Our Canada Water Nursery
Our Canada Water nursery school and kindergarten is nestled in the heart of a nature reserve, replete with ponds, wildlife and forestry for forest school programmes and outdoor learning. But that's not all - we have the largest outdoor playspace in the canada water and surrey quays area, so if it's important that your children don't just go for walks sat in a buggy, but have direct access to fresh air, climbing frames, grow beds, sports equipment and more, then there really isn't another choice.
Playground with Purpose
Unlike other nursery schools in Surrey Quays or Canada Water, we're firm believers in outdoor play, as much as indoor play, for children to explore, play and learn sports in. Our onsite playground offers climbing frames, swings and children's slides, play houses, monkey bars and more all managed within a safe soft floored environment of recycled rubber chipping. We have sand pits and grow beds, we have mud kitchens and sports equipment from children's trikes, bikes and bouncing balls. We believe young children should be physical and active and so have dedicated sessions where each age group has full
Scandinavian Interior Design
And our Architects at Eleanor Dodman associates drew inspiration from the minimalism of Nordic interior design when planning our nursery school and made it entirely out of sustainable materials. See their designs online
Quick Enquiry
Fun Forest School
It's sometimes tricky being a kid growing up in the City - the sights, sounds and smells of nature can sometimes just seem too far away. But not at our nursery school and kindergarten - our outdoor learning continues in our very own onsite Lavender Pond Nature Reserve. Run by a network of local volunteers, our children go for pond-dipping, insect inspections, bird watching and volunteering work at the reserve to help nurture that sense of responsibility for nature.
Diversity at its Heart
We believe that diversity, inclusivity and equality are the principals by which any modern society should be measured. But to really bring it home, we need to be able to educate ourselves to think and feel through the eyes of the "other". We celebrate cultures and traditions from all over the world, working with globally travelled families as much as local families who all share a desire for their children to become global citizens of the future
15 and 30 Hours Free Childcare
We will be offering the 15 hours free childcare and 30 hours free childcare subsidies for 2 year olds and 3 year olds this year. You can secure additional rebates and subsidies on this basis - do check the government's childcare offer for eligibility criteria but all we need from you is a termly parent declaration signed and delivered to us to secure your subsidy from the council. Note the hourly rates change from council to council
Frequently Answered Questions
Opening & Closing Times
We're open 07:30 until 18:30 Monday to Friday, 51 weeks a year, closing for the days between Christmas and New Years and for 3 inset days on the first Monday of each term (January for Spring; April for the Summer term post Easter holidays; September for the Autumn / winter term post summer holidays). We do not close for holidays over the summer or easter and do not offer refunds for these periods that you might take off as our staff will be working irrespective. Think about a gym membership. It's the same kind of thing - a monthly payment to allow us to exercise young minds!
What ages do you look after?
We can care for your children as young as 6 months. We could go younger but always felt that those first 6 months are so important for parents to bond with their child, we really encourage parents to take the parental leave they can to experience that wonderful time. Because it is so precious, and so important, developmentally, for the child, and emotionally for you as new parents to get that time. So our policy is 6 months onwards, all the way through to Reception at the age of five. Your pattern of care will remain consistent until you a) submit a change of hours form or b) a termination form, which will then see your contracted hours of childcare change one month from the date of that submission.
Do I have to attend full time?
No - one of the reasons why Hatching Dragons came into being was because we wanted to make childcare easier and more flexible for parents. You can opt to do term time only, but we will still charge you a monthly (pro rated) equivalent direct debit (albeit for a smaller, pro rated amount) so we can keep things consistent with our payment policies. It will mean, however, that you will have to pay the holiday camp rates for any childcare that you need during half terms or holidays.
What's our Settling In approach 👶
Considering that a relaxed and gradual approach works wonders for children settling into nursery life, we decided to make it a team effort between parents and teachers.
We keep it simple with a step-by-step settling-in process - we offer 3 to 5 free two hour sessions at either 0930-1130, or 1430-1630 for your child to settle into our school and build their relationships with their key worker team and their friends in the room. On the first session, it's typical that we'll run through your registration details so we're clear on dietary, medical and allergy information, your routine and soothing strategies, and by the second, we'll be inviting you to step away so that they can bond with their key worker a little more. By the third session you'll be invited to have a cuppa with the manager and after that, we're normally away...Easy peasy, right?
What do I need to bring?
All of our onboarding instructions will be automatically issued to you when you've signed your contract and paid your deposit, but you can find a copy of your onboarding pack below, to get a sense of what you'll need on the day
What schools can they move on to?
We have plenty of schools in our area that our families move on to but it really depends on whether the family is resident (and so can select some of the amazing publicly funding primary schools near Peter Hills Primary, Redriff, Alfred Salter , Albion primary, Rotherhithe primary and the Seven Mills over the river
What Ofsted Inspection did we get? ✅
We don't think we're just Good. We think we're Great! Check out our latest Ofsted report right here! Dive into the great feedback we snagged from the inspectors who were seriously wowed by the cosy and nurturing space we've crafted for your little ones. They gave big shoutouts to our incredible team, top-of-the-line facilities, and activities that turn learning into a total blast!
What languages do you teach? ✨
We're language nuts at Hatching Dragons. Our multilingual team can speak Bengali, Arabic, Russian, Chinese, French and Spanish. But each school focuses on a specific language and at the City of London nursery we focus on Mandarin Chinese.
Each age group will have at least one dedicated session a day, even if they also benefit from at least 50% of the team being Chinese in the school. And those sessions are led by the lead Chinese teacher for the school to engage the children in fun, immersive activities that aim to deliver second language acquisition in the context of our thematic / educational focus for the month. It could be music and rhyme. It could be story telling or Drama. But we have dedicated language lists that focus on our theme of the month and our teachers focus on leveraging all media and materials to deliver that language to our children....
What pedagogy do you follow? 💖
We strongly believe that education should be a dynamic blend, shaped both by the child's interests and autonomy, fostering their individuality, and by adult guidance to introduce new materials, building their knowledge, understanding, and skills.
Our inspiration stems from weaving together the finest pedagogical frameworks globally. We dip into Montessori and take a stroll through High Scope; we explore Reggio alongside Steiner, Te Whariki, and those from East Asia. Recognizing that no single culture holds the exclusive key to education, we draw on the best from each to craft a curriculum that brings out the best for everyone.
What qualifications do you teachers have? 🍎
We believe that diverse teams deliver dynamism and progression. It's one of the reasons we felt that education needed to draw on the best of what the world has to offer - just as we believe that with diverse sets of people, organisations can engineer the best ideas and ways of working.
All our teachers have Paediatric First Aid and hold some of the highest qualifications in early years teaching from some of the best educational institutes in the world. We have graduates from the Institute of Education at UCL; we have people from Maria Montessori Institute and more.
What's the food on offer? 🍐
Our catering team have devised our approach to food and infant nutrition in line with the guidance set out by the British Nutritional Foundation with specific reference to the Government's Eatwell Guide on delivering a healthy, balanced diet for infants, toddlers and preschoolers.
We take the health and safety of your children very seriously, which is why we use management systems to secure weekly reports on children's attendance and their dietary and allergy needs, direct to our in-house catering teams. All of our chefs are qualified in the culinary arts, have advanced food hygiene training and follow the procedures outlined in the Safer Food Better Business guidance from the Food Standards Agency, so you can rest assured that your children's nutrition is in the best possible hands.
Fees, schedules and funding 🌝
Life's a whirlwind, and we get it – you need flexibility. No stress, we're not all about those rigid full-time commitments. It's all about what works for you!
Whether you're up for a single morning or afternoon sesh, or you're diving into the full 5-day experience (depending on availability), it's totally your call. But here's the inside scoop: for the ultimate language adventure, we suggest aiming for at least 5 half days. That's when you'll see your little language maestro really shine.
And hold onto your hats because we have some limited funded spots up for grabs! Curious? Click below to book a call with our team. They can help tailor things just for you!
Here are some extra resources for parents 🧐
It's not just about what we do for the little ones; let's not overlook the daily hurdles faced by the most crucial people in their world – parents. Parenting is a challenging journey, and the demands are on the rise, often leading some to decide against having children altogether.
We believe it's not fair, and we're here to be more than just a service. We aim to support our working families in being the best parents they can be while excelling in their careers and personal lives. Our goal is to ease the challenges of parenting, making the journey smoother for our amazing parents.
Hatching Dragons Blog
We keep our community up to date with activities and the best of early years methodologies and parenting tips to keep you up to date with how to be the best parent you can be...
- 08-Dec-2024 18:00:00
- 26-Nov-2024 12:30:00