St.Thomas' Pre-school Playgroup
Admissions Policy
When the initial contact is made, parents/carers are invited along with the child to come and visit the Pre-school and a prospectus is sent to them. During this visit parents/carers are shown both the premises and work done by the children. At the end of this visit an admission form is given, to fill in if they wish.
Once this form is returned they are placed onto the waiting list.
Places are usually offered a half a term in advance, by post. If the place is accepted we ask for a £30.00 deposit to secure the place. (This has been necessary due to a large number of people accepting places and then not attending). The £30 goes towards the first term’s fees. If the child receives a funded place, i.e. is over three, the cheque will be returned at the start of term.
The half term before a child is due to join the Pre-school the child and a carer are invited to spend a morning with us. Some children may need more than one visit and we are always happy for children to return as many times as they need to. We have found this helps the children to settle down when they start as they recognise the staff and are familiar with the morning’s routine
Children are offered a place on the following basis
· a child or grandchild of a current member of staff
· the sibling of a child previously at the Pre-school
· on a first come first served basis unless there are special circumstances (e.g. special needs), in which case a place may be offered in front of someone who has been on the waiting list for longer.
Although parents/carers are asked if they have a preference for which days their child attends the group, at busy times it may not always be possible to allocate places on this basis. If the days offered are not satisfactory there is a ‘wish list’ to alter days as they become free.
Reviewed September 07.
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