
Tiny Tinkers Nursery
Lumley New Road
Woodstone Village
Fence Houses
Houghton le Spring
England UK
DH4 6DS
Settling In
After completing an Enrolment Form confirming your child's start date, we would love you to come in for your child’s Settling in Sessions.
These sessions are a special time where we can get to know you and your child and their individual routines and preferences, which will facilitate a smooth transition to nursery. It is an opportunity for your child and their Key Person to create a strong relationship which will support them as they separate from their parents/carers which for many, will be for the first time.
We understand the pressures of returning to work, changing jobs, moving home, or for some, the emotional anxiety of your children starting or changing nurseries, so instead of contacting you, we invite you to contact us at a time that feels right, to arrange your visits.
We recommend you contact us around a month before your child’s start date, to arrange your settling in sessions for the week prior to their start. We offer up to 5 hours of free visits, the first of which we will ask you to stay with your child so we can get to know you both and talk through any queries. You will then be given an ‘All About Me’, ‘Consent Form’ and ‘Care Plan’ or ‘Special Dietary Requirement Form’ (if applicable) to take away, complete and return on the following visit.
The remaining settling in sessions can be tailored to suit you and your child. You know your child best and so we are happy to follow your lead; if you wish to stay for a short while, leave for an hour or so, or let them stay and play for a longer period, we will support you in your decision.
For those that may rather be guided, we would suggest:
Visit 1: 9.30am – 10am ~ 30mins Key Person and Parent/Carer initial chat
Visit 2: 9.30am – 11am ~ 1 ½ hours Child visit with Key Person to include Snack
Visit 3: 9.30am – 12.30pm ~ 3 hours Child visit with Key Person to include Snack and Lunch (unless pre-weaning)
If you feel your child will need more frequent, shorter visits, or if you would like to arrange additional invoiced visits, please do not hesitate to ask and we will happily accommodate.
We hope we can support both you and your child in this milestone, so if there is anything else we can do to ease this time, we welcome any feedback.
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