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Beckermet Nursery is a non-profit organisation with charity status. It is managed by a voluntary management committee whose members are elected by the parents of the children who attend the nursery.
The committee is responsible for:
- Managing the nursery's finances.
- Employing and managing the staff.
- Making sure that the nursery has, and works to, policies (which can be found on the main notice board within the nursery) that ensure a high quality service is provided.
- Making sure that the nursery works in partnership with the children’s parents
- Maintaining a safe and healthy nursery
Our nursery aims to:
- Provide a safe and stimulating environment in which children feel happy and secure.
- Encourage the emotional, social, physical, creative and intellectual development of the children.
- Encourage positive attitudes to self and others, develop confidence and self-esteem.
- Create opportunities for play.
- Encourage children to explore the world in which they live.
- Provide opportunities to stimulate interest and imagination.
- Extend the children’s abilities to communicate ideas and feelings in a variety of ways.
Our Approach
We have a highly committed nursery team comprising of Manager together with several fully qualified and experienced nursery nurses (Level 3 and 4) who are responsible for the welfare of the children during each session. The nursery team work together to plan activities for your child and to make observations on a regular basis.
When your child attends Beckermet Nursery, they will be assigned a keyworker. The keyworker is a member of staff who is the ‘lead’ carer for your child. This allows a single member of staff to build a relationship with you and your child to ensure we provide the best care and development possible
Our Play Philosophy
When children are asked “what were you doing at nursery today?” often the reply is “I was playing!”. That is exactly what the children have been doing. However, there is more to play than meets the eye!
Play is natural to the children and is the means by which they learn. Through play, children learn new skills, develop new interests and encounter new experiences.
In Beckermet Nursery, we provide a secure, caring, happy and structured environment where the children learn through meaningful and constructive play using materials and equipment, which have been carefully selected by the staff.
Each of the activities in the nursery provides a learning experience for children, e.g. they are preparing for reading by becoming used to seeing their names on paintings and drawings.
This, and other types of labelling, together with books in the book corner and storytelling enable the children to become familiar with the printed word and encourage an interest in books.
The children are preparing for writing by expressing ideas through drawings and learning how to hold and control pens and pencils.
There is preparation for mathematics by sorting, matching, selecting and ordering as they play with materials such as sand, water and construction toys. Jigsaws, games, painting, drawing, and computer programs all encourage recognition of colour and shape. The children acquire knowledge about the world and participate in physical education and outdoor play. They sing songs and rhymes daily, and also have opportunities to play musical instruments.
The children’s increasing attention span is catered for both individually and in groups. Opportunities are provided for discussing, describing, questioning, listening and recalling so that the children’s language skills are increased. Many practical skills are taught and encouraged during the daily nursery routine e.g. washing and drying dishes, going to the toilet (and washing hands!) and tidying.
In nursery, the children make new friends and learn to respect and care for each other. They learn to share and take turns and they become more independent. They also learn to follow routines and obey rules and instructions which helps prepare them for school.
As there are so many activities in the nursery, your child may not always take home evidence of his/her play (e.g. paintings, drawings or gluing). However, whatever they do take home is always their own work.
We firmly believe that children learn more when they are allowed to create their own pictures, models etc. but they do need encouragement and praise. What looks like scribbles to us could be a work of art to a child and we must value their efforts. So when your child tells you he/she has been “playing” in nursery, please bear in mind that they have been very busy for at least 3 hours participating in numerous activities and learning many new skills through their play.
Staff
Each of our members of staff has certificates in First Aid, safeguarding, manual handling and several have basic food hygiene certificates.
Abigail Shepherd - Manager
Level 5 Early Years Lead Practitioner
Advanced Practitioner L4
Level 2 Children and Young People Workforce
Level 3 Early Year's Educator
Patricia Gallagher - Nursery Finance Manager
Qualifications: Degree - BSc (Hons) Child and Family Studies;
Foundation Degree in Arts – Integrated Education and Care of Children and Young People;
City and Guilds NVQ levels 2 & 3 Childcare and Education pre-school provision
Julie Whelan - Deputy Manager
Level 3 Diploma in Nursery Nursing (NNEB)
Susan Cremins - Supervisor
Working in Schools – level 3;
Cache level 3 NVQ in Children’s Care, Learning and Development;
Team Leading QCF – level 3
Rebecca Walker - Assistant
Advanced Supporting Teaching and Learning in Schools
Level 3 and 4 Early Year's Educator
Foundation Degree in Arts - Integrated Education and Care of Children and Young People
Simone Naylor - Assistant
Level 3 Early Year's Educator
Foundation Degree - Integrated Education and Care of Children & Young People
June Bland - Assistant
Level 3 Diploma in Specialist Support for Teaching and Learning in Schools
Level 2 Diploma for the Children and Young People's Workforce
Level 3 Early Years Educator
Mickeala Fisher - Trainee
Working towards Level 3 Early Year's Practitioner
Katie Edwards - Assistant
L3 Early Years Educator
L3 Diploma in Learning Support and Teaching in schools
Briony Young - Assistant
Level 2 Childcare Children & YP Workforce
Level 3 Early Year's Educator
Lauren Gallagher- Assistant
Level 3 Early Year's Educator
Lucy Whelan - Bank Assistant
Linda Draper - Cook
Basic Food Hygiene
Beckermet C of E Primary School
We work very closely with Beckermet School. Staff from the nursery accompany the pre-school children into school on a daily basis. They go into the school yard to do activities to enable the children to become familiar with the new surroundings, use the main hall for PE lessons and the Reception teacher comes into nursery on a monthly basis to work with pre-school children and staff. This helps with a seamless and easier transition from nursery to school. For more information, Telephone Mrs L Thompson (administrator) 01946 841221 or contact email admin@beckermet.cumbria.sch.uk or visit the website; www.beckermet.cumbria.sch.uk
Charity Status
Beckermet Nursery is a registered charity (number 1183968). The nursery is a non-profit organisation managed by a Voluntary Management Committee. This allows the nursery to keep fees as low as possible and apply for a number of funding grants for equipment and improvements. For more information regarding the charity status, please refer to the Charity Commission Website.
