Welcome to Humpties@StMichael’s

Humpties@StMichael’s is the area’s first all-year-round, full working-day Pre-School located in a school premises. As existing providers of Before and After School Care and Holiday Childcare at St Michael’s we were delighted to be asked to partner in this exciting new phase in the School’s development.

This new venture will be especially attractive to working parents whose older children already attend St Michael’s. Humpties@StMichael’s has its own dedicated Pre-School room specially equipped for Early Years building on Humpties’ 30+ years of experience in Childcare and Early Education.

Multi-sensory experiences

All our children are offered a wide range of multi-sensory experiences with an emphasis on holistic learning. All activities are planned so that they are age and stage appropriate, always ensuring that everything is done in a fun way. Activities such as music and movement, art and even French are taught in an engaging and enjoyable manner. Outside play is very important to us, and we are lucky enough to have a Forest School on site and a Qualified Forest School practitioner to enhance this learning opportunity.

Meeting developmental milestones

Following the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) curriculum, we support our children to meet developmental milestones whilst gently and gradually introducing the feel of a school day in readiness for their transition to “big school”.

Partnership with parents

Our partnership with parents begins from the first phone call you make enquiring about a place and we hold regular parents’ evenings and events during the course of the year for you to share in your child’s achievements and developments.

Pre-School Daily Routine

We actively promote independence skills and children are gently introduced to a more formal routine, which builds up gradually during the year to ensure they are ready for their transition to “big school”.

Timeline

7.30am – onwards:
Arrival / Self registration for older children / change book bags / free play

7.30 – 9.00am:
Breakfast

8.50am:
Tidy up time

9.00am:
Registration – Discuss letter sounds, colours, shapes, number of the week and theme

9.15 – 11.30am:
Free play, Adult led activities, Free flow

10.00am:
Snack Bar opens

10.45am:
Tidy up time

11.00 – 11.30am:
Group time

11.30 – 11.50am:
Phonics

11.50 – 12.00pm:
Handwashing

12.00pm:
Lunchtime

12.40pm:
Registration / Story / singing while children get ready to go outside (sun cream, wellies, waterproofs, coats)

12.45 – 3pm:
Free play, Adult led activities, Free-flow

2.00pm:
Snack Bar opens

2.45pm:
Tidy up time

3.00 – 3.30pm:
Group time

3.30 – 3.50pm:
Phonics

3.50 – 4.00pm:
Handwashing

4.00pm:
Tea time

4.40pm:
Free choice inside or outside play, weather permitting

Home time

A Stimulating Learning Environment

Forest School

With our qualified Forest School Practitioner we make the most of our time in forest school and provide a wealth of learning opportunities. Our children develop a clear and in-depth knowledge of nature and the world around them. Qualified practitioner-led forest school is proven to help build children’s confidence, resilience, emotional well-being, communication and problem solving skills.

French

Our weekly French lessons give children the early foundations of learning a modern foreign language

Music & Movement

Carefully structured, weekly music and movement sessions use fun educational themes e.g. colours, shapes, numbers and animals. The sessions provide the children with another creative opportunity to express themselves and develop self-control and confidence in their movements.

Physical Experiences

As well as the wide range of sports equipment we provide for our children to use everyday, we have a visit from a specialist PE provider on a weekly basis who helps the children learn to jump, balance, listen, follow instructions and to work as a team.

Technology

We keep investing in line with technological advances, but use only tried and tested systems for specific purposes to enhance our children’s learning experience. In this we always take a balanced approach… we will not be slaves to technology!

Opening Times & Fees

If you would like your child to join us at Humpties@StMichael’s then please telephone for an appointment to come and have a look for yourself at what we have to offer.

Fees are billed and must be paid monthly in advance. Bills are issued on or just after 5^th of the preceding month and are payable by 20^th of the preceding month. All attendances missed for any reason, including holidays and sickness, are payable in full. Any late payment will attract a £10 Late Payment Fee followed by a further £10 for every week it remains unpaid or 10% interest whichever is the greater. In case of genuine financial hardship please make sure that you contact the Nursery Manager as a matter of urgency.

Owing to the long-term commitment we make when reserving a child’s place, we must ask you to make a similar commitment to us. We therefore, require a minimum of 3 calendar months written notice, given on the first of the month, to cancel your child’s booking. The same notice is required if you wish to reduce your child’s attendance and for operational reasons we reserve the right to consider requests for reductions in attendance as new bookings if necessary. Notice must be given in writing and will always apply, except for in exceptional circumstances and at the sole discretion of the Management. In the event of a child not attending Nursery during the notice period the appropriate full fee will be payable.

A booking fee of £40.00 is required with all bookings and should be sent in with completed application and personal detail forms.

All enquiries to Tim Hopkins, Manager, on 01543 416002.

Opening times

FULL DAY (Monday to Friday 8.00am to 6.00pm)
Sessions: Monday to Friday 8.00am to 12.00noon, 1.00pm to 5.00pm
Lunchtime: 12.00noon to 1.00pm
Teatime: 4.00pm to 5.00pm
Times flexible by arrangement
7.30am early start available

HOLIDAYS
Summer: Nursery remains open
Christmas: Nursery closed for one week
Easter: Nursery closed Easter Monday only
Statutory: Nursery closed all statutory holidays except Good Friday

Fees

A cooked tea is optional on a full day or an afternoon session at a cost of £3.25. A cereal or toast breakfast with fresh juice or milk is optional at 8.00 a.m. at a cost of £1.20. Breakfast is inclusive of charge for the 7.30 a.m. start. The early start charge is £5.00 per day.

Any additional hours will be charged at the rate of £9.90 per hour. Drinks and healthy snacks are provided at each session inclusive of charge.

Fees are billed and must be paid monthly in advance. Bills are issued on or just after 5^th of the preceding month and are payable by 20^th of the preceding month. All attendances missed for any reason, including holidays and sickness, are payable in full. Any late payment will attract a £10 Late Payment Fee followed by a further £10 for every week it remains unpaid or 10% interest whichever is the greater. In case of genuine financial hardship please make sure that you contact the Nursery Manager as a matter of urgency.

Owing to the long-term commitment we make when reserving a child’s place, we must ask you to make a similar commitment to us. We therefore, require a minimum of 3 calendar months written notice, given on the first of the month, to cancel your child’s booking. The same notice is required if you wish to reduce your child’s attendance and for operational reasons we reserve the right to consider requests for reductions in attendance as new bookings if necessary. Notice must be given in writing and will always apply, except for in exceptional circumstances and at the sole discretion of the Management. In the event of a child not attending Nursery during the notice period the appropriate full fee will be payable.

A booking fee of £40.00 is required with all bookings and should be sent in with completed application and personal detail forms.

3 & 4 year old funding

30 Hours Nursery Funding for 3 and 4 year-olds

You will have heard that from September 2017 the Government is introducing 30 hours “free” childcare for working parents of eligible 3 and 4 year-olds. The scheme aims to support working families by reducing the cost of childcare.

The eligibility rules for the scheme are:

Your child will be aged 3 or 4
Both parents must be working – or the sole parent is working in a lone parent family
Each parent earns, on average, a weekly minimum equivalent of 16 hours at National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage . . . note, this could be fewer hours at a higher rate
Each parent must have an annual income of less than £100,000
You must live in England

Although the scheme is widely referred to as 30 hours “free” childcare it is only 30 hours per week during the 38 weeks of school term-time, which amounts to 1,140 hours per year. Nurseries like ours are typically open for 51 weeks a year precisely because we’re here to meet the needs of our working families. There is a certain irony that a scheme designed to encourage people into work has been developed around a term-time model but publicised conveniently omitting the words term-time only!

We have worked out a way of making the best use of the money we receive from the Government towards funding your child’s place here at Humpties. To be able to continue providing the outstanding childcare everyone expects from Humpties, it is essential that our offer is sustainable both now and into the future. This short video will explain some of the challenges we’ve been faced with.

www.30hoursfunding.co.uk

We have decided to “stretch” our offer over the whole year. This will mean that parents will be able to receive just over 22 funded hours a week for 51 weeks of the year instead of 30 hours, only in term-time.

These hours can be taken over a minimum of 3 days or 4 or 5 full days but as our minimum recommended booking for Pre-School is 2 full days it will also be possible to have just under 15 hours* over 2 days all year round. As a guide it will cost just over £53 per week for a 2 day place or £80 per week for a 3 day place all year round. These costs include hot lunches, healthy snacks and all extras over and above the basic funded provision.**

The table below shows the monthly costs to parents for 2, 3, 4 and 5 day-a-week bookings as from September 2018.

Any bespoke bookings, for instance, to incorporate part days where available, will be quoted separately. We are able to offer some stand-alone funded places on a limited basis, which changes from time to time and is dependent on how our occupancy and staffing levels fluctuate over time. We would encourage anyone interested in such sessions to enquire at the office.

Tax Free Childcare

Even if you have not previously been able to benefit from a childcare voucher scheme run by an employer you may be eligible for the Government’s new Tax Free Childcare initiative. This would mean a 20% saving on your childcare costs for standard rate taxpayers. It may also be advantageous to switch from an employer provided childcare voucher scheme to a Government Tax Free Childcare account. We recommend that you use the calculator on the ‘Childcare Choices’ website and/or take independent advice to help you make this decision.

How do I access these schemes?

If you are eligible and want to take advantage of either of these schemes you will need to register on the Government’s ‘Childcare Choices’ website as soon as possible. In fact, we encourage all parents who use our Nurseries and Out of School Clubs to view the information on this site and use the online calculators to ensure that you are making the most of your entitlements. We also recommend that parents who have children who are currently 2 years old register early in preparation for when their child turns 3 years of age.

The website, which is simple to use, can be found at:

www.childcarechoices.gov.uk

Healthy Eating

We really do CARE about the dietary requirements of the children at Humpties. Our children’s meals are nutritionally balanced, freshly prepared and cooked on the premises. Breakfast, snacks, lunches and teas have been carefully balanced to take into account the Government’s recommendations for children’s diets. We are also able to cater for children with special dietary requirements.

Meal times are also a great opportunity to develop children’s table manners and understanding of etiquette.

Take a look at our tasty four week cycle...

	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
WEEK 1 LUNCH	Pasta bolognese with cheese Homemade courgette and lime cake	Chicken and vegetable pie with roast potatoes Homemade milk jelly	Broccoli and salmon pasta bake, with vegetable Fruit mousse	Beef and mushroom stroganoff served with rice Bananas and custard	Fish pie with peas Fruit smoothie
WEEK 1 TEA	Hot roast beef in a bread roll, with roast potatoes Cheese and crackers	Homemade Cheese and potato pie with baked beans Homemade oatmeal cookies	Filled pitta pockets with corn on the cob and sweet potato wedges Rock cakes	Cheese potato pie with Baked beans Semolina pudding	Sausage pasta Homemade fruit cake
WEEK 2 LUNCH	Chicken chow mien with egg noodles Fruit crumble and evaporated milk	Lamb tagine served with pasta and green beans Lemon, orange and polenta cake	Roast turkey with mashed potatoes and two seasonal veg Raspberry fruit jelly	Salmon and pea risotto, served with carrot batons Homemade apple, beetroot and chocolate cake	Chicken Thai green curry and rice Yoghurt with toasted oats and honey
WEEK 2 TEA	Pea, ham and mushroom pasta bake, served with broccoli Fruit smoothie	Fish goujons, potatoes with peas Double choc cookies	Meat balls in a tomato sauce and Pasta Homemade carrot and apple muffins	Homemade turkey burgers in a bun with baked beans Stewed fruit and custard	Lamb Keema served with naan bread Homemade raspberry swirls
WEEK 3 LUNCH	Chicken curry and rice Berry smoothie	Cottage pie with vegetables Homemade chocolate brownies	Steamed cod in a tomato and mixed pepper sauce, served with rice and green beans Fruit yoghurt	Chicken chasseur, with new potatoes and vegetables Homemade blue berry muffins	Lasagne and garlic bread Creamy apricot dessert
WEEK 3 TEA	Toad in the hole with potatoes and peas Homemade melting moments	Butternut squash macaroni cheese Peach crumble and custard	Homemade Cornish pasty and baked beans Homemade chocolate brownie	Bean and vegetable Enchiladas served with corn on the cob and sweet potato fries Rhubarb fool	Cheese whirls with baked beans baked beans Jelly
WEEK 4 LUNCH	Macaroni cheese and tuna bake Lemon tart	Vegetable lasagne and garlic bread Ice cream and fruit puree	Sweet and sour chicken and rice Shortbread and strawberries	Sausage, mash and baked beans Apple and cinnamon muffins	Chicken and mushroom stroganoff with rice Chocolate brownies
WEEK 4 TEA	Fish fingers with mashed potato and baked beans Fruit mousse	Tuna pasta bake Homemade carrot cake	Hotdog with spaghetti hoops (Sausage in a hot dog bun) Rice pudding	Cream of Tomato soup with a cheese sandwich Chocolate cake and custard	Fajitas corn on the cob and potato/sweet potato wedges Shortbread biscuits