 5th birthday outside their own home. It is based on 4 themes and principles.
- The unique child
- Positive relationships
- Enabling environments
- Learning and development
Children are supported and encouraged to work in their own way towards, and in some cases beyond, the Early Learning Goals set out in the framework.
Organisation
There are 156 places offered as soon after a child's 3rd birthday that a place becomes available.
Children are placed in a small group with a keyworker who has day to day responsibility for them. The whole staff team work very closely together supporting all children's learning and well being.
The resources for 3-5s are carefully laid out, indoors and out to cover the Early Years Foundation Stage framework. Children take part in activities across the whole area, some of which they initiate themselves, some which adults initiate. All children are encouraged to express themselves, make choices and decisions about their learning and solve problems together with adults and other children.
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