Chapel St. Nursery School and Children s Centre: how it helps and supports local parents What parents say: It s given me opportunities to meet other dads. We share experiences, ideas and it made me realise that I m not the only one who feels the way I do. Above all, one of the greatest things is that the staff at Chapel St. have made me realise I have to take an active part in the development of my children. Father. Sarah has been made to feel she has no limitations since the day she joined you at only one year old. For this I am eternally grateful, and for the fact that the children and staff around her believe Sarah has no limitations either. Mother of a child with physical disabilities.
how we help parents Chapel St. Children s Centre is a listed building which opened as a boys school in 1881. It is a beautiful building with high vaulted ceilings and arch shaped windows. It became a Nursery School in 1973, and a Children s Centre in 2008. What is Chapel St. Children s Centre? Chapel St. Children s Centre is a place where children under five years of age and their families can access help and support from teams of professionals including managing childrens behaviour, parenting skills, supporting children with additional needs, anti and post-natal support, healthy living, play and learning, smoking cessation - and more. A one stop shop for parents. Opening times Chapel St. Children s Centre is open 8am-6pm. We offer: Qualified Baby Massage Instructors: help you to bond with your baby and relax baby. Breastfeeding Support: help with breastfeeding. PEEP Practitioners: we run specific groups with children and parents about the importance of play, singing and reading with their children. Stop Smoking: we have advice and information on how to give up smoking, and support you as we are trained Stop Smoking Advisors. Drug and Alcohol Problems: we have information about drug and alcohol misuse and can signpost you to relevant support agencies. Budgeting and Healthy Eating: help with saving and spending money, and cooking and eating healthily. Parent Skills: how to cope with tantrums and behaviour issues, potty training etc. Other Help: we can help with all sorts of issues including those of benefits and housing, we can provide asylum seeker and refugee support, and signpost to relevant support groups for various ethnic groups. Fathers: we welcome fathers at any activity we are running, including Stay and Play sessions, Infant Feeding and Health Visitor Drop-ins. We run a regular Saturday meeting for Dads and their children. These may be play activities in the Centre, visits to the Fire Station, bowling trips or trips further afield to places like Cadbury s World. Toy Library: borrow age appropriate toys weekly for you and your children to enjoy together. Stay and Play: parents can come along with their children and make friends while children play and make friends too. Signpost You To Other Agencies: we have great relationships with other professional agencies such as Health Visitors, Community Midwives, Children s Services, JobCentre Plus, and NCMA Childminders. We are able to signpost people where to go for specific support, and will go with you if need be. Reading, Writing and Maths: we have links with adult education and can signpost you if you wish to improve your numeracy and literacy skills. Bereavement: we can support families who are suffering from bereavement and loss. Minibus: taking parent and children on trips. Sensory Room: for children to experience, enjoy and relax in. Depression: supporting families through sadness and depression. Healthy Food: on site Chefs cook healthy, seasonal top quality food. 2 3
Ducklings, Dolphins, Ladybirds, Butterflies and Bumblebees The Nursery offers children early years education from the age of three months to five years, provided by qualified Teachers and Nursery Nurses. We have up to 72 places for 3-5 year olds and 32 for children under 3 available each day. Little Ellie s Holiday Playscheme A Holiday Playscheme runs for all holiday periods except for one week over Christmas, one week over Easter and two weeks over the summer. The Holiday Playscheme is also open on school training and home visiting days to support working parents. The emphasis is on providing an interesting session with a variety of fun activities for the children to enjoy. Ducklings and Dolphins Ducklings and Dolphins takes children from three months to three years old, 48 weeks of the year as a fee paying service FREE 15 HRS NURSERY EDUCATION Children can access 15 hours free nursery education per week, between 8am and 6pm, during term time and from the beginning of the term after their third birthday. Special needs We receive extra funding to support the inclusion of children with severe and complex special needs. This means that all staff are trained to meet the needs of children with a variety of needs. We strongly believe that all children should have a right to access good quality nursery school education. 4 To find out how you could benefit from our services... read on 5
Where is Chapel St. Nursery and Children s Centre Chapel St. Nursery and Children s Centre Russell St Luton LU1 5EA Tel: 01582 413552 Fax: 01582 540428 Email: chapel.street.nursery.admin@luton.gov.uk Web: www.chapelstreet.luton.sch.uk/ A505 Stanley Street Wellington Street Windsor St Russell Street Chapel St A505 6 Hillborough Road B4540 To find out how you could benefit from our services... read on 7
What it offers Mondays 9.30-10.30am Activity Tots Physical activities which involve running, jumping, ball skills, balancing and much more! Monday (alternative Mondays, phone Centre for date) 9.30am - 11am Autism Beds A support meeting for parents of children with Autism or Asbergers. Come and meet new friends. Monday (afternoon and evening, phone Centre for times) ESOL English classes for adult speakers of other languages. Tuesdays (alternative Tuesdays, phone Centre for dates) 9.30am - 11am Special Needs Coffee Mornings Meet with our Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator for coffee and a chat. Special guests are invited sometimes, like our Educational Psychologist or Behavioural Specialist 8 Tuesdays 9.30am - 11.00am Tiny Tot Baby Group Activities for babies and toddlers to help stimulate and aid development such as Books for Babies, Baby Rhyme Time, soft play climbing equipment and Baby Massage. Tuesday 10am - 1.30pm Infant Feed Drop-in Support for parents who want to breastfeed their child. (first Wed of the month) JobCentre Plus Help with getting a job and interview techniques etc. 1.30pm - 3.15pm Baby Clinic Come and get your baby weighed and get professional advice from our Health Visitors. (alternative s, phone Centre for dates) 9.30am - 11am Childminder s Network Meetings Come meet Childminder colleagues and let children play and make friends with other minded children. 8.45am - 9.15am and 1.00-1.30pm Chapel Street Toy Library Borrow educational and stimulating toys. Thursdays 9.30-10.30am Music Time with Charlie Come along and enjoy singing, dancing and making music! Fridays 9.30-10.30am Messy Tots An hour of messy play to encourage your child s creative development. Enjoy a variety of art and craft activities including painting, drawing, sticking etc Saturdays (once a term, phone Centre for dates) Time Out Club This is a time for children who have siblings with special needs to chill out and access fun activities. We also run the following at different times of the year. Phone Chapel St. Nursery and Children s Centre to find out when they are next being held. Healthy Eating Workshops Advice on how to cook and eat healthily. PEEP Family learning sessions where children and parents have fun and learn together Parenting Workshops Talking about common challenges in bringing up children, eating, sleeping, behaviour, temper tantrums, independence skills and appropriate play activities. Run in small groups so everyone can chat about their issues and learn from each other! Stop Smoking Service Help to stop smoking. Baby Massage Help you to bond with your baby and relax baby. 9
What it offers Every Child Matters Chapel St. Children s Centre services are planned around the five Every Child Matters Themes developed by Government in consultation with what children saw as the five most important issues, which are: being healthy staying safe enjoying and achieving achieving economic well-being making a positive contribution 10 Chapel St Children s Centre Luton Carnival entry Where the Wild things are 11
For further information on how we could help you... please contact: Chapel St. Nursery and Children s Centre Russell St Luton LU1 5EA Tel: 01582 413552 Fax: 01582 540428 Email: chapel.street.nursery.admin@luton.gov.uk Web: www.chapelstreet.luton.sch.uk/ Parents say: My wife finds it easy there as there are Urdu speaking staff, as I am at work Dhanyal and I have attended Activity Tots, Baby Group and Charlie the Music Man. We have had good fun and this has helped Dhanyal with developing his social skills and also given him great interest in song, music and dance. He is a happy baby and I try to imitate these activities at home so he is always in a learning environment. The staff are approachable and willing to help. They are all very friendly, and most of them have been here a number of years.