News Letter 13th Oct 2010

It’s Autumn!
The children in the nursery and stay and play sessions have started to notice the change in the season. Please do bring in any interesting leaves, pine cones, seeds or nuts and berries for the children to explore.

Developmental Movement Play
We now have four practitioners who have been fully trained in ‘developmental movement play’ an approach to physical and emotional development for young children. The ‘DMP’ approach influences practice across the centre, including allowing children to move freely indoors and out (with safety considerations) and to have bare feet whenever that’s possible. If you’d like to know more about DMP please do talk to Jacki in nursery or look out for our DMP notice board and leaflets, coming soon!

Celebrate Black History Month
We’re now nearly half way through October but there’s still time to get involved in the celebration of Black History Month in Islington. At Kate Greenaway we’ve been to two performances of the ‘Handa’s Surprise’ story and in nursery the children have been re telling the story and enjoying African music.
There are still some events for families including an African Caribbean children’s book extravaganza on Saturday the 23rd and an evening of celebrations at the Town hall on Friday the 29th with food, music and poetry. Have a look at Islington Council’s website or call 0207 832 5818 for information or to book.

Newsletter 14th September 2010

Nursery News

Review day
We have a review day on Thursday 30th September, to enable key people to meet with parents the nursery is closed to all core day children.

Photographers in the Nursery
We have been asked by both Professor Tina Bruce CBE (renowned early years specialist) and The Thomas Coram research centre if they can use our lovely nursery to take photographs for up coming publications. Tina and her photographer will be in nursery on Wednesday 22nd & Thursday 23rd September and the Thomas Coram photographer will be here on the 1st October.
You will be given a slip to sign to give permission for your child to be included in these events.

Wet weather
As it becomes more like autumn the weather is likely to get wetter, we have lots of waterproofs for out in the garden but we are short of wellington boots. If your child has some at home they would like to wear at nursery please write their name inside before bringing them to nursery. If you have any that no longer fit and would like to donate them to the nursery we would love to have them.

Eid Celebrations
We will be celebrating Eid-al Fitr on Thursday 16th September in the ‘Being a Parent’ stay and play (10-12am). We’ll have information about the meaning of Eid and some special snacks and activities. The Nursery children will also be learning all about Eid. If your family celebrates Eid and you’d like to share with the children what your traditions are please do let us know.
Pilates Class £2, Open to all parents
We are supporting a Pilates class that runs weekly at Barnsbury Community Hall on Wednesdays 9.30-10.30. The class is suitable for all levels of fitness and there are still places left. Please ask Jan or Luisa if you’d like to know more.

Reminder: Important Dates
Wednesday 1st Sept
Nursery closed for all children

Thursday 2nd September
Nursery open for all children

Thursday 30th Sept
Review Day

Tuesday 5th October
Development morning

Mon 25th to Friday 29th Oct
Half term (nursery closed to term time children)

Monday 1st November
Development Morning

Friday 19th November
Nursery closed for all children

Thursday 9th December
Review Day

Friday 17th December
Last day of school term

Wed 22nd Dec to Tues 4th Jan
Nursery closed Christmas break

Tuesday 4th January 2011
Nursery Closed for all children

Wednesday 5th January
Nursery open for all children

Friday 4th February
Development morning

Mon 21st to Fri 25th Feb
Half term (nursery closed to term time children)

Thursday 4th March
Review Day

Tuesday 15th March
Development Morning

Friday 8th April
Easter holidays (nursery closed to term time children)

Friday 22nd April
Good Friday (nursery closed to all children)

Monday 25th April
Easter Monday (nursery closed to all children)

Tuesday 26th April
Nursery Closed for all children

Wednesday 27th April
Nursery open for all children

Friday 20th May
Development Morning

Thursday 17th June
Review Day

Monday 20th June
Development Morning

Monday 4th July
Nursery closed for all children

Friday 22nd July
Last day of school term

* On Development Mornings, the nursery is closed all morning and opens at 1pm. ** On Review Days the nursery is closed so that we can meet with every parent and carer to review each child’s development. The nursery stays open for children with extended day/year places.

July 20th

July 20th 2010

Happy Holidays!
Nursery finishes for children with term time places this Friday (if you are unsure whether your child has a place over the Summer please ask). Some of our staff will also be taking their holidays so we say goodbye to Jacki, Denise, Michele, Maggie, Sarah, Flutura, Stacey and Libby until September. Justin is taking some time out to travel next term so we will say goodbye to him on August 16th until January 1st 2011.

Picnic
Thanks for everyone who joined us for the Kate Greenaway annual picnic on Friday and brought food to share. See our termly newsletter for more…

Trips out for families during the summer
We are offering three local outings for families this summer. We’ll be going to Coram Fields, the Islington Play day in Finsbury Park and to Camley st. Natural Park on three Wednesday mornings.

Race for Life
Lizzie and Michele will be taking part in the race for life on Sunday 25th July at Finsbury Park dressed as bumble bees to raise money for cancer research. They have been hard at training as they are sponsored by many of the local community; Caledonian road tube station staff and customers at Alveria’s café on Caledonian road have kindly sponsored them so far. Photographs to follow ….

Key dates for next term, Please put them in your diaries

Inset days- school closed to all children
Wednesday 1st September 2010
Friday 19th November 2010
Tuesday 4th January 2011
Tuesday 26th April 2011
Monday 4th July 2011

Development Mornings- School closed between 9am-1pm to core day children (Extended day children in as usual)
Tuesday 5th October 2010
Monday 1st November 2010
Friday 4th February 2011
Tuesday 15th March 2011
Friday 20th May 2011
Monday 20th June 2011

13th July 2010

Don’t Forget our Picnic 3.30-5.30 this Friday at KG!

Summer Stay and Play Programme July 26th to August 13th
We have teamed up with our neighbours Bemerton Children’s Centre to offer a joint programme of Stay and play sessions every weekday morning (Monday to Friday) at Barnard Park One O’ Clock club starting at 10am. The One O’clock club takes over at 12.30 so the session is open right up to 3pm. All children aged five and under with their Mums Dads and Carers are very welcome. We’ll be offering a variety of activities for young children including sand, water, balls, bikes, craft activities and much more.

At Kate Greenaway we’ll still be offering Tiny Tots stay and play sessions on Monday afternoons for children aged 0-18months from 1-3pm on July 26th and August the 2nd with the last session on the 9th of August. We’ll also be open on Saturdays 10.30-12.30 on the 24th and 31st of August with the last Saturday on the 7th of August for children aged 6 and under.

Free Swimming lessons for children under five are being offered at Cally Pool in July, please book at Cally Pool Reception and see the poster on our notice board for more details. There will also be Tuesday sessions hosted by Bemerton CC, give them a call to book (02075274806).

We’ll end our Summer stay and play programme on Friday 13th of August and reopen with a revised programme in the week beginning September the 5th. We’ll be giving out the Autumn programme as soon as its ready.
There is a free Play day for all children at Highbury Fields on Wednesday August 4th from 10am and look out for your copy of Heatwave magazine or have a look at Islington councils’ website for loads of ideas for activities for children of all ages over the summer.

Leavers Ceremony for nursery children going to School
On Thursday the 22nd of July at 2.30 we are cordially inviting all parents of children who will be moving on in September to join us. We’ll be holding small group celebrations to wish the children lots of luck and present them with their profile books, then holding a picnic celebration tea outside (weather permitting!) for all the children to finish at 3.30. Please let Michele know if you’re able to come.

Meeting for New Parents-help needed
On Tuesday July 20th we have invited parents of children who will be new to Nursery in September to come in and find out more about the centre.
We need one or two Mums, Dads or carers of children who already attend to come along and help us welcome the new families and answer any questions they may have. Let Jan know if you are interested, thanks.

July 6th 2010

Tuesday 6th of July

Picnic next week!
Don’t forget the wonderful annual Kate Greenaway Picnic next Friday the 16th of July from 3.30-5.30.
All families with young children are welcome, siblings included of course (we just ask that you keep an eye on all your children please). Please bring some food to share, the more international the dishes the better!

Summer Stay and Play programme
This year we’ve teamed up with our neighbours Bemerton Children’s Centre to offer a stay and play every day from 10-1.00 Monday to Friday at Barnard Park 1 o’clock club. All children under five are very welcome, starting Monday the 26th of July for three weeks, finishing on Friday August 13th. We’ll also still be offering our Saturday sessions at Kate Greenaway up to and including August 7th.

Are you thinking about working with children?
We will be offering an introductory course to working with children in the Autumn. The course runs for a morning a week for 10 weeks and includes support to think about returning to work and training and 12 hours experience in a nursery placement. Unfortunately we are not able to offer a crèche so participants will need to arrange their own childcare.
Places are limited so please let Jan, Kara or Liz know if you are interested. More information will be available very soon.
Birthdays in Nursery

We love to celebrate all the children’s birthdays in the nursery. When it is your child’s birthday your key person will arrange to bake a cake with them and share it with a small group of children they know well.

Mums, Dads and Carers are very welcome to come in and join their child’s celebration. We ask families not to bring anything in, just to share the cake we bake here. Please do talk to your child’s key person or to Jan or Michele if you’d like to know more.

News from the nursery
The nursery team will be arranging some end of term trips to Freightliners farm and we’d like to invite as many Mums, Dads and carers to join us as possible. Parents make a huge difference when they are able to attend trips making them more fun for everyone. If you think you may be able to help please let Michele know.

28th June 2010

Ofsted Inspection Outcome

We are very proud to share with parents that following the inspection on Tuesday 15th of June Ofsted has judged Kate Greenaway to be an outstanding Nursery School.
We’d like to say a huge thank you for all the support we received from parents, especially if you completed the questionnaire or took some time to talk to the inspector.
You will find a letter to the children from the Ofsted inspector attached and there are copies of the report available in the foyer- if your child is on role and you would like your own copy please speak to Michele or Marie who will print you one.

Letter from Andrea, Acting Chair of Governors

Dear Parents
I would like to congratulate all staff for their hard work and for the fantastic ‘outstanding’ rating from Ofsted.
I am very proud and pleased that my children and so many others can benefit from the high quality service, dedication and care of the staff.
Well done,
Andrea

Reminder for Core Day Parents in Nursery

We would like to politely remind all Mums, Dads and Carers who collect their children at 3.30 to please make sure that you arrive and leave as promptly as possible. This is because it is difficult for us to offer tea to the extended day children at 3.45 when there are children waiting to be collected.
We know it can be hard to collect, talk to staff, pick up pictures etc. promptly so we will be finishing our group times by 3.20, please do feel free to come in from this time onwards.
If you are finding it difficult to pick up at 3.20 please talk to Michele or Jan.

Summer Picnic

Our annual Summer Picnic will be on Friday July 16th 3.30-5.30. We’d love everyone who comes to nursery or to stay and play to come and join us for a picnic in the centre’s gardens. Please bring some food to share, the more international the better!
We’ll make sure that there are plenty of things for young children to do. Older siblings are welcome of course, but we ask Parents to please be responsible for all their children. See you there!

News Letter June 7th 2010

Tuesday 8th of June 2010

Message from the Governors

Dear Parents

I am pleased to inform you that Fiona Godfrey will be joining Kate Greenaway as the new Head of the Nursery School and Children’s Centre. She is highly qualified and experienced and is looking forward to getting to know everyone at Kate Greenaway.
Fiona is currently the Headteacher at Ambler Children’s Centre where she has been the Head for nearly four years. Prior to that she was the Deputy Head at Willow Children’s Centre and spent nearly 5 years as the Head of Foundation Stage at North Haringey Infant School.
Jan and Michele have been doing an excellent job in the absence of a head and will continue to do so until Fiona’s start date, which is still to be confirmed but is likely to be later in the Autumn.

Best wishes
Andrea Ledward
Acting Chair of Governors


Friday June 11th is National Book Start Day!

Kate Greenaway and Bemerton Children’s Centres are joining together to offer a free fun morning to celebrate in Barnard Park from 10am on Friday, open to all local families with children under five. This year’s theme is The Seaside so we’ll be sharing seaside stories and playing in the sand and water, in between bouncing on the bouncy castle of course!
Please do come and join us.
If your child is 18months-3 and you think you haven’t had your book start pack yet come along with your red book to collect it.

Friday 11th June
The nursery is going seaside crazy on Friday to celebrate Book Start Day.
We’ll have loads of activities to do with the sea like fishing games, looking at shells through the microscope, loads of sand and water activities, songs and rhymes and even a healthy version of fish and chips for lunch.
Bring your red book if you haven’t received your 18-36mth book start pack.
See overleaf for a seaside song to sing at home and nursery.

May 19th 2010

Thinking about benefits, studying or work?

Are you interested in thinking about training or returning to work? Or maybe you want to be sure that you are getting your full entitlement to benefits or find out if you can afford childcare? There is a new local organisation to help families think through their choices called Islington Working for Parents. Marius from IWP is at Kate Greenaway every Thursday morning between 10 and 12 to meet parents and offer free support and advice about benefits, training and employment. If you’d like to know more please do come and meet him on Thursdays or ask Liz, Kara, Jan or Michele to find out more.

This Friday is the end of Adult Learners Week and City and Islington College are holding Fun Day Friday for parents and children, 3.30-6pm at the Centre for lifelong learning, 28-42 Blackstock Road. There will be loads for children to do, family entertainment and lots of information and for adults thinking about studying or returning to work. Pick up a leaflet from reception or simply go along.

Get Ready for Sunny Days

If you have a child in nursery please do make sure that they bring a sunhat and come with some covering on their shoulders (a t-shirt rather than a vest when possible). We will provide sun cream but many parents prefer to bring their own, if this is you please do bring it asap so we’re all ready when the sun finally shines….

Here We Grow Again!

Venti, our extra special gardening teacher has been helping the children plant out lots of plants for families to take home as part of our annual ‘Here We Grow’ project. Families have taken tomatoes, beans and pumpkins to grow on window ledges, balconies or in any corner with a little light. If you’d like to take part but haven’t got your plant yet let us know. We can offer some tips for getting the best out of your plants and we hope everyone will let us know how they get on.

KGE 11th May 2010

Tuesday 11th May 2010
Dear parents and carers,

Whole Centre Closure
Just a reminder for all families that the centre will be closed on Monday 17th May all day for staff training. We will re-open to all children on Tuesday 18th May at the usual time.

Fluoride Varnishing programme
Kate Greenaway is one of the first Children’s Centre’s in Islington to offer this free programme for children aged 3. An oral health professional is coming to the nursery and stay & play sessions on Thursday & Friday this week (13th & 14th) from 9am to tell parents more about the programme which we hope to offer to all interested families at the end of May. Please do ask Jan or Michele to find out more before then.

Late collection of Children
Children with core day places finish nursery at 3:30pm
Please remember that you need to be at nursery at 3:25 to give yourself time for a handover discussion with your key person and to collect your child’s things. After 3:30 is late and makes it very difficult for both the children and the staff team who are trying to organise the end of day session for the extended day children. If you would like any more information about this please speak to Michele or Jan.

Toys and other personal items in nursery
We are becoming over whelmed by the number of toys the children are bringing into nursery. Please try to limit items from home to special transitional items that have been agreed by your key person. It is impossible for the staff team to keep an eye on toys from home and very difficult for the children when they are lost or if the children do not want to share them.

New March Newsletter out now

Our March newsletter is out, including coverage of the 50th Birthday party. You can read it here (opens as a PDF).

Coverage of our 50th birthday party

In case you missed it...

Islington Tribune

Islington Council

Cally Labour Councillors

Islington Children's Services news (front cover and page 4)

15th March 2010

Don’t forget - it’s Review Day on Thursday

Your key person will have spoken to you about Review Day, when we arrange to meet every parent so we can focus on how each child is getting on, and how we can work together to help each child make further progress.

On Review Day children with core day places just come for a crèche place whilst you meet with your key person. Children with extended day places attend as normal. If you are unsure of anything please speak to your key person or email Michele.

We need a new parent governor

Lucy, Petra’s mother, is coming to the end of her period as a parent governor very soon. So we are looking for a new parent governor to join the governing body.

Being a governor is a really good way of supporting the development of the nursery school and children’s centre. The governing body has responsibility for strategic development, budget and staffing, with day to day leadership and management in the hands of the headteacher. It is an important role.

You do not need any special training or experience to be a parent governor – Islington offers a training programme, and the governing body is friendly and helpful to newcomers!

If you are interested, or want to find out more, please email Marie with your name and your child's name. A member of the governing body will then be in touch with you shortly.

10th March 2010

Celebrating 50 years of Kate Greenaway Nursery School

All this week, we are celebrating Kate Greenaway’s Golden Birthday – and we hope you will be able to join in with some of the celebrations.

The nursery school is named after the children’s author and illustrator Kate Greenaway, who grew up in Islington in the 19th Century.

So our celebrations are focussed on children’s books and literature. We are working with local schools, the schools’ library service, and Lewis Carroll library.

All this week children are making books and telling stories through video.

Today (Wednesday) London zoo are coming to tell stories with animals

On Friday girls from Elizabeth Garrett Anderson School are bringing the multi-lingual books they have created for the children into nursery, and will be sharing them.

On Friday we are inviting children to come dressed up as their favourite book character. Home-made stuff is great – there is no need to have a full costume. We’d prefer no TV characters, Batman suits etc as the focus is on books.

Friday evening (6pm-8pm) we are holding an event at The Guardian (King’s Place, York Way) on the history and future of the nursery school. The main speaker will be Professor Tina Bruce (who works closely with us) and there will be a panel discussion at the end chaired by Polly Toynbee. If you would like a ticket, please ask Julian. More details here.

On Saturday we are open from 10.30am to 2.30pm for a day of storytelling, songs and music, face painting and more – so come along if you are free. There will be activities for older children at Lewis Carroll Library. More details here.

We hope you will come along and enjoy one or more of these events.

March 3rd 2010

How well do children get on after they leave Kate Greenaway?

Islington Council has recently followed up the outcomes for children who attend the Children’s Centres. We are very pleased to let you know that children from Kate Greenaway go on to do very well in primary school.

Our aim is to provide a high-quality nursery education planned around play (indoors and outdoors), together with a strong emphasis on care (the key person approach) on helping children to develop positive behaviour.

We employ qualified nursery education workers (at level 3) and early years teachers because research evidence shows that the level of staff training directly affects the development and learning of the children.

At the end of their reception year, all children are assessed using the Early Years Foundation Stage Profile. A score of 78 points or more is considered by the Department of Children, Schools and Families to show that the child is “developing well”.

8 out of 10 children from Kate Greenaway achieve a score of 78 points or more. This is much higher than the level for Islington as a whole. Nationally, 75% of children reach this level, so you can see we are also ahead of the rest of the country too.

Of course, we have to be careful about numbers, results and targets for such young children.
For us, the important thing is that children enjoy nursery and the company of other children. By working with parents, we aim to help children to develop their learning.

We are very pleased to be able to say that all the evidence shows that your child is getting the best possible start by coming to Kate Greenaway.

The staff team at Kate Greenaway

P.S. Do you want to feedback your views and shape the direction of Kate Greenaway?

Don’t forget to come to the Parent Forum, this Saturday at 10.30am.

23rd February 2010

Did your child go home in nursery boots during the snowy weather?

We are running really low on boots in nursery, and we think that some are missing because children went home in them when it was snowy and they did not come back.
Please could you check at home, and return boots if you have them. Having the boots here allows children to enjoy the garden when it’s wet and muddy.

Also, if you have old wellington boots that no longer fit your child – we’d love to have them!

Thanks, Michele

Update: front garden

As you can probably see, work has not quite gone to plan with the front garden. The bad weather has delayed progress and it will be at least another week before the garden is reopened.

Because of this, the Pod will be closed all week, and all our Stay and Plays are cancelled except for the Friday and Saturday groups. We are sorry to do this, but there is no other safe or sensible option.

If it keeps raining then it is possible there will be even more delays – we will let you know.

New Children’s Centre programme

Don’t forget to check out our new programme. We have new services running at the Barnsbury Community Hall, including classes for people learning English as an Additional Language (ESOL) and an even bigger and better exercise/Pilates class.

News, and key dates, February 10th 2010

Closure of the Pod for works to the garden

The Pod will be closed all next week for all users. This means that the Monday and Thursday Stay and Plays are cancelled. The Friday Stay and Play will go ahead as usual, with parents and children using the main nursery entrance. We are having a sand and water garden, willow tunnel, music area and growing beds installed in the front garden, and look forward to much-improved play facilities there ready for the spring and summer.

Important dates

If you child has a core day place, then Friday is the last day of nursery before half term. We start back on Monday 22nd February. If your child has an extended day/year place, then nursery continues as normal next week. But please note the change to the last day of the extended summer nursery, which is now confirmed by Islington as Monday 16th August. Please check the complete list of dates below:


Reminder: Key dates at Kate Greenaway 2009-2010

Monday 15 – Friday 19th February inclusive
School half term

Monday 1st March
Development Morning Closure *

Thursday 18th March
Review Day **

Thursday 1st April
Last day of spring term

Monday 19th April
First day of summer term

Monday 10th May
Development Morning Closure *

Monday 17th May
Whole centre and nursery closed for training and development

Thursday 27th May
Review Day **

Monday 31st May – Friday 4th June inclusive
School half term

Monday 21st June
Development Morning Closure *

Friday 23rd July
Last day of summer term

Please note this changed date: Monday 16th August
Last day of extended year summer scheme (confirmed)

School term starts in Islington on Wednesday 1st September, when all schools are closed for training and development. We will confirm the first day back for children once next year’s dates have been agreed.

* On Development Mornings, the nursery is closed all morning and opens at 1pm.

** On Review Days the nursery is closed so that we can meet with every parent and carer to review each child’s development. The nursery stays open for children with extended day/year places.

10th February 2010

Leaving Kate Greenaway

Dear parents and carers

I’m writing to let you know formally that I will be leaving Kate Greenaway at the end of this term and taking up a new post in Tower Hamlets in the summer. I can’t begin to say in a short space how much I have enjoyed being headteacher here at Kate Greenaway, getting to know so many children and families, and being supported so well by the staff team, governing body and so many others in the local community. I have learnt more since I came here in 2003 than in any other part of my career, and I’ll always hold a special affection for Kate Greenaway and the whole community in North Kings Cross. There is a letter from Lucy, our chair of governors, below.

Julian

Dear parents

We are writing to let you know that our Headteacher Julian Grenier has found a new job with Tower Hamlets as their Early Years adviser. This means he will be leaving Kate Greenaway at the end of March. Julian has made a big impact on the lives of so many families in our community. He has made Kate Greenaway into a special place for all of us, always focusing on how he can ensure the Centre does the very best for our children. We will all be sad to see him go but we wish him the very best for his next steps and hope that the new job will be fulfilling for him.

The Governing Body is now seeking a new permanent Headteacher from the Autumn Term 2010 or earlier. We are currently making interim arrangements to take responsibility for Kate Greenaway after Julian leaves until the new Headteacher starts.

The Governors wish to appoint a Headteacher who will take forward and build on Julian’s work and lead the strong and highly skilled staff team that we have in place.

As soon as we have more news for you, we will be in touch

With best wishes

Lucy Lloyd, Chair of Governors

On behalf of Kate Greenaway Nursery School and Children’s Centre Governors

February newsletter out now

Read our latest newsletter here (opens in a new window as a PDF)

2nd February 2010

Help urgently required: visits to the Natural History Museum

We are planning to take all the three and four year olds to the Natural History Museum over the next month. But in order to do this, we need help.

Please talk to Michele if you are able to come along and help – there will be a list of dates going up soon.

We will be walking up to Caledonian Road Station and then getting the Piccadilly Line to South Kensington before spending time in the museum, especially in the dinosaur area.

Children travel free on the tube, but you will need to bring your Oyster card. You and your child will also need to bring a packed lunch with you. We do not recommend bringing a buggy.

The trip will be a great experience for the children, and they will be learning from the minute they set off up the road, use the lift at the station and follow the tube map.

The children need a high level of supervision – please volunteer some of your time if you can.

Under Fives Dental Health promotion

Did you know that Islington has one of the highest levels of tooth decay and tooth extraction amongst children in the whole country?

Dental problems in childhood can be painful and can affect children’s early speech.

On Thursday February 25th we are holding a dental health promotion event in the morning from 10am to 11.30am.

Come along and:

• Get free advice
• Register with a dentist (all treatment for children is free on the NHS)
• Pick up a free toothbrush and toothpaste for your child

For more information – contact Liz

Find more information about registering with a dentist for free treatment here.

25th January 2010

Important reminder: arrival times for children in the morning
At Kate Greenaway we have a flexible dropping-off system for all children. This is planned to help parents and staff settle children in, and also to help parents who have older children in school – we know you can’t be in two places at the same time!

But please remember that all children with morning places need to be in nursery by 9.30am. The reason for this, is that we want all the children to be able to take part in the day’s activities, and if children arrive throughout the morning the group becomes unsettled. It is also difficult for children who arrive later, as often the others are already formed in groups and busy.

If your child has a medical appointment or another reason to be late, we understand of course.

But otherwise please help the smooth running of Kate Greenaway by making sure that your child arrives by 9.30am at the very latest. This includes all children – babies, toddlers, 3 and 4 year olds, children with termtime places and children with extended day/year places.

Free theatre production for 2 to 5 year olds
Lewis Carroll Library on Copenhagen Street are hosting the Court Theatre Training Company on Friday 29th January.

They are producing short plays for 2 to 5 year olds on Myths and Fairytales – Hansel and Gretel, Little Red Riding Hood and more…

It’s free for any parent to come along with their child, starting at 10am. If you would like to take your own child, then please let your key person know during the week (by Wednesday at the latest) – thanks.

We will also take a small group over from Kate Greenaway: if you would like to help us with this, then please let Michele know.

12th January 2010

Staffing update

I would like to start the newsletter by introducing Anna to all parents and carers. Anna is working with us this term for three days a week as an additional nursery teacher, whilst Michele covers some of Jan’s responsibilities. Jan remains at Golden Lane this term as their interim head.

On Friday, our cook Yogi started her maternity leave – so I know that everyone will join with me in wishing her well. We are interviewing for a temporary cook this week.
We have a new Turkish-speaking Bilingual Family Support and Outreach worker, Duygu, working with us and the other local Children’s Centres. Duygu is holding a breakfast for Turkish-speaking families on Tuesday January 26th, 9am-10am, here at Kate Greenaway.

Snow

I am sure you were pleased at the efforts of everyone on the staff team to keep the nursery running all last week. We would like to thank parents of children with extended day places for agreeing to pick children up early during the period of severe weather.

Reminder: choosing a reception class for your child

All parents and carers are welcome to our meeting about choosing your child’s school, on Tuesday 19th January starting at 9.30am.

Parents wanted for telephone interviews
£20 in high street vouchers paid

The Family & Parenting Institute, and the Campaign for Learning, two independent charities, are looking for mothers, fathers and carers of 2, 3 and 4 year old children who are taking up childcare funding for the first time in January 2010, to be interviewed on the phone about what kind of support they need or would like to help their children learn and develop.

You will receive £20 in high street vouchers-accepted in Argos, M&S, Sainsburys and many more shops - for two, half hour interviews, one before the end of Jan and one 6 months later, at times to suit you. For more information:

n Ask Julian at Kate Greenaway for more details or
n Contact: National Family and Parenting Institute, The Provider Influence Team, Freepost, LON 12668, NW5 1YR


Email PI@familyandparenting.org

Telephone 020 7424 3481

5th January 2010 - Happy New Year from Kate Greenaway

New children settling in

This term we have 10 new children settling in to the Nursery and the Baby Nest. Awe stagger settling in to make sure that we can give plenty of attention to each child, and also to minimise the disruption to children already on roll. However, during this period the staff will be giving extra attention to the new children and this can be a little unsettling to children on roll. Please speak to your key person if you feel this is affecting your child.

Choosing a primary school for your child
If your child was born between 1 September 2005 and 31 August 2006 you will need to apply for a primary school place for September 2010/January 2011. You can ask for a paper form by calling 0207 527 5515 or you can apply online.

We are holding a workshop with Islington’s School Choice team here on Tuesday January 19th at 9.30am. At the workshop, you can ask questions about the best ways to go about choosing your child’s primary school and share ideas with other parents. Please remember that you must submit your form by Tuesday 2nd February 2010

Reminder of key dates, etc
Please check the list of dates below.

New Children’s Centre Programme
As well as continuing all our popular services, we have added swimming and an adult exercise class to our programme. Please have a look here (opens as a PDF in a new window) or pick up a copy from the front desk and find out what we’re offering for families.

Do you have a Maclaren buggy? Order your free elbow joint hinge covers
You may find the following information from their website useful:

Elbow joint hinge covers To obtain a set of hinge covers please go to http://covers.maclaren.co.uk/ and fill out the order form.

What are the basic precautions?

The main instructions are to:
Keep children clear of the stroller during opening and folding.
Always use the safety harness.
Always apply the brakes when stationary.
Never leave your child unattended – even with the harness fastened.
Don’t overload the buggy. Heavy items hanging from the handles can cause it to topple over.
Don’t let children play or climb on a stroller and don’t carry a second child on a stroller designed for one child.
Negotiate curbs carefully. Wherever possible always carry a stroller down flights of stairs.

...

You should also keep the buggy clean and check that it is good working order before you use it. If you have any problems, contact us on 01327 841320 (between 9am and 5pm) or contact one of our service centres (listed on our website).


Reminder: Key dates at Kate Greenaway 2010

Tuesday 5th January 2010
First day of Spring Term

Tuesday 19th January 2010
9.30am workshop: choosing a primary school for your child

Monday 25th January 2010
Development Morning Closure *

Monday 15 – Friday 19th February inclusive
School half term

Monday 1st March
Development Morning Closure *

Thursday 18th March
Review Day **

Thursday 1st April
Last day of spring term

Monday 19th April
First day of summer term

Monday 10th May
Development Morning Closure *

Monday 17th May
Whole centre and nursery closed for training and development

Thursday 27th May
Review Day **

Monday 31st May – Friday 4th June inclusive
School half term

Monday 21st June
Development Morning Closure *

Friday 23rd July
Last day of summer term

Friday 13th August
Last day of extended year summer scheme.

On both Development Mornings and Review Days, the nursery remains open for children with extended day/year places

* On Development Mornings, the nursery is closed all morning and opens at 1pm.

** On Review Days the nursery is closed so that we can meet with every parent and carer to review each child’s development.