Frequently asked questions

7.30am - 6pm, Monday - Friday All year round except Bank Holidays and Christmas Week off to include Xmas eve.

We are a privately owned day care nursery based in the heart of Dunstable and set in a characteristic Edwardian house. The house maintains many original features and even though we have managed to create excellent and well resourced learning environments for the three separately classed age groups it still exudes an incredibly homely feel. The setting is inspected and registered with Ofsted and the local authority. When visiting us please note that there is no private parking for the setting, there is however plenty of places to access parking in the surrounding area, when organising a visit please ask a member of staff for more details with regards to this.

Children about to start nursery are encouraged to participate in a number of settling in sessions with parent/carers being actively involved in these. All the information already passed onto us regarding that individual child will be used to support their transitions in making them as smooth as possible. However we realise that this is a big change for children and whilst we discourage children from bringing their own toys from home with them, we recognise having a familiar teddy or blanket can be a huge source of comfort during the first few days. Their online learning journal will provide some documentation of their days at nursery, giving that vital visual feedback that so many parent/carers enjoy seeing. With such supportive and inclusive settles most children quickly settle in and enjoy their new surroundings.

Each child should have sufficient clothes for their daily needs plus spare sets in the event of accidents or through play. Parents are asked to ensure that children do not bring valuable items with them, as the Nursery cannot accept responsibility for any subsequent loss or damage. Please bring sunhats and apply suncream before your child attends nursery during the summer months (please note this will be re applied through out the day) Wellington boots, gloves and suitable outdoor clothing during the winter to ensure that your child can benefit from outdoor play. All clothes should be clearly labelled. Parents of babies and children who are not fully toilet trained are asked to provide enough nappies and wipes to last their day.

Medication prescribed by a doctor may be brought into the nursery. This must be clearly labelled with your child’s name and date and given to a member of staff, who will ask you to sign a permission slip to administer that medication. Please note that if a child is prescribed anti - biotics then the exclusion period is a full 24 hours from the first administration.

Each child at our Nursery is assigned their own bag or drawer for storing personal belongings. If your child is starting at the Nursery, we request that you bring the following items to keep in their designated space:

• A pack of diapers, wipes, and creams (if necessary)

• Several changes of clothing, including socks and pants (please label these items)

• A pair of slippers or booties (for the baby room)

• Formula milk and bottle (if necessary)

• Toothbrush (toddler and preschool room)

At our Nursery, every child is assigned a dedicated key person who closely tracks their progress and development. This approach ensures that each child feels secure and cared for and helps them to become comfortable and confident in their surroundings.

We celebrate each child's unique qualities, accomplishments, and efforts and believe that strong relationships between adults and children are critical to their development. The key person caters to the specific needs of each child in their care, responding compassionately to their emotions, thoughts, and actions. They provide stability, comfort, and consistency, and are often the first to support and soothe their assigned children as needed. They have the best understanding of their key child's individual needs and communicate regularly with parents about their experiences at the Nursery

Despite extensive risk analyses and all efforts to remove hazards, accidents can happen. All such incidents are recorded, monitored and reported back to the parent/carer, Parents are informed by staff uploading accident forms to tapestry and calls made when necessary. Where necessary we will contact the child’s doctor or the emergency services. In addition to this parent/carers will be asked to sign a form for all pre existing injuries upon entry to the nursery.

Any child who has, or develops, an infectious illness must be kept at home in order to help prevent the spread of illness. In particular, any child suffering from vomiting or diarrhoea must be kept at home until clear of symptom for a minimum period of 48 hours. If any child falls unwell whilst at nursery then parent/carers will be contacted. Upon entry to the nursery parent/carers can access a full list of the nurseries exclusion periods or view are list via button below.

It is important to note that powdered milk must be kept in its original container with visible instructions and expiration date. All cartoned or bottled milk must be unopened with the expiration information visible, and breast milk must be clearly labeled.

The health, safety, and protection of children are paramount to us. We maintain a secure environment with one monitored entrance to the front of the building and two supervised back door’s leading to the garden. Our enclosed garden offers a safe and engaging space for children to play and explore, with constant staff supervision along with a camera in place to provide additional security and monitoring. The use of mobile phones are prohibited in areas where children are present. We serve breakfast, provided by parents, and a hot tea (at an additional cost) is prepared on site each day. We provide parents with guidelines and nutritional information to help prepare their children's lunches and continuously monitor them.

All visitors to the nursery are greeted and released by a member of staff. Only those who are pre-authorised to collect their child from nursery will be allowed to do so, unless approval is given by the parent/carer and a password is submitted. Parents/carers are asked to leave emergency contact numbers where they can be contacted.

When visiting us please note that there is no private parking for the setting, there is a public carpark adjacent to the nursery (West street carpark) and also other parking spaces in the surrounding area.

We use an online communication system called Tapestry to keep you updated, you download an app and get updates about your little one’s day, talking you through the activities they have accessed, what they have learnt and achieved along with showing you how their day has been in general. Giving you the confidence and clarity, that your child’s well cared for and having an amazing day! We also provide communication books to parent/carers to ensure that we cater to everyone’s needs.

Keeping all of our children safe is our top priority! We aim for every single staff member to be fully trained in paediatric first aid or Emergency Paediatric First Aid, meaning they are confident to act when needed.

Please see section EYFS click here

Linden House Nursery meet the Safeguarding and Welfare Requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage, ensuring that our staff and volunteers are appropriately qualified. To read are full policy statement click here

For our Pre-school children we ask for a discretionary contribution of £5 per funded day only. This is entirely discretionary, however if parents choose not to pay the contribution, we will have to ask that parents to supply certain consumables when their children attend nursery. Examples of what this will consist of, morning and afternoon snack, wet wipes , sun cream, certain resources that support your child's learning i.e nursery trips, cooking ingredients, gift making and items for festivals/events. For an extensive list and more information in regards to this please contact Lisa Iles here

We believe that parents and colleagues working together is vital to ensuring a child’s individual needs are fully met and each child gets the most from their nursery experience.

We love to gather parent feedback to improve services for our families. We currently ask for parents to complete parent questionnaires twice a year where feedback for all aspects of their nursery experience can be given. We also ask for a mini feedback survey to be completed when your child is leaving the setting.

Our nursery will offer you Parent meetings/evenings throughout the year, providing you an opportunity to meet the nursery team and to discuss in more detail, your child’s development. We recognise that you are all very busy so can offer these via teams, in person or over the phone.

We recognise the importance of having children ready for their transition to school, which is why we provide parents with the Is your child ready to learn - 16 ticks pamphlet. This provides parents with a list of skills and what to consider before they are due to start school. Our preschool staff also work alongside you to support and develop these skills. Consider the 16 ticks leaflet Click here

We want to share the knowledge of our colleagues and other professionals with families and signpost training sessions throughout the year covering first aid, school readiness, behaviour management and speech and language development to name a few. These courses will be run by external professionals via teams or in house at a Central Bedfordshire nominated venue.

Information for parents about Ofsted's role in regulating childcare click here

At Linden House Nursery, sustainability isn’t just a lesson — it’s a way of life. To see our Climate plan click here