Early Years Services
Nursery Manager: Alexandra Neophytou
Early Years Team: Nadia Nazir (Deputy), Alex Dowden, Jusnara Begum, Faiqa Malik, Melanie Landu, Ujjwal Manandhar, Jamila Rafky.
Sidings’ Early Years Services currently offers a welcoming and inclusive high-quality community-based, term-time nursery for children aged 2-4 years old.
Our nursery is Ofsted Registered (No. 100559). Our Nursery staff are committed to providing a service which contributes to Camden’s vision of enabling young children to have a sure start in life and that “all children and their families reach their full potential”.
We offer accessible indoor and outdoor facilities, using a wide range of resources to enable all children to develop and reach their full potential within the current Early Years Foundation Stage curricula. Being on the edge of Maygrove Peace Park also provides a pleasant green backdrop to our accessible outdoor play space.
Our Team is qualified and highly experienced in delivering a multi-activity programme appropriate to children’s age and development. As key workers – all staff put an emphasis on building positive relationships with their key children, ensuring children feel safe, cared for, and encouraged to achieve their full potential. Key Workers also keep parents closely informed of their child’s progress and well-being.
There are also regular Parent Forums where parents can raise issues, be consulted about the programme of activities on offer, share ideas and information, and are updated on any relevant local and government-led issues related to Early Years Services.
Quotes
Here are some excerpts from our most recent Ofsted report from September 2023:
“Children settle well. Staff reassure and comfort children to gently ease them into the nursery. Staff know the individual characters of the children well and share positive relationships with them. Younger children develop a can-do attitude.”
“Parents highly value the nursery. They feel very supported by the ‘amazing’ staff team who provide regular information about their child’s well-being and progress.”
“Staff work collaboratively with the parents and the local authority to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Together they make regular checks to ensure children continue to receive the help they need. Children benefit enormously from the one-to-one support they receive to participate in activities and routines according to their needs.”
“Children’s health and physical development is promoted well. Staff clean the environment throughout the day and ensure resources are stored appropriately to keep the playrooms tidy. Children access well-equipped outdoor areas.”
“The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.”
“Staff understand their roles in protecting children at risk of harm. The manager ensures staff receive the training they need so that they have up-to-date knowledge of identifying and reporting any concerns. The manager works closely with other professionals to protect children’s well-being. Staff identify risks in the environment and take steps to promptly reduce these to keep children safe. Parents understand and follow nursery procedures, such as for the safe collection of the children.”
Our curriculum is strengthened by additional support from:
- Camden’s Integrated Early Years’ Service Team
- Teacher’s Advisory Team
- Inclusion/ Intervention Team
- Plus other outside professionals such as local Health Visitors, Occupational Therapists, Speech and Language Therapists.
Support for Parents
Sidings Early Years’ Service places particular emphasis on working holistically with families and being a source of advice and support to parents during the important early years of their children’s lives. Staff work closely with parents and outside professionals for children with identified and emerging special and additional needs, to offer specialist support, advice and guidance. This enables children to participate and access the full EYFS curriculum within an inclusive play and learning environment.
Some feedback and comments from parents to show how we have helped their child develop while at our nursery:
“I’d like to take this opportunity of saying a big thank you for accepting my child to be [a] part of your nursery. The level of service that you provide is outstanding. A big THANK YOU to all teachers.”
“To all the staff at Sidings Nursery! Thanks so much for everything you have done for my child! He is the boy he is now with the help of you guys! We will truly miss you!”
Early Years Childcare Services for children 2-4 years
Term-Time Monday to Friday 9 am – 4 pm
Our Childcare Services operate on a combined basis of affordable fees and also free places where government funding applies – see below
Fee-Paying: We offer childcare on a flexible fee-paying basis up to 5 days a week for 2-4-year-olds. As well as offering a stimulating multi-activity programme for children, this also supports those parents who are currently working, studying, or trying to get back into the world of work. Registered childcare is offered on a minimum of a 3-hour session, 3 times per week, starting at the following times: 9 am, 10 am, 12 noon or 1 pm. Parents can choose to add extra hours on a flexible basis for up to 7 hours per day.
FREE Childcare places: we offer FREE 15-hrs Pre-School places for 3 & 4-year-olds, and also FREE places for 2-year-olds for those families who qualify for Camden’s 2-year-old Scheme. (Please inquire for further details).
For children aged 3 &4 years, we are a provider for the government-funded 30 hrs extended FREE childcare (*for those working families who meet the criteria). As a Camden-based provider, there is also the additional “Enhanced offer” of 30 FREE hours to children whose parents meet Camden’s eligibility criteria.
Please contact the Nursery for further information for fee-paying places
Further information
For more information about our services please get in touch with the Early Years Office:
Phone: 020 7624 0588
Email: early.years@sidings.org.uk
