Home Visits

[Guest pollycop]

We are a maintained Nursery - part of a school. We usually open a week after the school in January to enable us to carry out home visits for the new intake. It has been suggested that we are unable to keep the Nursery closed for this extra week. Does anyone have more information on this?

[Guest]

We are a maintained Nursery - part of a school. We usually open a week after the school in January to enable us to carry out home visits for the new intake. It has been suggested that we are unable to keep the Nursery closed for this extra week. Does anyone have more information on this?

 

Have a look at the funding regulations (I'm in Kent so it's probably a bit different for me). That is what governs how many weeks we are able to be open for.

 

Also maybe speak to your PLA contact?

Abby

[Susan]

I know nurseries in this area do it but in September so maybe not actually denying any children access as most have only the 3 terms before they start school in reception.

 

It will be a shame though if you have to stop.

[Guest]

We are a nursery in a school and close for 2 days in Sep and Jan to do home visits for new nursery... I wouldn't want to stop this as we find the home visits really worthwhile.

Han

[Guest Wolfie]

I have also worked in a maintained nursery that uses the first week of term for home visits - during those visits, very valuable relationships are formed with parents and carers and the foundations of really good partnerships are laid. I think that you have a very good argument to keep that first week for that purpose.

[Guest pollycop]

Many thanks for your quick replies. They have given me more confidence to ask. I do actually work in Kent Cirhossa so reg should be the same.

[Guest]

Just wondered - how many visits do you do in this time? Also how many existing children miss out on a week of nursery due to these visits for the new intake? As presumably your numbers are lower before the January intake arrives could you keep the nuresery open, do the visits and still maintain ratios. I do hear many complaints from parents when reception and nursery are closed due to home visits. Many of us know the difficulties of juggling care and work.

[Guest]

Certainly for us we have to be open for 38 weeks, as that is the entitlement of the parents, it would be OK for the nursery to be closed for that week so long as the time was made up elsewhere, for example being open on INSET days.

[Guest]

I'm not sure about rules for maintained nursery, as a private preschool I have to open for a minimum of 38 weeks. I do a home visit for every child but then I don't have set intake dates, my children start throughout the year. I either do home visits after work ( after 15:30 hrs) or ensure staff cover for ones done during open hours.

 

Peggy