Welcome
We hope the information you find on these pages will help you settle your child in the Nursery and answer some of the questions about your child’s time at Mr Bee’s. On acceptance of a place in the nursery, your family will be offered a home visit. We encourage you to accept the offer as it helps your child make the transition from home to nursery. During the home visit or at the first visit to the nursery you will work with a staff member to collect information about your child. This will be used as ‘starting points’ for your child’s key person to plan for your child’s next steps.
Do talk about starting Nursery with your child so that they know what to expect. The following pages will ‘help us help them’ and provide tips on how you can support them with this transition. Let your child know that Mr Bee’s is a friendly and exciting place to play and meet new friends. Whilst visiting, please join in the activities; show your child the toilets, where to wash their hands, how to use paper towels; where to find a drink of water and introduce them to the staff so they’ll know who to go to for help.
Most of all, come and enjoy yourselves!
Settling into nursery
This is an important time for young children and their families. This will be a new experience for some children and will be the first time they have been left with other people in a different environment with lots of other children.
We aim to make the process as smooth as possible. Further information can be found in our ‘Key Person and settling in’ and ‘Registration and Admissions’ policies. We understand that all children and families are unique and individual and take this into account in our settling-in process.
To help with the transition we ask parents to come for a ‘stay and play’ visit with their child. This is usually followed by a home visit, and then by a ‘lone visit’ where your child will spend about an hour in the Nursery while the parent is still available in the building. After the lone visit, you can discuss details with your child’s key person. The details include how best to start your child at the nursery and for how long. Dates for the settling-in sessions and who your key person is will be given at registration.
We hope that by working with parents and carers we can provide the best possible start for children coming to nursery and lay firm foundations for their future care and learning.
Partnership with Parents
Mr Bee’s recognises working in partnership with parents is paramount to children’s learning and development. Although all the staff at the nursery will all be responsible for your child, your child will be allocated a member of staff known as a Key Person and another staff member known as a Shared Key Person. Your child’s Key Person will have knowledge and understanding on how children learn and develop and after talking with you as their first educator during the settling in process will have a good understanding of your child’s current interests and needs.
The relationship between the ‘Key Person’, child and parent will begin on day one of your child visiting the centre. A positive partnership between parents and key people will allow the child to begin to build a relationship with the key person and start to build an attachment which has been linked to brain development.
The Key Person will capture all of your child’s learning and talking about your child’s learning may happen informally at the beginning or end of the day when you drop off or collect your child from nursery. We recognise that this is not always possible and Mr Bee’s have introduced tools to support a regular two way flow of communication through Famly messages/newsfeeds.
A Suggestion Box can be found in the reception area of the nursery — we welcome parents from time to time to write a brief comment, compliment, suggestion and post in to the box so that we are aware of anything that you feel needs addressing — this can be done anonymously.
Children’s Learning
Children initiated play
Every day, children enjoy open access to a diverse selection of toys and equipment, empowering them to take the lead in their own play. Our environments are thoughtfully designed to inspire this child-initiated discovery, allowing children to freely choose their path, build confidence, and develop critical problem-solving skills at their own pace.
Adult intervention
Our highly trained team carefully observes children at play, knowing when to step in to gently extend their learning, spark new ideas, or guide positive behavior. By balancing freedom with supportive, expert guidance, we ensure every child feels secure and challenged to grow
Adult initiated activities
Our childcare practitioners carefully observe children at play to design adult-initiated activities tailored to their unique interests. Through engaging experiences like story time and focused tabletop activities, children are supported by their key person to learn new skills and explore concepts in depth.
At Mr. Bee’s, we believe that children learn best from their own play experiences, and that learning is naturally extended when sensitive adults join in the fun. Known as social constructivism, this approach is built on the idea that children actively construct new knowledge through meaningful interactions and play.
Learning Concepts
How can we tell when a child is learning?
As well as assessing learning using the Development Matters guidance of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), Mr. Bee’s uses two other tools to support your child’s progress:
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The Leuven Scale: This allows us to assess children’s well-being and involvement. Well-being refers to a child feeling at ease, spontaneous, and free of emotional tension, which builds self-confidence, self-esteem, and resilience. Involvement refers to being intensely engaged in activities, which is a necessary condition for deep-level learning and development.
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Schemas: We observe children and consider their patterns of behaviour known as schemas. Schemas are the ways children systematically explore their environment to find out about the space around them. Exploring schemas is an important part of how children develop concepts about shape, space, distance, and movement. When we notice this type of behavior, we let children continue their learning uninterrupted unless they ask for our support.
Each term, your child’s key person completes a comprehensive assessment that brings together the EYFS themes and areas of learning, well-being and involvement, and schematic play.
Early Years Foundation Stage
What does the Early Years Foundation Stage mean for my child?
Our nursery practice is proudly built around the four overarching principles of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS):
Unique Child: Recognizing that every child is an independent learner capable of being resilient, confident, and self-assured.
Positive Relationships: Building strong foundations where children learn to be strong and independent through secure bonds.
Enabling Environments: Providing supportive indoor and outdoor spaces that respond to each child’s individual interests and needs.
Learning and Development: Acknowledging that children develop and learn at different rates.
The EYFS sets statutory standards for learning, development, and care for children from birth to five. It provides reassurance for parents that registered childcare ensures children are safe, well looked after, and thriving. There is a strong emphasis on working closely with families to encourage involvement in a child’s development both at home and at nursery.
The EYFS sets out:
Safeguarding and welfare requirements: Ensuring everyone registered to look after children keeps them safe and promotes their well-being.
Learning and development requirements: Guiding childcare practitioners as they engage with your child’s play and activities to help them learn new skills and knowledge.
Assessment arrangements: Measuring progress and keeping parents informed throughout the EYFS journey.
The 7 Areas of Learning
Learning is structured around three prime areas that lay the foundation for all development, which later expand into four specific areas:
The Prime Areas:
Personal, social, and emotional development
Communication and language
Physical development
The Specific Areas:
Literacy
Mathematics
Understanding the world
Expressive arts and design
These areas are used to plan your child’s learning and activities. Much like a school curriculum, but designed specifically for very young children, it is flexible enough for our staff to follow your child’s unique needs and interests at any given moment.
Characteristics of Effective Teaching and Learning
Children in the early years learn by playing and exploring, being active learners, and engaging in creative and critical thinking—both indoors and outside (see our Learning Environment Policy). These characteristics guide our childcare practitioners in recognizing the different rates at which children develop and in adjusting our practice to support them best.
Food & Snacks
At Mr. Bee’s, we believe that healthy bodies fuel happy minds. All of our meals and snacks are freshly prepared on the premises using locally sourced, fresh ingredients wherever possible. Designed to meet EYFS nutritional standards, our menu offers a delicious balance of flavours and nutrients to support your child’s growth and development. For children attending our North Lynn and Springwood centres—which are open from 7:30 AM to 6:00 PM—a wholesome hot meal option is available, alongside fresh daily choices of sandwiches, seasonal fruit, and nourishing yoghurts.
Drop Off Routine
We love giving every child and family a warm welcome to start the day! When you arrive, please meet and greet our team at the door. In line with EYFS guidelines, we ask that children are not handed over while still in their car seats or if they are asleep, ensuring they are fully awake and ready to transition into their room. This is also a wonderful opportunity to share any important updates with us—such as how they slept, whether they need breakfast, or any changes regarding who will be collecting them at the end of the day.
Toileting and Intimate Care
We are fully committed to supporting you and your child through every milestone, including toilet training. Because every child develops at their own unique pace, we work closely with you to ensure a consistent, reassuring approach between home and nursery. If your child is newly learning or occasionally anxious about asking to use the toilet, you are very welcome to encourage a quick visit just before you leave. Please chat with your child’s key person about any specific terminology, cues, or comfort measures your child uses.
In line with EYFS welfare requirements, our team is always on hand to provide respectful, sensitive support with wiping, cleaning, and changing when necessary. We champion independence by encouraging children to try managing tasks themselves, and we always celebrate their progress with patience and positive reinforcement.
Clothing & Weather Wear
To make sure your child is ready for a fun and active day, please ensure all clothing is clearly labeled with their name. Dress them in comfortable clothes that are easy for them to unfasten and simple to wash—we love getting stuck into messy play! As we head outdoors in all kinds of weather, please provide wellie boots and rain gear for wet days, as well as a sun hat during warmer spells.
Sun cream & Outdoor Play
To keep everyone safe and comfortable during outdoor adventures, Mr Bee’s will apply sun cream with the written permission of parents—please let your Centre Lead know if your child has sensitive skin and/or allergies.
Our outdoor area is open all year round, come rain or shine! Because of this, children need to be sent with appropriate coats, footwear, hats, scarves, and gloves to reflect the weather. Please remember that all items should be clearly labelled with your child’s name.
Trips & Outings
Trips and outings are an exciting and important part of your child’s learning experience, helping them explore the world beyond the nursery. To ensure the highest standards of safety, we maintain high adult-to-child ratios for all excursions. These memorable adventures often rely on the wonderful support and participation of our parents, and we will always give you plenty of advance notice when parent volunteers are needed to join us.
Emergency Closures
The safety and well-being of our children and staff are always our top priority. In the rare event that Mr Bee’s has to close due to an emergency, such as severe weather or a loss of heating, parents will be notified promptly via Famly notifications.
To help families during unexpected closures, parents who incur costs for alternative childcare will be reimbursed upon presentation of a receipt. Please note that normal fees will still apply for up to the first three days of an emergency closure.
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Policies and Procedures