funded childcare Tag | Little Acorns Nursery School, Padiham

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Babies, Children, Health & Well-being, Lancashire, Learning & Development, Padiham, Parenting, Preschoolers, Toddlers, Toothbrushing, Under-fives

Toothbrushing for Under-5s — Let’s Get Lancashire Brushing!

Today we bring you a guide to toothbrushing for under-fives, inspired by children at Little Acorns Nursery taking part in Lancashire’s Let’s Get Lancashire Brushing campaign. An initiative of Lancashire County Council Public Health, the programme is designed to educate and encourage young children, including toddlers, to brush teeth for 2 minutes twice a day using age-appropriate toothpaste. What’s more, their message is that it’s never too young to begin and can even start before the first tooth has surfaced. At Little Acorns Nursery, the programme is supervised by staff and is intended to take place in tandem with toothbrushing at home — it does not replace it. Nursery staff guide children to establish a positive and proactive routine around toothbrushing, to foster good habits around oral hygiene, and thereby minimise tooth decay and problems associated with it.

“Children who start brushing at a young age tend to have healthier teeth as they get older.”— Lancashire County Council Public Health.

As part of the “Let’s Get Lancashire Brushing” initiative:

Children at Little Acorns have each received a free toothbrush (replaced every quarter), a toothbrush holder, toothpaste, a brushing timer set for 2 minutes, and interactive learning resources that will help encourage them to brush regularly and thoroughly;
Children’s families have received information leaflets about the campaign along with a reusable toothbrushing chart. If needed, more can be requested from your local Family Hub, Lancashire’s Healthy Young People and Families Service^∞ or via a family’s health visitor.
Learn more about the Let’s Get Lancashire Brushing initiative here.

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Young boy practises brushing giant teeth.

Girl under five practises brushing some giant teeth.

Little Acorns children have loved taking part in this scheme and the good news is that appropriate toothbrushing has already become embedded in their daily routine. This approach is a great way to encourage children to look after their teeth from an early age. That’s something that’s known to keep teeth, gums, and oral health in good order as children get older, thereby reducing the need for fillings and the prospect of losing teeth.

“Taking care of your children’s teeth is essential for them to eat, drink, smile, talk, sing – and even shout, as well as protecting them from tooth decay!”— Michael Green, cabinet member for Health & Wellbeing.

Quick Guide to Brushing Children’s Teeth

Children’s teeth should be brushed twice per day, including once in the evening before bedtime. Brush for 2 minutes each time and, where possible, encourage children to spit out excess toothpaste. This may not be possible, of course, for babies and the youngest children. There is no need to rinse. Some additional guidelines for brushing children’s teeth follow:

Babies

The NHS recommends that you start brushing babies’ teeth as soon as one or more teeth have begun to appear.
Use an infant’s toothbrush, a “finger brush”, or a piece of clean gauze wrapped around a clean finger.
Use just a smear of toothpaste.
Use children’s fluoride toothpaste containing a minimum of 1,000 parts per million (ppm) of fluoride, unless a qualified dentist recommends the use of family toothpaste containing 1,350ppm to 1,500ppm of fluoride. (Source: NHS).

Children 3 to 6 Years

Brush under adult supervision.
Use a pea-sized amount of toothpaste.
As with babies, the NHS recommends the use of children’s fluoride toothpaste containing a minimum of 1,000ppm of fluoride, unless a qualified dentist recommends the use of family toothpaste containing 1,350ppm to 1,500ppm of fluoride.
Encourage the child to spit out excess foam after brushing.
Don’t rinse – the fluoride toothpaste will not work as well.

Children Aged 7 or More

Children aged 7 or more should now be able to brush independently. However, they should be monitored to ensure they brush each time for the full 2 minutes.
They should use a pea-sized amount of toothpaste on the brush.
Children of this age should use a family toothpaste containing 1,350ppm to 1,500ppm of fluoride.
The child should spit out excess foam after brushing but, as with younger children, not rinse.

Supervising

When brushing a baby or infant’s teeth, one of the best approaches is to sit them on your knee (taller/older children can stand), in front of a mirror so that you can both see their reflection. Tilt their head slightly backwards onto your chest and face them away from you towards the mirror. In this way, they can see how you are brushing their teeth and learn from your example. Small circular movements on their teeth and gums are a good way to start when they’re very young. Ensure all areas of their teeth and adjacent gums are brushed. By using the mirror approach, they will see how best to brush teeth and pick up the idea as they grow older. Once they learn to brush teeth independently, however, ensure you continue to supervise them. In this way, you can ensure that they remain thorough and spend a minimum of 2 minutes brushing each time. Guide children’s hands if they need help. An egg timer is useful as a reminder and may also be used to inject a bit of fun into the activity.

Safety tip: Never let children run around when they’re brushing their teeth; it’s dangerous and they could potentially end up hurt.

Little Acorns Nursery, Padiham

Please get in touch if you’d like to explore a possible nursery place for your child at Little Acorns Nursery in Padiham, Lancashire. As well as providing for Padiham families, we’re located conveniently close to those in Hapton, Rose Grove, Burnley, Altham, Huncoat, Read, Simonstone, Sabden, Higham and Wood End. We provide a first-class early years education and high-quality weekday childcare for families. We also support many of the free childcare schemes funded by the UK Government, making it much more affordable for Lancashire families.

Interested in a nursery place for your child? Choose a button to start your child’s journey at Little Acorns Nursery:

Apply for a Place Book a Tour Message Us 01282 680 822

31 December 2024/by Mark

Children, Early Years Education, Education, Parenting, Preschoolers, Primary School, Reception Year, Under-fives

The Essential Guide to Primary School Applications

Parents of 3- and 4-year-olds have limited time in which to apply for a school place for their child. Primary school applications need to be received by mid-January at the latest, which is earlier than for secondary schools. And, for parents who are deferring a child’s school start until they’re five, don’t be fooled into thinking you have more time for your application — you simply don’t! In today’s Essential Guide to Primary School Applications we outline the key dates, rules, and advice to help parents submit applications on time, increase chances of receiving an offer for a preferred school, and avoid disappointment.

When do Parents Need to Apply for a Primary School Place?

The standard deadline for primary school applications is the 15th of January. Primary school applications need to be submitted while the child is three or, at the very latest, has very recently had their fourth birthday. Because applications received on time are processed first, failure to apply by the due date means a child is less likely to receive an offer for their preferred school — places may no longer be available that late in the day.

The application deadline itself is January the 15th at 11:59 pm. Note, however, that it’s usually different for ‘in-year’ applications* where a child may, for example, have moved into a new area mid-year. At the time of writing (late November), there is therefore only limited time remaining for applications, so time is of the essence if your child is three or recently became four.

What if I Want My Child to Start Primary School at the Age of 5 Not 4?

Most children in England begin Primary School when they’re four. However, from a legal standpoint, children can defer starting school to when they reach Compulsory School Age which, in essence, arrives on or soon after they have turned five. It’s a personal choice and perhaps more of a conundrum for summer-born children whose birthdays fall between the beginning of April and the end of August. These children would either be amongst the youngest in the year if they begin school at the age of four, or amongst the oldest if they begin at the age of five. What’s more, it is not be up to the parents whether a child deferring until five goes into Reception Year with mostly younger children — or info Year One with mostly older children. That decision is made by local authorities and schools although the child’s abilities, needs, and best interests will be important decision factors.

Whether they start school at 4 or 5, a child’s Primary School Application must be submitted while the child is three or, at the very latest, has just reached the age of four.

That’s important, so don’t be caught out if you are deferring your child’s start until they’re five.

*In-year applications

This guide focuses primarily on primary school applications made for children starting at the beginning of the standard academic year (in the September term). Applications made outside of the standard timing are also possible, for example, for a family that moves house in the middle of an academic year. For such scenarios, it’s important to realise that some of the rules and timings are different. Deadlines, for example, may not be the same and alternative or even additional applications forms may be required in some circumstances. It’s similar for those who missed the mid-January application deadline as such families will need to fill in and submit a late application form. Priority for places, however, is usually given to those who applied on time by the standard mid-January deadline. More details about late and in-year applications will be available on your local authority website.

How to Select Your Preferred Primary School(s)

Choosing a primary school for a child is an important step for any family. Somewhere conveniently close makes sense — and indeed is one of the most important criteria for offers, as we’ll see later. After all, you don’t want to be late dropping off or picking up your child because you’re stuck in a traffic jam miles away. Somewhere local will also mean your child has friends who are conveniently close by, which is another good thing. And, of course, if your child’s sibling already attends, then that school would usually be a natural first choice, assuming you’re happy with it of course.

Parents/carers will also want to gather feedback from parents whose children already attend schools on their radar. Ofsted reports and performance tables are also a gold mine of information. Online ratings and reviews by previous or existing parents are also useful indicators to consider.

One of the best things a parent can do, however, is visit the contending schools, particularly if the child accompanies them. Open days/evenings are great but some schools also accept appointments. Ask teachers and heads any questions to learn as much as you can about each school. Ask yourself questions too. How does the school feel? Does it have a good atmosphere? Can you see your child fitting in? What did your child think about it on their visit? Does the school have all the kinds of facilities and resources that you’d like your child to have access to? Do they cater well if your child has SEND if applicable? Is the school too small, too large, or just right? How do children do there? All these questions need consideration and a visit will help answer them.

You will need to select three schools on your application, so ensure you research and visit several so that you can make an informed choice. It’s important to get it right, particularly for the sake of your child.

A hugely worthwhile measure for parents to take is to check whether schools on their shortlist are likely to be oversubscribed. Data from previous years is likely to be a good indicator of this and usually such information can be supplied by local authority admissions staff and/or schools themselves. If a school on a parent’s shortlist has a history of being oversubscribed, then it’s very wise to ensure that at least one other school on a parent’s shortlist is not. Otherwise, if three oversubscribed schools are marked down on the application form it’s likely to lead to disappointment and an offer from a school that has perhaps not even been considered.

Although parents can specify their three preferred schools, in order of preference, the final decision is not theirs. The final offer is decided for their child by local admission authorities in tandem with schools although the parent’s list of preferred schools, and the order they’re listed, will be taken into consideration.

What are the Eligibility Criteria?

Although the eligibility criteria for school places are not identical for all locations, there are several factors that are fairly standard. While the eligibility criteria for school places are not identical for all locations, there are several factors that are fairly standard. For example, schools closest to a child and those where a sibling already attends are usually favoured. Children may also be more likely to be accepted at a school where a parent has worked for 2 or more years. Church/faith schools are often also more likely to accept children who share the same faith. Additional school admissions criteria can be found here.

How to Apply for a Primary School Place

Once you’ve decided on your three preferred primary schools and your preferred order, make your application by the mid-January deadline. This is done through your local authority website although be aware that some ‘non-catchment’ schools, including faith-based schools (e.g. Catholic) and academies may require a supplementary form to be submitted. Summer-born children deferring until five may also need to submit an extra form and submit it by the same January deadline. Research will be required on the part of the parent/carer in such scenarios to ensure all application requirements are met.

Include a Valid Email Address

Include a valid email address on your application. By so doing, you’ll receive your offer as quickly as possible. Those not including one will be notified by post, so are likely to receive their offer several days later than they might otherwise have done.

How to Accept an Offer

The generally-accepted wisdom is to accept whichever school is offered. That’s so that your child has a school place to fall back on even if you appeal, change your mind, or put your child on the waiting list for a different school (all are options). Accepting an offer will not adversely affect an appeal, by the way, so there’s nothing to lose by ensuring your child has the original offer secured.

Offers need to be accepted by the acceptance deadline specified on the offer communication received. Failure to accept in time may mean the offered place is withdrawn and given to a different child, so this is important.

When Do Parents Receive Their Child’s School Offer?

Primary school offers for those who applied on time are released on the 16th of April or the next working day if that falls on a weekend or public holiday. Primary school offers are first sent, by email, to those who applied on time and included a valid email address on their forms. Offers to such families are released on the morning of the 16th of April or the next working day if that happens to fall on a weekend or public holiday. Others who supplied an email address on their application, but who applied late in respect of the 15 January deadline, will usually receive offers via email the same day, although later on. Others, without an email address specified on applications, will receive offers via Second Class post, so are likely to see offers later than the 16th of April. Some local authorities, however, allow people to log onto a portal to view offers from that date. Note that those applying ‘in-year’ receive offers on different dates to the standard ones specified above.

The good news is that most families receive an offer for a school that they listed as one of their three preferences. Only a tiny percentage do not and, indeed, in 2023 that percentage was just 1.4%. Local authorities have a duty in such cases to offer a child an alternative school place. This is usually the closest one with an available space.

Little Acorns Nursery: Helping Under-5s Become School-Ready in Padiham

Little Acorns Nursery is a wonderful childcare service in Padiham, and convenient for families nearby in Hapton, Rose Grove, Burnley, Altham, Huncoat, Read, Simonstone, Sabden, Higham and Wood End in Lancashire. At Little Acorns Nursery, babies, toddlers and children under five are looked after, valued, loved and given a fabulous early years education. Our learning and development programme is designed to bring out the best in them. We nurture them in every area of the curriculum and their personal development so that, by the time they leave us, they’re the best version of themselves and school-ready. In this way, they’ll hit the ground running when they begin primary school and are set up for success.

To learn more about a place for your child at Little Acorns Nursery in Padiham, get in touch today, apply for a place, or arrange for a visit to see this wonderful setting for yourself. We’ll be pleased to welcome you and your little one to the Little Acorns family.

Apply for a Place Book a Tour Message Us 01282 680 822

30 November 2024/by Mark

Babies, BB12, Childcare, Childcare Funding, Children, Early Years Education, Lancashire, Learning & Development, Nurseries, Nursery, Padiham, Preschoolers, Preschools, Toddlers, Under-fives

Free Childcare for Working Families in Padiham (Including for Babies 9m+)

Today, we remind Padiham families that Little Acorns Nursery supports the new — free — childcare scheme for eligible children including babies as young as just 9 months of age. Although it’s available only to eligible working families, the bar to entry is fairly low. The childcare funding is therefore attainable for many families. This free childcare is not just limited to babies either and, what’s more, it’s due to become even more generous from September 2025. In our guide below we’ll outline who is eligible, how much childcare funding they can access, how many childcare hours that equates to, and what the eligibility criteria are. If you’re the parent of a baby, toddler, or child up to three years old, this is for you.

Background to the New Childcare Funding

The newly funded places are a real game-changer for working families and stem from Government plans announced back in March 2023’s Spring Budget. The idea was to make it easier for women, in particular, to rejoin the workforce following the birth of a child as well as helping the economy and the child being looked after. As we’ve reported before, beginning early years education early in a child’s life results in many advantages including better outcomes far into the individual’s life.

The funding promised in 2023 has now finally kicked in, having commenced at the start of September this year (2024). The free childcare funding scheme is therefore now active, including for nursery places at Little Acorns in Padiham.

How Much Free Childcare Can Eligible Babies & Children Access?

For those working families who are eligible, the scheme provides 570 hours per year of free childcare to children aged from 9 months to 3 years. This is normally taken as 15 hours per week for 38 weeks, usually aligning with the standard educational term-time weeks for school timetables. That said, it may be possible to stretch the hours over more weeks of the year if your childcare provider is able to accommodate such flexibility.

What’s This About it Being Even More Generous from September 2025?

As we mentioned in our introduction, the free childcare allowance for eligible babies (9m+) and children up to the age of 3 is set to increase next year. From September 2025, the free childcare allowance will double from 570 hours to 1140. Again, that will normally be taken over 38 term-time weeks, equating to 30 hours per week, but childcare settings may be able to stretch the hours in some cases. So, for example, you could utilise fewer hours per week but over more weeks of the year if your childcare provider is able to accommodate it.

Who is Eligible for the Childcare Funding for Children 9m-3y?

There are four main criteria for this specific type of childcare funding. We’ll try to simplify the eligibility criteria for you. Whether it’s for a baby aged 9 months, a toddler of 1 or 2, or a child aged 3 or 4, there are essentially four main criteria for this specific type of childcare funding:

It is intended for children of working families;
Parents (or a parent and their partner) cannot be earning more than £100,000 per annum;
They should expect to earn the National Minimum Wage (or Living Wage) or more for the equivalent of at least 16 hours each, per week, during the next quarter;
They must have a National Insurance number.

The four factors above are a guide to the main criteria. That said, there are several other rules, exceptions or caveats to check for in specific situations. For example, these may affect foster carers, the self-employed, people beginning new jobs, those earning irregular incomes, people on sick leave or annual leave, unemployed people who receive certain benefits, and others. Full details of eligibility requirements for working families can be found here.

What Happens Once Children Reach the Age of Three?

Well, it’s good news. It’s already the case that all 3 and 4-year-olds living in England are eligible to receive 570 hours (15 per week) of free childcare anyway. That’s available under what’s known as ‘Universal Entitlement’, a Government childcare funding scheme that’s been around for some time. What’s more, those working families that are eligible for the ‘new’ free childcare for children aged 9 months to 3 years are also likely to be eligible for a top-up of their child’s Universal Entitlement once they reach the ages of 3 and 4. In those cases, they’ll be entitled to 30 hours per week over 38 weeks (or however the 1140 free hours are spread out). That’s because the eligibility criteria are the same (see section above).

Combined, This Represents Free Childcare Hours from 9 Months to School Age for Eligible Children

It all means that eligible children of working families may be able to take free childcare hours right from the age of 9 months until they’re 4, at which age they will usually leave nursery/preschool to begin Primary School. This combination of free childcare schemes, which are open to so many, should really help families financially and career-wise. It should also help the child thrive, have better life outcomes, and benefit the economy as a whole.

Check Your Eligibility & Start Your Application

Simply check how many free childcare hours your child may be eligible for here and then, if eligible, you can begin your application here.

Applications are accepted for babies once they reach the age of 23 weeks (just over 5 months of age). If successful, you’ll receive a code which will be required by your childcare provider. Note that you’ll also need to confirm your eligibility once every quarter in order to continue receiving the free childcare hours.

Free & Fee-Paying Childcare at Little Acorns Nursery, Padiham

At Little Acorns Nursery in Padiham, we support fee-paying childcare as well as a whole range of government-funded childcare schemes. What’s common to all nursery placements, though, is that children receive love, care and respect in a home-from-home environment that brings out the best in each one of them. We nurture every child so they become the very best version of themselves in readiness for primary school and a successful future.

We are a high-quality nursery and preschool in Padiham, also located conveniently close to families in Hapton, Rose Grove, Burnley, Altham, Huncoat, Read, Simonstone, Sabden, Higham and Wood End. Get in touch today to request a nursery place for your child, arrange a guided tour, or ask any questions — we’ll be happy to help:

Apply for a Place Book a Tour Message Us 01282 680 822

31 October 2024/by Mark

The Incredible Power of Reading With Children Under 5

Activities for Children, Children, Early Years Education, Learning & Development, Parenting, Preschoolers, Reading, Toddlers, Under-fives

The Incredible Power of Reading With Under-5s

Parents and caregivers have a simple yet incredibly powerful tool at their disposal to significantly boost the education of children under five: reading with them. In study after study, this simple activity has been shown to transform a child’s early years of education, giving children short-, medium-, and long-term benefits that even extend into adulthood. With that in mind, we take a look today at the many benefits and incredible power of reading with children, especially those under five.

Read with children, not just to them for the most positive impact.

That’s important as the most profound benefits to children come about when you read with them rather than just to them. It’s a case of involving and immersing them in the reading, which can be done in a variety of different ways to make it more interactive. We’ll explain more about how parents can do that later in this article*. First, though, let’s take a look at the benefits of reading with under-fives.

What Are Some of the Benefits of Reading With Your Child?

It turns out that reading with little ones punches well above its weight when it comes to enhancing young lives. In a nutshell, some of the key benefits of reading with children include significantly improved cognitive, emotional, and social development. Indeed, some of the benefits of reading with children are simply transformational. Even social mobility is improved because of reading with children in some circumstances. Let’s take a closer look.

Cognitive Benefits

When you read to them, the cognitive benefits to children are profound and this is backed-up by findings from multiple studies. The benefits include improved memory, problem-solving, logical thinking, and memory skills. Even children’s attention spans are seen to improve when parents regularly read with them.

A Long-Term Academic Performance Boost

What’s more, many of these benefits are long-term ones and this means they positively impact children’s academic performance throughout all the school years and even beyond. This results in better grades, a wider choice of further education choices later on, and even career and income advantages once they become adults. That’s all accomplished simply through the act of reading with children in their early years — it’s incredible!

Reading with children in their early years encourages good reading habits and a natural love for learning.

A Social Mobility Boost

You can see why the above benefits can go on to improve the quality of lives once children reach adulthood. Indeed, studies have produced some remarkable findings in that regard. Several have found a strong link between children regularly reading with adults in the early years and improved socio-economic mobility later in life. This boost is even more prominent in children from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. So, reading with children is a great way to level the playing field and improve outcomes right into adulthood.

Emotional Benefits

Books are great vehicles through which children can glimpse and immerse themselves into different situations. For example, through reading books, they’ll learn about different characters, their successes and perhaps their struggles. As such, they’ll learn to see things from the point of view of others. This is a great way to nurture emotional intelligence in children, boost feelings of empathy, and better understand the feelings of others. This will be particularly important for their interactions with peers, friends and surrounding adults.

Supercharged Creativity

Books are a wonderful conduit to greater creativity in children. When adults read with young children and older children read solo, it opens up whole new worlds, situations, and characters to them. Through stimulation of their imaginations, they can see new possibilities, be inspired to create in different ways within their own writing and arts, and significantly boost creative skills.

Enhanced Language Skills

One of the biggest winners when reading with children is the boost to their language skills. Indeed, a 4-decade study (∞) saw a massive 20% boost in such skills when adults regularly read with them. For the children studied, the average age was just 3 years and 3 months, meaning their language skills were boosted by the equivalent of about 8 months. That’s an enormous boost at such a young age. Receptive language (understanding), expressive language (verbal use of grammar and vocabulary), children’s understanding of word structure, and pre-reading skills especially benefited from early years reading with a parent or adult caregiver. Such skills lay wonderful foundations that will help children excel across multiple areas of education.

And Much More

The benefits outlined above are really just the tip of the iceberg. As well as these, additional benefits include allowing a closer bond to develop between the parent/caregiver and the child, greater comprehension of the world, a wider knowledge of multiple subjects, better self-expression, and social skills that are enhanced because of children’s improved vocabulary, understanding, and knowledge.

* How to Involve Under-5s When Reading

The best results from reading with children will come when you make it interactive, engaging and fun to ensure they are involved. If children are to get the most from reading, it’s important to read with them. That’s all about making it interactive, engaging and fun to ensure children are involved. There are a number of ways to accomplish this and doing so will be the key to them gaining the most benefit from the activity.

Bring the storyline to life by being animated when you read to under-fives. Gesticulate, speed up or slow down your reading to reflect what’s going on in the text and to give life to the story. Give characters different voices, and try accents and different tones to really bring characters and storylines to life. Use different volumes as appropriate to the story unfolding, whisper to give tension, shout when a character shouts, and make the story seem as real as possible. This will make the reading on your part, and the story from the child’s point of view, more fun. It’ll draw and retain children’s interest and engagement, so they immerse themselves and really listen.
Encourage your child’s interaction. Let them exclaim or answer characters, and ask them what they think may happen next, or what they might have done in that situation.
Whether the book is fiction or non-fiction, encourage questions; it’s a great way for children to learn.

By making reading more engaging, it will help improve comprehension, boost critical thinking skills, and stimulate children’s creativity.

As you can see, the benefits of reading with children in their early years are truly profound. Through reading, children are learning constantly, improving themselves in multiple areas, and setting amazing foundations for present and future success.

High-Quality Childcare & Early Years Education in Padiham

At Little Acorns Nursery in Padiham, Lancashire, we fully understand the importance of reading with children. It’s therefore one of the many tools used in the early years education of children under our care. At Little Acorns, we tailor the learning and development of every child to bring out the best in them across all areas of the curriculum. If you are a parent looking for a Padiham nursery for your child or a childcare nursery near Hapton, Rose Grove, Burnley, Altham, Huncoat, Read, Simonstone, Sabden, Higham or Wood End, consider Little Acorns Nursery for your little one. To explore the possibilities, get in touch and we’ll be happy to answer questions, show you and your child around, or explain the next steps towards registering for a place.

Apply for a Place Book a Tour Message Us 01282 680 822

30 July 2024/by Mark

World's Biggest Garden Wildlife Survey – & Children Can Play Their Part

Activities for Children, Birds, Children, Early Years Education, Learning & Development, Nature, Nature Activities, Preschoolers, Toddlers, Under-fives

World’s Biggest Wildlife Survey – & Children Can Play Their Part

Children, adults, and whole families are gearing up to take part in the world’s biggest garden wildlife survey in early 2025. Organised by the RSPB (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds), the Big Garden Birdwatch requires just one hour of your time during late January 2025. It’s free, hugely worthwhile, and will benefit nature, conservation, and children themselves. So, why not set a date for your diary and take part? Today’s post explains how to enrol, what to do, and how it will benefit all parties involved.

Why The Big Garden Birdwatch is So Important

The Big Garden Birdwatch is designed to keep tabs on wild bird populations in the UK. It’s a survey that’s been undertaken across the UK every year since 1979 and allows the RSPB and conservationists to monitor whether any bird species are under threat. Sadly, survey findings in recent years have found this to be the case, with overall bird populations having declined by a staggering 38 million in the last 60 years. Song thrushes alone, for example, have declined by 80% and even the UK’s most populous bird species, House Sparrows, have declined by 57% since the survey began.

By continuing with the survey each year, insights will be gained as to whether populations are growing or shrinking over time. Only by watching such trends can conservationists decide what needs to be done to help reverse any decline and help birds thrive once again. Declines in bird populations may even be an indicator of wider problems within nature, for example, because of chemical use in crop farming or even inappropriate Government environmental policy. So, this is important and every one of us can easily play our part.

More Reasons for Families & Children to Take Part

The Big Garden Birdwatch is also a great way to get children outdoors, close to nature, and to introduce them to the concept of nature conservation. By taking part, children can contribute to bird conservation as well as directly benefit in a number of ways themselves. For example, they can learn to identify different types of birds, educate themselves about these wild creatures and the natural environment, enjoy the fresh air while escaping from electronic screens, and enjoy all the many benefits that nature holds for children. Nature and the Great Outdoors are hugely beneficial to children, whether physically, spiritually, cognitively, educationally, or simply in terms of improving overall well-being. Nature benefits children in an incredible number of ways — follow the bold link for more details.

How to Enrol in the Big Garden Birdwatch 2025

Once enrolled, you'll then be sent a free guide with visual reference of the birds to look out for during your survey. Enrolling your child or family into 2025’s Big Garden Birdwatch is easy and free. Simply register here and you’ll then be sent a free guide including visual reference of the birds you may see during your survey. Whether you receive a digital guide or a printed one will depend on your preferences selected when signing up. The guide will tell you/your child exactly what to do, but we also give you a brief flavour below.

How to Take Part in the Big Garden Birdwatch Survey

In brief, here’s what you, your child, or your family will need to do sometime during the period starting on Friday the 24th of January 2025 and ending on Sunday the 26th:

Decide on a natural spot where you’ll undertake your hour’s birdwatch. Your garden, local park or even a balcony will do fine.
Taking care to stay unseen and unheard by visiting birds, keep a tally of the maximum number of birds of each species that have actually landed at any one time on your survey patch during the hour. Don’t count any that haven’t landed.
Between the 26th of January and no later than the 23rd of February 2025, you can report your findings online at www.rspb.org.uk/birdwatch
Alternatively, if you are using the physical survey form from the RSPB’s printed guide, post it to FREEPOST RSPB BIG GARDEN BIRDWATCH to arrive by the 18th of February 2025.

By contributing to this crucial conservation project, children will be doing their bit for our little feathered friends – and the planet. What’s more, it’s great fun!

Learn more about how to take part in the Big Garden Birdwatch survey here.

Enjoying Birdwatching?

If you find that your children enjoy the activity, please encourage them to download our own Bird Identifier poster, which features 40 British birds that they can look out for during the year. It’s free and more information about our free bird poster is available here.

Nature & Children Go Hand-in-Hand at Little Acorns Nursery, Padiham

We love nature at Little Acorns Nursery in Padiham! Here, children can play outdoors in our wonderful garden, which features its own wild area, planting area and even a mud kitchen. We know how good nature and the outdoors are for children, particularly in their early years, so actively encourage them to take part and benefit from everything they offer.

To enrol your baby, toddler or preschooler at Little Acorns Nursery in Padiham, please get in touch using an option below. We look forward to receiving your call, nursery application, message or tour request whenever you’re ready.

Apply for a Place Book a Tour Message Us 01282 680 822

We are a high-quality nursery and preschool in Padiham, Lancashire, BB12. As such, we may also suit families who require outstanding childcare services near Hapton, Rose Grove, Burnley, Altham, Huncoat, Read, Simonstone, Sabden, Higham and Wood End. We support various free childcare schemes too, making childcare services more affordable for eligible families.

29 December 2023/by Mark

Activities for Children, Activities for Kids, Children, Early Years Education, Education, Learning & Development, Minibeasts, Nature, Nature Activities, Outdoor Play, Padiham, Preschoolers, Toddlers, Under-fives

Minibeast Spotting for Kids (with Free Poster!)

Today’s Minibeast Spotting activity completes a trio of nature-based posts that each include a free poster. Featuring 30 different minibeasts for children to find and identify, it’s designed to encourage children to get outdoors, learn about the different creatures nearby, explore, and benefit from everything that nature has to offer. With previous free posters covering bird spotting and butterfly spotting activities, these nature-themed activities will give children a really good insight into some of the interesting and exciting creatures they can see in their gardens and neighbourhoods if they simply take some time to look.

Children Love Minibeasts!

Children will love spotting minibeasts, discovering different creatures and learning to name each of them. They will soon learn that creatures like ladybirds, hoverflies, caterpillars, butterflies and bees are simply adorable. Children are also likely to be fascinated by creatures like ants, which are incredibly clever and well-organised, and minibeasts like beetles, millipedes and worms. Such creatures are so different to humans and gently observing them can bring real insights to children about our natural world from the viewpoint of different creatures. Indeed, nature is a huge educator and holds immense benefits to children. We’ll write a separate, more detailed, post about those benefits in the future. Suffice it to say, though, that nature-based activities will help children emotionally, spiritually and physically as well as help them learn new facts, information and skills. Without further delay, let’s now take a look at the free poster preview below and learn how to download it for your child.

Minibeast Spotting Poster (Preview):

How to Download the Free Minibeasts Poster

The poster is supplied as a 3MB downloadable file, in PDF format. That means you’ll need Acrobat Reader on your device to view and open it. Most devices will already have that installed but, if not, don’t worry — Acrobat Reader is also available for free, here. To download the poster itself, simply click the preview image above, or download the free poster via this link. Whether left-clicking or right-clicking is best will depend upon your device’s settings so, if in doubt, try either to see which one prompts you to save the file. Once saved, it can be opened, viewed, and printed out from Acrobat Reader. Print at A3 in high quality on your best printer paper for best results, or ‘scale to fit’ to fit your paper if it’s A4. You/your child can also view the poster on screen, for example on a tablet, smartphone or desktop screen, and zoom in for all the lovely detail.

The UK is home to approximately 25,000 different kinds of minibeast! Many are sadly in steep decline¹, so it’s important to raise awareness and encourage interest, including in the very young.

^{1. According to the State of Nature report for 2023, “Invertebrates such as insects, spiders and millipedes have been found, on average, in 13% fewer places now than in 1970.”}

Tips for Spotting Minibeasts

Minibeasts can be lurking almost anywhere outdoors, so children can search and find them virtually wherever they live. Below are a few of the most popular places minibeasts are likely to be found:

On and around the leaves of plants (after all, those are home to many critters);
On and in flowers, because they’re attracted to the nectar, which is a food source for many;
Under rocks, stones, flower pots and suchlike, which may be their home (N.B. be gentle when lifting and replacing such things, so the creatures are not hurt);
On and in growing fruit and vegetables, which may be a food source for them;
Around the base of plants, grass and lawns, where they may be sheltering from predators;
On or under soil, which may be their home;
On and in rotting logs and fallen branches;
And finally — the best place of all for some minibeasts — in compost heaps! They love the rotting organic matter but, again, take care not to hurt them by being gentle and disturbing their habitat as little as possible.

Enjoy, Be Safe & Be Gentle!

Spending time out in nature and searching for its creatures is great fun, but great care needs to be taken:

For the sake of child safety and well-being, children should always be accompanied by a supervising adult — particularly for the very young.
Adults should also teach children how to be vigilant about the potential dangers and hazards associated with the outdoors.
Adults should teach children about gentleness and empathy around other creatures, however small. Minibeasts are fragile and powerless against the comparative might of humans, but each is an individual in their own right. It’s therefore kind to teach children about compassion for other beings and the need to treat them with huge care and empathy.

Why This Activity is More Important Than You Might Think

Lastly, though, have fun and take time to ensure children learn about nature and all its flora and fauna. Nature teaches children so much about the world and indeed, spending time in the natural world also teaches children about themselves and their place in the world. It may even lead to a lifelong passion for nature and an interest in issues like ecology, global warming, restoring habitat loss and protecting creatures in danger of extinction. Don’t forget that our children will one day become the new stewards of our planet. And, when you bear in mind how important pollinators are for food production and how many of them are in steep decline, a deep interest in the natural world has never been more important.

“When the first #StateofNature report was released in 2013, 1 in 10 of our species were threatened with extinction. Today, it is 1 in 6 species. Rapid nature loss is happening NOW, all around us.” (Wildlife Trust)

Children Love Nature at Little Acorns Nursery in Padiham!

Our childcare professionals know just how important nature and outdoor play is to children, so we ensure they have plenty of opportunities to experience both at Little Acorns Nursery in Padiham. It’s also why we will ensure we publish articles and guides relating to outdoor play and nature here on the Little Acorns blog. Indeed, it’s a treasure trove of useful information, on a wide variety of topics, for parents of babies, toddlers and under-fives!

If you require the highest quality weekday childcare and an outstanding early years education for your little one, why not consider Little Acorns Nursery in Padiham, Lancashire? The setting offers a warm, inviting and nurturing home-from-home for babies, toddlers and preschoolers and really brings out the best in every child. What’s more, we support all the Government’s childcare funding schemes for eligible families. These include, for example, free childcare hours for 2-year-olds and up to 30 free hours per week for 3 and 4-year-olds.

To register your child for a nursery/preschool place, book a guided tour, or find out more, please get in touch using one of the following options:

Apply for a Place Book a Tour Message Us 01282 680 822

As well as being located in Padiham, Lancashire (BB12), Little Acorns Nursery may also suit those living or working nearby in Hapton, Rose Grove, Burnley, Altham, Huncoat, Read, Simonstone, Sabden, Higham and Wood End.

28 September 2023/by Mark

Babies, Childcare, Childcare Funding, Children, Early Years Education, Education, Nurseries, Nursery, Nursery News, Padiham, Pre-School, Preschoolers, Preschools, Toddlers, Under-fives, Universal Credit Childcare Support

Free Childcare Through Universal Credit (Rough Guide)

In today’s post, the third in our series of guides about Government childcare funding schemes, we look at free childcare funding available through Universal Credit. This is particularly timely because the scheme becomes significantly more generous from the 28th of June 2023, so eligible families will start benefitting just as today’s guide goes live. The changes come into effect following commitments made by the Chancellor of the Exchequer in his Spring Budget back in March. They make childcare funding through Universal Credit more generous and easier to fund. We will explain what we mean by that, as well as outline the facts, figures and eligibility requirements for the scheme, in our guide to Free Childcare Through Universal Credit below.

How Much Free Childcare Can You Get Through Universal Credit?

If you are eligible for free childcare through Universal Credit, here’s what you can claim from 28th June 2023:

The maximum families can claim through Universal Credit Childcare Support is 85% of eligible childcare costs, up to the maximums outlined below.
You can get up to £951 in free childcare each month for one child.
You can receive up to £1,630 in free childcare each month for two or more children.
That’s an increase of almost 50% from the previous maximums before late June 2023.
The maximums outlined above will increase in line with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) annually until 2027/28 according to the Department of Work & Pensions (DWP).
You may also be able to claim for childcare costs during your child’s nursery settling-in period or for childcare while you travel to work if they’re deemed by DWP to be ‘reasonable’ in helping you to get back into work.
Another major improvement is that the funding through this scheme may be partly pre-funded by the Government in some circumstances, rather than families having to find the significant sums, and then claim them back retrospectively. We’ll explain more about that later in this guide.

N.B. If you already have some of your childcare fees paid by your employer through childcare vouchers, you can only claim the balance of childcare fees that you are responsible for funding — not the part already covered by the vouchers. Similarly, if you already have some of your childcare fees covered through free childcare hours for 2-year-olds or free childcare hours for 3- and 4-year-olds, you can only claim for any additional hours, if eligible, that you would otherwise have to pay.

Why is the Government Helping in This Way?

“These changes will help thousands of parents progress their career without compromising the quality of the care that their children receive.” — Mel Stride, Secretary of State for Work & Pensions.

The free childcare funding through Universal Credit is aimed at helping low-income families and those wishing to either return to work or significantly extend existing working hours. This will help children, parents/caregivers — especially women — and will also boost the economy as more people move back into work. The Government is also aware that there are huge benefits associated with a good early years education, particularly when it’s started young. Those benefits extend to a huge range of things including the children’s life outcomes, improved careers, increased earning potential and multiple benefits to society in general. Follow the bold link for more details.

“By helping more parents to re-enter and progress in work, we will be able to cut inactivity and help grow the economy.” — Mel Stride, Secretary of State for Work & Pensions.

Are You Eligible for Free Childcare through Universal Credit?

As mentioned above, the changes to childcare support through Universal Credit are designed specifically to help low-income families, those wishing to return to work, or people wishing to extend existing hours. With that in mind, the eligibility requirements for childcare funding through Universal Credit are as follows:

Firstly families must, of course, be claiming Universal Credit in order to access the childcare element of it. You can learn more about who is eligible for Universal Credit here. Generally speaking, though, Universal Credit is mostly intended for UK people aged over 18 but below State Pension age who are on low incomes, need help with living costs, and have savings/investments of no more than £16k. Your partner’s circumstances, if you live with them, may affect your eligibility for Universal Credit. There are other exceptions and caveats, too, so follow the bold link above for more information about eligibility for Universal Credit itself.
With regard to support for childcare funding available through Universal Credit, you and your partner, if you have one, need to be working in a paid job — or have received and accepted a job offer for paid work starting within the next month. That’s with the exception of those unable to work through disability, bad health, or temporary absence from the household e.g. through hospitalisation or going into residential care. Your child may also still be eligible if your partner has to care for a severely disabled person for whom they are eligible to receive Carer’s Allowance.
You must live in the UK and the child(ren) for whom you are claiming childcare costs needs to be dependent upon you.
You usually need to be over 18, although there are some circumstances where those aged 16 or 17 may be able to claim.
You can claim against childcare costs for dependent child(ren) until the August following their 16th birthday.
The childcare provider may be a nursery, preschool, childminder, nanny, or even a breakfast, after-school or holiday club — so long as they’re properly registered in the UK. Generally, that means that they need to be registered with Ofsted if the childcare is in England, or their equivalent if it’s in Scotland or Wales. You’ll need to provide their registration number when applying for the childcare funding.
If your circumstances change, it could affect your eligibility — potentially for both Universal Credit itself and the Childcare Support element of it. So, confirm straight away if, for example, you, or your partner if you have one, earn more than originally stated, lose your job, or stop work for some other reason.

Can You Get Childcare Costs Paid Upfront?

Usually, you will need to pay for childcare costs first and then reclaim them through your Universal Credit childcare support account. However, there are some circumstances where you may be able to get some of your childcare costs paid upfront through the scheme. This recent change is designed to help families essentially with cash flow so that a major barrier to working is removed. That, in turn, will also help the economy.

Funding for childcare upfront may be possible in the following circumstances:

When parents are starting new paid work.
In the month preceding the start of the new job.
In the month after the end of employment, to help continue childcare when switching between jobs.
When parents are significantly increasing their working hours, for example when moving from part-time to full-time employment.

If any of the above scenarios apply, families can speak to their work coach (available through their Universal Credit account) about something called a Flexible Support Fund. If not eligible for that, another potential option is a Budgeting Advance although the latter needs to be repaid.

N.B. Be mindful of keeping the Department for Work and Pensions (‘DWP’) informed in a timely manner in all cases, otherwise you could miss out.

How to Apply for Universal Credit Childcare Support

To apply for Universal Credit payments, create a Universal Credit account here or sign into your account here if you already have one. If you live with a partner, they will also need to have an account and the two must be linked together before you will be able to claim.

N.B. Before applying for the first time, ensure you first read about checks and other useful information you should be aware of here. The telephone number for the Universal Credit Helpline at 0800 328 5644 may also be useful to note.

Once accepted into the scheme, you will need to regularly report and provide evidence of your childcare costs through your account. Remember to claim quickly too otherwise, if you leave claims longer than 2 months, they may not be reimbursed.

More Information

Additional guidance on childcare costs through Universal Credit is available here.

Already Claiming for Childcare Costs through Another Scheme?

You can’t claim through the Tax-Free Childcare Scheme if you are claiming for childcare through Universal Credit. However, you can check which other schemes you may be able to claim in tandem here.

More Improvements to Childcare Funding are Coming Soon

Substantial additional improvements to childcare funding are also in the pipeline following the Spring Budget 2023 announcements. However, we’ll cover those alternative schemes separately here in due course. Just to whet your appetite, though, they include plans to gradually extend free childcare support to eligible children aged from just 9 months from September 2024. So, watch this space!

Little Acorns Nursery & Preschool, Padiham, Lancashire

At Little Acorns Nursery in Padiham, we support all the Government childcare funding schemes for eligible families. We offer babies, infants, toddlers and preschoolers the very best start in life, the highest quality childcare and an unbeatable early years education. This combination will bring out the best in them and ensure they absolutely thrive from the moment they begin school around the age of five. To get started on applying for a nursery/preschool place, to arrange a free guided tour or simply to get in touch to ask a question, please select a button below:

Apply for a Place Book a Tour Message Us 01282 680 822

Little Acorns Nursery and Preschool is located in Padiham, Lancashire. We’re also close to Hapton, Rose Grove, Burnley, Altham, Huncoat, Read, Simonstone, Sabden, Higham, and Wood End, so may also suit families requiring childcare near those locations.

30 June 2023/by Mark

If you’re a parent of a child under five, consider following Little Acorns Nursery on our social media channels and here on our blog. As well as showcasing some of the activities and events at our Padiham nursery, we’ll also publicise useful and informative guides, articles and advice about parenting, early years learning and development, and everything to do with childcare. For example, we may publish guides explaining eligibility rules for the various Government-funded schemes for free childcare, or discuss the findings of important studies into the education of under-fives. We may show images from trips the children have been on, or highlight a fun and educational activity that children under five can take part in at home. These are just a few examples, so do follow us if you’d like to be kept better informed.

Follow Our Journal

This is what we call our blog (short for ‘web log’) where we regularly publish guides and useful information for parents of children under five. The main blog page can be found here and parents can take a look at the article list and pick out any that they find interesting. They’re all carefully researched and professionally written. Articles include a series of guides and useful information for parents, covering topics like childcare funding schemes, activity ideas, health and wellbeing of babies and children under five, a Hygge explainer, and much more. We add new articles every month and will also include key happenings at the nursery. So, do bookmark this page in your browser if you’d like to keep up to date.

Follow Us on Twitter

We’re @NurseryPadiham on Twitter, so you can follow us at https://twitter.com/NurseryPadiham/

• On Twitter, we’ll tweet images and links to our useful guides for parents and interesting information about early years education, parenting, childcare funding, and much more.
• We’ll include tweets and retweets of other useful information from third parties too. For example, tweets may be about learning and development, books/reading, nature, wildlife, early play, outdoor play, the well-being and health of children, creativity, activities for kids, sport, food, literacy, numeracy, and basically anything to do with childcare or raising a child under five.

Follow Our Facebook Channel

We’re @TotsNursery on Facebook (because we took over the Adventure Tots childcare business), so you can follow us at https://www.facebook.com/totsnursery/

Our Facebook profile is jam-packed with updates and includes:

• Information about the nursery — all about us, opening times, etc;
• Facebook ratings — currently we have the highest possible 5-star rating after reviews from tens of people;
• Newsletters from the nursery, as they’re published;
• Photos and videos from the nursery;
• Useful information, guides, and links to the in-depth posts from our main blog;
• Latest updates from what’s been going on at the nursery — events, outings, and initiatives, etc;
• Comments from parents;
• Occasional competitions;
• Posts and re-posts of useful and interesting Facebook posts that we think might interest our parents/families. For example, activity ideas, games, learning and development insights, play ideas, wildlife information for families and children, etc.

Follow Us on Instagram

We’re @LittleAcornsNurseryBB12 on Instagram, so you can follow us at https://www.instagram.com/littleacornsnurserybb12/

At time of writing, our Instagram profile is pretty new, but we’ll soon be adding pictorial content including:

• Great images showing activities at the nursery/pre-school in Padiham;
• Photos of outings, outdoor play, etc;
• Photos of creative play at the nursery;
• Photos of events involving our under-fives;
• Images with links to highly interesting and useful articles and guides published for parents of under-fives on our main blog.

Follow Our Pinterest Pins

We’re also @LittleAcornsNurseryBB12 on Pinterest, so you can follow our pins and boards at https://www.pinterest.co.uk/LittleAcornsNurseryBB12/

We love Pinterest and feel it’s very underrated! Follow us on Pinterest for:

• Interesting photos, images, and videos, particularly for parents of under-fives.
• We also re-pin useful and interesting images and ideas from others who have pinned about early years play, activity ideas, learning and development, etc.
• Our own “title image pins” with links to our highly useful blog posts, articles and guides for parents, information about early years education, parenting, and more.

On our Pinterest channel, pinboards have been created for the following topics: Preschool, Nursery School Activities, Little Acorns Nursery Padiham itself, Early Years, Sensory Activities for Under 5s, Early Years Parenting, and Nature Activities for Under-Fives. We may add more and we’ll be adding more and more ‘pins’ to each category as time goes by.

Find us on Google

We appreciate that, if you’re reading this, you’ve already found us. However, if you ever need to find us again and aren’t sure where to look, we’re also on Google. Our Google business profile is here. It shows:

• Our reviews (we have a full 5-Star rating at the time of publishing this article);
• Our business details including address, opening/closing times, contact details, etc;
• Photos from the nursery and as uploaded by the public;
• An outside interactive street view;
• Links to the latest blog posts from the nursery;
• A map and directions — particularly useful if you’re visiting or working out distances and travel to/from the nursery.

Review Little Acorns Nursery, Padiham

If you’re a parent of a current child at Little Acorns Nursery in Padiham, why not write us a review? You can review us on Google (here) and review us on Facebook (here). Many thanks if so. Or, if you have any comments, please get in touch and we’ll be happy to assist you.

Little Acorns: a Nursery & Pre-School for Children Under 5 in Padiham

The highest quality childcare in Padiham, Lancashire

At Little Acorns Nursery, we give babies, toddlers, and children under 5 the very best start in life. We are a nursery and pre-school in Padiham that offers weekday childcare and a complete early years education. We’re also conveniently close for those living or working nearby in Hapton, Rose Grove, Burnley, Altham, Huncoat, Read, Simonstone, Sabden, Higham, or Wood End. Government-funded childcare places are all supported for eligible families, so do get in touch if you’d like to register your child for a childcare place, to arrange a guided tour, or ask any questions. We’re here to help.

Apply for a Place Book a Tour Message Us 01282 680 822

31 March 2023/by Mark

Babies, Childcare, Children, Early Years Education, Education, Nurseries, Nursery, Padiham, Pre-School, Pre-Schools, Preschoolers, Preschools, Toddlers, Under-fives

The Benefits of Nursery & Pre-School to Under-5s

A good nursery or pre-school is so much more than just a crèche, playgroup, kindergarten or childminding service. A nursery like ours encompasses all those things but, in addition, will enrich a child’s life in a myriad of profound and positive ways. In essence, it will give them the opportunity to become the very best version of themselves, with all the tools to absolutely thrive as they move forwards to school and even later into adulthood. Today, we take a look at just a few of the many benefits of sending a child to nursery or pre-school and how it sets optimised foundations for them and their place in the world, even impacting them positively into adulthood.

A Complete Early Years Education

As well as being somewhere that will look after children and keep them safe while parents perhaps work, a good nursery or pre-school will give children a complete early years education.

A Good Early Years Education Through the EYFS

Nurseries like Little Acorns in Padiham provide a dynamic environment where children mostly learn through different types of play and pre-planned, carefully structured activities. Much of their learning is achieved through the application of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) framework. Part of that is a wide curriculum covering all the key areas of importance for children’s learning and development in their early years. As well as giving children under five a diverse knowledge of different topics and an understanding of the world around them, the EYFS curriculum will also help them to use their imaginations, stimulate creativity, boost literacy, master early years mathematics and numeracy — and a whole lot more.

A Tailored Plan for Individual Children

Another reason why our curriculum is good for children under five is that it focuses on the individual needs and interests of each child. We recognise that every child is unique and has their own strengths, abilities, and needs. The resulting approach is therefore for early years practitioners to plan activities and experiences that are tailored to the individual child. It is in this way that each child achieves personal bests in every area of their learning and development. This is why, in our introduction, we referred to children becoming the very best version of themselves at nurseries and pre-schools like Little Acorns Nursery in Padiham.

Enhanced Cognitive Development

A good nursery or pre-school provides children with a wide and well-planned range of activities and experiences that also support their cognitive development. As well as learning comprehensively, this approach helps children to develop important skills like problem-solving, critical thinking, and creativity.

A Huge Boost to Children’s Personal Development

A good early years childcare provider like Little Acorns will also nurture every aspect of children’s personal development. Research suggests that starting childcare and a good early years education at a young age can have significant positive effects on children’s development.

Greater Independence

Nurseries and pre-schools help children to become more independent, encouraging them to make decisions, explore their environment, and try new things. Greater independence will serve them well once they’re ready to move on to primary school and beyond. Independence also helps children to develop confidence, a greater sense of self-esteem and a greater propensity to enjoy the activity of learning itself.

Enhanced Social Skills

Spending time at nursery and pre-school provides children with countless opportunities to interact with peers and to learn to socialise with others. Through doing so, they’ll develop their social skills generally, including things like learning good manners, needing to sometimes share or take turns, learning about mutual respect, and following rules.

Boosted Physical Development

Children naturally engage in more physical activities at nursery/pre-school than they might at home; for example running, skipping, hopping, jumping, climbing and fast-paced ball games with friends. Through doing so, they’ll develop their gross motor skills and improve upon balance, coordination, fitness and strength.

Natural Language Development

Early years settings like Little Acorns represent a rich language environment for children. With all the adults and other children all using a range of language and vocabulary around them, children will naturally pick up language skills and improve communication and understanding.

Nurturing of Emotional Development

Nurseries and pre-schools provide a safe and nurturing environment, enabling children to learn to express feelings and emotions more readily. This helps to support children’s emotional development, including a deeper understanding of their own feelings as well as those of others, along with better self-awareness, self-regulation, and resilience.

Support for Children with Special Educational Needs & Disabilities

Good nurseries and pre-schools like Little Acorns welcome and support children of all abilities. As part of this and whenever possible, they will create an inclusive environment for children with special educational needs or disabilities (SEND). They’ll support them in every way they can including, where possible, provision of special equipment, adapting the environment to make it more accessible, and obtaining additional funding for extra resources. They’ll even work with outside professionals, where appropriate, to develop the best ‘joined-up’ plan to support children. The result is a positive and responsive culture where children feel comfortable and valued, irrespective of ability or disability.

Preparedness for School

All of the above will really help children to develop the skills and confidence they need to absolutely thrive once they start at primary school. As well as being more able and literate from the moment they start, they’ll more easily be able to follow routines, listen to instructions, and work independently. They’ll absolutely hit the ground running with the existing knowledge, tools and abilities that they learned during their all-important early years. Indeed, those children who receive a high quality early years education have been shown to attain higher grades in their GCSEs and can be the equivalent of a year ahead by the time they reach the age of 15.

Better Overall Outcomes for Children

The high quality childcare that a child receives at nursery and/or pre-school also plays a vital role in determining their life outcomes. For example, studies have found that children who started attending a high-quality childcare nursery/pre-school before the age of 2 had better cognitive, language, social and emotional development than children who began the programme at a later age or did not attend childcare at all. Similarly, other research suggests that starting childcare before age 3 is associated with higher academic achievement and fewer behavioural problems in the long term. Those beginning early are statistically more likely to go on to attend higher education courses and even to earn more during their adult lives. That’s amazing when you think about it.

All in all, attending a high quality nursery and/or pre-school provides a complete, holistic approach children’s learning, development and — incredibly — to their long-term success. It also, of course, provides crucial and practical support for parents, especially those who are returning to work or who need to balance work and parenting responsibilities. There are many additional benefits not mentioned, though, as we’ve barely scratched the surface (we haven’t even mentioned the benefits to society, for example — and there are many). Nevertheless, we hope that this information today has been of interest and gives those who are considering early years childcare some much-needed facts to bear in mind when making a decision for their child.

Little Acorns Nursery & Pre-School: High Quality Childcare in Padiham, Lancashire

Little Acorns Nursery and pre-school is located in Padiham, Lancashire and is also conveniently near to those in Hapton, Rose Grove, Burnley, Altham, Huncoat, Read, Simonstone, Sabden, Higham and Wood End. All Government childcare funding schemes are supported too, making it affordable to a wide range of families. If you are interested in a place for your child at Little Acorns Nursery, please get in touch, or ask any questions using a button below:

Apply for a Place Book a Tour Message Us 01282 680 822

31 January 2023/by Mark

Childcare, Childcare Funding, Early Years Education, Lancashire, Nurseries, Nursery, Padiham, Pre-School, Pre-Schools, Preschoolers, Preschools

Free Childcare for 3- & 4-Year-Olds (Quick Guide)

If you live in England and have a child aged 3 or 4, this article is for you. Did you know that your child is entitled to free childcare each week? In fact, virtually all children aged 3 or 4 that live in England can get an impressive 570 hours of free childcare each year. Some can even get twice that amount of funded childcare hours. Today we’ll go through what’s available – totally free of charge – and the rules around eligibility.

For 3- and 4-year-olds, there are two main childcare funding schemes:

The ‘15 Hours Free Childcare’ Scheme

(for children aged 3 and 4)

The ‘15 Hours Free Childcare’ scheme is a Government-funded initiative that provides free early education and childcare for all 3- and 4-year-olds living in England. Under the scheme, eligible children are entitled to 15 hours of free childcare each week, usually spread over 38 weeks, to total 570 hours per year. Optionally, however, some families may choose to have their child attend a childcare setting for less than 15 hours per week but spread the free hour allowance throughout the whole year. Others may prefer to take longer breaks during the holidays and using the hours more intensively during term time. Parents/guardians will need to check what’s possible with their particular childcare provider (we try to be as flexible as possible at Little Acorns Nursery, Padiham).

Eligibility

The 15 Hours Free Childcare scheme for 3- and 4-year-olds is not means tested and there are no tricky eligibility hoops to jump through. It is therefore an excellent and widely available childcare funding scheme. So, you do not need to meet any specific income or employment criteria in order to be eligible.

Caveats

You must be the child’s parent or legal guardian.

Parents and guardians may need to check any minimum sessions hours with their childcare provider. For example, families may not be able to use the free entitlement for very short periods, such as just an hour or two at a time, although it may vary from childcare provider to childcare provider.

The free entitlement is only available for children aged 3 and 4. It does not cover children under the age of 3 nor those already attending school.

The free entitlement is available to children the term after they turn 3. It can only be taken via an approved provider, for example, a nursery, pre-school, or childminder that’s registered with Ofsted (the Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills).

How to Apply for the ‘15 Hours Free Childcare’ Scheme for Your 3- or 4-Year-Old

You can search for registered providers in your area on the Ofsted website or by contacting your local council. Once you have found a childcare provider* that meets your needs, you will need to enrol your child directly with them. You may also need to provide proof of your child’s age and your eligibility for the free entitlement.

* If you live or work in or around Padiham in Lancashire, you may be interested in considering Little Acorns Nursery as your childcare provider. If so, please contact us if you would like to discuss a funded place for your 3- or 4-year-old at Little Acorns Nursery in Padiham, or register your child for a place at Little Acorns Nursery here.

The ‘30 Hours Free Childcare’ Scheme

(for children aged 3 and 4)

The ‘30 Hours Free Childcare’ scheme is a very similar Government-funded initiative that provides eligible families in England with up to 30 hours of free childcare per week. Again, this is for children aged 3 and 4. The scheme is designed to help working families with the cost of childcare and to support parents who want to return to work or increase their hours.

Eligibility

To be eligible for the 30 Hours Free Childcare scheme, families must meet the following main criteria:

Both parents, or the lone parent, must be working and earning at least the equivalent of 16 hours per week at the National Minimum Wage (‘NMW’) or National Living Wage (‘NLW’). The NMW and the NLW are different for different age groups, so the monetary figure that this amounts to as a minimum income varies according to your age. (Please note that dividends, interest, pension payments and interest income from property investments do not count towards your minimum).
The parent(s) must also have an annual income of less than £100,000 per year, including any bonuses.
Usually, the child you are claiming for will need to be living with you.
Follow the next bold link below for additional eligibility caveats that affect less common circumstances.

Caveats

You are usually still be eligible if you are off work on annual leave or sick leave, or parental leave if it is not being taken for the same child you are claiming childcare funding for.

If you are already claiming Universal Credit, Tax-Free Childcare, Tax Credits or using Childcare Vouchers, you can usually also claim for the 30 hours scheme for 3- and 4-year-olds if you meet the other criteria. Note, however, that claiming 30 Hours Free Childcare may affect how much you then receive in tax credits if you are also claiming those.

Further details about the 30 Hours Free Childcare scheme for 3- and 4-year-olds, including additional eligibility caveats, can be found here.

How to Apply for the ‘30 Hours Free Childcare’ Scheme for Your 3- or 4-Year-Old

Families who meet all the eligibility criteria can apply for the 30 Hours Free Childcare scheme through the government’s childcare service website. You will need to provide proof of your employment, your income, and your child’s age.

If your application is approved, you will receive a code that you can use to claim the 30 hours of free childcare from an approved provider like Little Acorns Nursery in Padiham. (If you’re not in the Padiham/Lancashire area, you can search for approved providers near you via the Ofsted website or by contacting your local council). You will need the code no later than the end of the month preceding the month your child starts on his or her childcare place. You’ll also need to reconfirm your child’s eligibility once every quarter.

Little Acorns Nursery Offers an Outstanding Childcare Service in Padiham, Lancashire

Located in Padiham, Lancashire, Little Acorns Nursery and pre-school is also easily accessible to families in the surrounding areas of Hapton, Rose Grove, Burnley, Altham, Huncoat, Read, Simonstone, Sabden, Higham and Wood End. The nursery/pre-school supports the above funding schemes for 3- and 4-year olds and provides an outstanding weekday childcare service for babies, toddlers, and children aged up to 5. If you are interested in enrolling your child at Little Acorns, please get in touch. We will happily answer any questions you may have and help guide you through the application process. Simply choose an option below to get started:

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28 December 2022/by Mark