Committee Meeting
Our next committee meeting will be at pre-school on Tuesday 6th February at 7pm, everyone is welcome to come along.
Christmas Raffle
We raised an amazing £362 from the Christmas Raffle, thank you so much for your hard work selling tickets and for the Committee who put together some amazing prizes!
All About Me At Home
We are sending home an ‘All About Me At Home’ form for you to complete and return to Pre-school. You do not have to fill out every question, but we would really appreciate some feedback from yourselves as this really helps us to get to know your child and what their interests are at home as well as what they enjoy doing at Pre-school.
Drop-off and pick-up time
Could we please ask that parents/carers drop their child off at the main door where a member of staff will be there to meet you, also at pick-up time please wait at the entrance and we will bring the children out to you. We have found that this settles children into the pre-school day much quicker, encourages the child in their independence, helps them to become aware of the daily routine and also keeps disruption in the classroom down to a minimum. Thank you for your continued support we really appreciate it.
Early Years Entitlement Expansion
The eligibility checker on Childcare Choices | 30 Hours Childcare, Tax-Free Childcare and More | Help with Costs | GOV.UK has been updated enabling you to access personalised information on the support available, including which of the new transformational childcare offers you will be eligible for depending on the age of your child and earnings. An additional feature added to the website is a subscribe for updates function, which will give you the opportunity to sign up for regular newsletters letting you know when you should take action to ensure you are getting the support you are entitled to – including information about wraparound for primary school children, and when the new 15 hours for two-year-olds becomes available for sign-ups, with the offer beginning in April 2024.
If you have not already done so, please do sign up on the Childcare Choices link so that you are fully informed about the upcoming changes to funding. The first new change will be 15 hours available to working families of 2-year-olds, if you feel you may be eligible for this funding please ensure you have applied for and received your code from HMRC by the 31st March so that you can use the funding in the summer term.
Please find attached information from Dorset Council regarding 2-year-old funding.
Library visits
We will be visiting the library at Stower Provost Community school on the following days, where the children will enjoy story time.
Monday 22nd January 10.30am
Tuesday 30th January 10.30am
Wednesday 7th February 10.30am
SENsational Story and Play
Join Dorset libraries for a fun session of sensory play, stories and rhymes. The inclusive half-hour sessions are aimed at young children with additional needs (siblings are welcome) and feature sharing sensory and tactile books – using props to engage young children, rhymes to join in with, musical instruments to shake, and there is plenty of time to play afterwards with our sensory toys. They are a great opportunity for parents and carers to spend time with others who have young children with additional needs. You can also borrow books to enjoy at home.
Sessions are currently running at Blandford Library, Bridport Library, Dorchester Library and Learning Centre, Gillingham Library, Swanage Library, Wareham Library, Weymouth Library and Learning Centre, and Wimborne Library. Booking is advised in advance through Eventbrite
Dorset Council – Reusable Nappies
If you’re expecting a baby or have a child aged under 18 months, for your New Year’s resolution, why not switch to reusable nappies to reduce your environmental impact? You’ll save money too.
A baby uses at least 5,000 disposable nappies! Instead, 25 reusable nappies are all you need until potty trained.
Dorset Council offers parents a free reusable nappy starter pack or £30 off reusable nappies (minimum spend £45). Apply before 31 March 2024 and you could also win one of two reusable nappy sets worth £80 each in our prize draw! So if you know anyone in the Dorset Council area who would be eligible to apply, please let them know.
More info and how to apply can be found here:
Reusable nappies – Dorset Council
Last day of term – Friday 9th February
Back to preschool on Monday 19th February
Please note all term dates and activity days are also posted on the Pre-school website