Littletots is a Montessori setting offering full time day care Mon - Fri 8am -6pm. We are open for 50 weeks of the year , closing for one week over Easter and one week between Christmas and the New Year.

We provide a warm stimulating learning environment, offering the Montessori ethos of "Teach me to teach myself", through guided support within the EYFS curriculum. We cater for 44 children 2-5 years of age with a 1:5 staff ratio.

Our mature staff are committed to teaching and being a role model fo children to look up to  as a friend, mentor and supporter.

We accept 2 & 3 year funding as well as cater for children with additional needs.

Updated - November 2023

We begin to build relationships with parents from the very first time we meet them. So if a family has concerns or identified special needs, we will work with the family from the onset, liaising with different agencies to ensure the best support for the child and family.

We request assisted visits prior to each child starting the Nursery, so that we can meet both the parents and the child/ren.

During the visit  the senior staff member along with our SENCO, will meet with you all and discuss your child's routine, likes and dislikes along with any additional information relating to your child that might be useful to understand. if there are any additional needs that your child needs support with, then this will be discussed at length and prior to starting at Little Tots, we would make sure that the support needed, would be in place.

If our staff have any concerns that a child may have an additional need(that has not been raised by the parents) in the first instance, we observe the child through observations, tracking and reflecting on comments/progress made within their Early Learning journeys . This is especially important when the child is new to the setting or settling in. If at that stage we still have concerns regarding the child's development, we would initially discuss this with the parents to determine if they had any concerns themselves. This would be done on an informal basis.

If appropriate, at this point we would sign point them to seek professional input, their Health visitor being the first port of call. As a setting we have found the services of our Early Years advisers to be of great support in providing us with information/ advice as what/where to go next.

Or we may continue to work with the family(involving the Key person & SENCO) before advising them to seek further professional advice. We would initiate an IPP( individual play plan) setting simple steps to follow and achievements set , which would support the child and aid the needs noted.

The child will be continually monitored through of observations and the parents will be supported within the setting , keeping them updated weekly as to progress and support given via 1:1  meetings ad a communication book that goes home daily.

We meet regularly with parents of children with additional needs, this support would come through the SENCO/Key person/1:1 support worker.

IPP's would be put in place and the targets are monitored regularly so that parents and staff can remain aware of whether the targets remain appropriate to the child's development. This would all be coordinated by the SENCO and her role is to ensure that any outside agencies involved,  are bought together and suggestions made by the  outside professionals, are incorporated into the child's curriculum/IPP to ensure that their needs are met.

As we have an open door policy , parents can at anytime access the nursery for advice, meetings with their Keyperson or SENCO or just a chat .

 Our Montessori philosophy of "following the child", ensures that we are able to cater for the different needs of children, via a stimulating environment, that is focused on the Montessori saying of " Help me to help myself" teaching Independence skills at an early age. If we have a child with identified additional needs, then we are able to take this further -  In particular, if a child is more responsive to outdoor learning, then we would be able to incorporate further trips to Forest School/outdoor learning to ensure that their current needs are being met.

We currently support several children with additional needs,  and as a part of good practice to ensure that their needs continue to be met, we will give them relevant Montessori exercises which will stimulate their emotional and physical development - for example we would give them "quiet time" away from the other children, often using a dark den with sensory equipment and lights, or offer a duvet cover full of balls too crawl and hide inside, which supports their sensory needs, as well physical stimulation.

In these specific instances, we seek advice for our outside agencies working with the children for support and suggested activities that they see relevant to the child's needs. These activities are put into the child's IPP/planning of sessions. Our SENCO supports the choice in activities and aids in monitoring the needs, progress and learning outcomes for that child.

We feel that it is important to involve all staff members and that they are made aware of each child's needs. Planning is acccessible to all staff members who may come into contact with the child. Parents are always kept up to date with our planned activities for their child and we encourage their input through regular meetings, so that we can ensure, we are working together for the best outcome for the child.

We use visual timetables to support all children within the setting. These are placed where all children can see them. We also use Makaton sign language with our children as part of our daily routine - often using signing during circle time, singing nursery rhymes using sign, as well as signing for snack, handwashing  and hanging their coats up. We do have a lot of English as an additional language children and find that this signing, really aids language and communication as a whole.

We use PEC's ( picture exchange system)and work along side Speech and language therapists, to ensure that we are helping to meet the communicational needs of the children we are supporting.

We would consult with outside agencies, if we required additional equipment in the setting, to promote the child's developmental needs.

We use IPP's (Individual play plans)and monitor the progress of the child regularly both in discussion with parents and outside agencies.We will continue to draw on the advice of outside agencies to help us support the child and the family.

We involve outside agencies and other professionals to guide us when supporting children with additional needs. We recognise that the children have varying needs and whilst some children may receive 1:1 support, others may require small group times or some specific planned activities, with their keyperson.

We ensure that we sigh post families to the relevant agencies when applicable. We currently access the following services, Portage, Educational Psychology service, Speech and Language therapy, The Blind society , Reading Borough Councils Fostering services and Social Services as well as the local Children's centre.

The advice given by professionals is used to support I.P.P planning and for individual planning for the child. We would feed back information/suggestions given by the outside professionals in a staff meeting to keep the staff aware of changes to support if needed and advice given  to support this. We would also have meetings with the parents which would involve the Parents, Keyperson, SENCO & 1:1 support worker. At that stage we would ask for their input so that we can all plan together to ensure the needs of the child are met.

We meet Parents of children with additional needs, on a regular basis. This way we ensure that when planning I.P.P's and observing and assessing the child, parents are kept fully up to date/aware of how their child is being supported in the setting. We have an open door policy for all parents and are always willing to listen to any concerns parents may have, or support them in ensuring the needs of their child are being met, through careful curriculum planning, which caters for their needs.

We have outlined in the above questions how we monitor the child's progress within the setting, with regards to setting I.P.P's and curriculum planning.

At Little Tots we use " in the moment planning" which means we follow each child's interests and take their interests into consideration.If they are able to say/contribute to what they would like to do , then we would do so. For example if a group of children were showing an interest in Minibeasts, we would find resources to support their growing knowledge. We have found by planning around each child's interest it  stimulates conversations, gains the interest of others and teaches each child's Independence in learning for themselves.

For children with more complex/severe needs, we respond to how they react to the environment and adjust their activities accordingly - for example they may have particular sensory needs and we can cater for this by giving a wide range/variety of sensory experiences.

With each child that attends another setting we would make contact with that setting(with parents approval) to share planning, I.P.'P's and experiences that the child may have whilst with us.

Our Nursery is free flow, enabling free access to all rooms within the setting as well as the garden.

All children are able to access this, with varying degrees of support if needed. We have found that children with additional needs are very receptive to the outside environment and if appropriate we will offer extra time/ support and equipment to support the needs of each child.

We have Ourdoor learning and forest School sessions that all children over the age of 3 are able to attend. Through theses sessions it allows the child to explore a very differing natural environment and one which is often keen to their learning experiences.

At Forest School we have a set of robust Risk assessments for off site visits, including the Forest school site (situated in Mortimer, Reading) Whilst out on trips we are constantly vigilant and continually risk assessing our sites, to ensure that the children are safe at all times, whilst gaining the maximum learning benefits from these activities.

The Nursery is all on one level and is fully accessible via the main entrance.

To ensure that all children gain the most from our environment, we would make sure that the curriculum planning incorporates all activities/ resources that the children access throughout the building and are made available inside and out.

We have a disabled toilet/ changing area. We use Makaton sign language, P.e.c's and visual timetables to support all children's learning.

Several members of the staff are trained in Makaton and work is in progress to establish a working party to pull more information together as a team to provide a handbook/working guidelines for this process..

We support several children with diagnosed special needs and are able to adjust the curriculum accordingly as we "follow the children" within our Montessori setting.We are wiling to gain more knowledge/undergo further training if needed to support an individual child . We are flexible and always willing and keen to incorporate new ideas into our planning/setting

Prior to entry, if a child has been identified with specific additional needs, staff would have a meeting with parents and all agencies involved,  to ensure that all staff are aware of the child's individual needs. We would liaise with parents, asking them to complete an "All about me" which gives us as much information about routines, likes / dislikes/ abilities /needs. All children and their carers are invited to come into the Nursery for 2 introductory sessions to settle the child into Nursery life and gives the Nursery/parents chance for questions, ensure that we are able to cater for all needs required.

If a child has specific needs, our transition period can be extended to allow the child and his/her family to feel fully supported and until such time, that the child feels safe to be left within the nursery.

Where possible we liaise with outside agencies prior to the child's start date, to enable us to best support the child, as this will assist us in ensuring that we are able to offer the child the right support/curriculum to meet their needs at the earliest opportunity.

With parents consent, for a dual setting, we would expect to work closley with the other setting to ensure consistant care for the child and so that similar routines can be established within both settings and to incorporate those routines that are already in place within the home.

When a child with identified additional needs is getting ready and preparing to move onto school, we would instigate a transition programme that suits the family's needs.

In the first instance we would contact the school and liaise with the SENCO. We then would arrange for the representatives from the school to visit the nursery, to see the child in a comfortable educational background,  often inviting the parents in to meet the school alongside the visit.

We would together draw up a transition plan for the child. This may include several visits to the school by the child with the 1:1 support worker, or additional sessions outside of normal pre visits. The SENCO would visit/ call the school to discuss wit the school the transition plan and how we would work together to ensure the best transition for the child

We have regular staff meetings, where we discuss the overall effectiveness of our SEND provision and how we are meeting the needs of individual children.

We regularly update our development plan,  to ensure good practice. We send our questionnaires to all of our parents to evaluate how we are doing, as a provision and how we could improve.

We have a suggestion box in our hallway for those parents that may feel that they cannot contact us directly. we always have an open door policy and welcome feedback/suggestions from parents.

Heather Schofied : Nursery Manager 0118 9591371 8-6 Mon - Fri

Heathr Schofield & Michelle Smith :  - deals with admissions 0118 9593171

To register your child please contact us so that we can show you round the nursery, offer information about what we can offer and answer any questions that you may have relating too child care.

You can access our website : www.littletotsnurseries.com or we can put a regstration pack in the post to you.

We have an open door policy and are always available for informal meetings/discussions ,about what we offer and are happy to listen to comments, whether complimentary or a complaint.

We strive to work with the family to improve /enhance our service. Our Complaint policy is kept with the other policies and procedure and can be requested at any time.

Parents testimonies are posted on our website and suggestions from other parents  to parents may instigate future investigation/questionaire to be divised .