Our pledge
Leaving your child at the Ark is like leaving them with family. You can trust us to care for your child and to do whatever we need to do to keep them safe, happy and learning. Each child has a key adult who will be their main carer and with whom they will become closest. Your child will also have lots of fun, indoors and outdoors, playing and learning with a variety of different friend
s, but their key person will always be there to come back to.
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Age groups
Children are grouped according to school cohort, academic and emotional development
1. Tiddlers: children (aged 2 to nearly 4 years)
3. Pre-school: children in the year before they start school (ie 3 to nearly 5 years)
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Opening Hours
Monday to Friday, 48 weeks a year
Closed
All Bank Holidays in addition to…. One week at Christmas
One week at Easter
Two weeks in the summer (usually the last week of July and first week of August)
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Times
We are open from 8am-5pm
The morning pre-school and tiddler sessions run from 8.45am-11.45am and 12.30pm-3.30pm
Lunch is from 11.45am-12.30pm (it is better not to disturb children during lunch)
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Funding and fees
All children can come to the Ark for 15 hours per week for FREE, from the term after their 3rd birthday. Some 2 year olds are also eligible for 15 free hours. If you are on a low income, phone the Family Information Service tel: 0800 587 8191, with your National Insurance number, and they will tell you if your qualify (or you can talk to Fi or your health visitor)
Beyond the funded hours, these are our fees:
Children under 2 years – £5.55 per hour
Children 2 to 3 years – £5.25 per hour
Children 3+ - £4.95 per hour
Fees are charged by the hour, to allow flexibility for parents, but please consider the routine needs of your child. They will be happier with a regular start and finish time that fits in with the routine of the sessions .
