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Faq’s

Enrolment, Admission and Fees

Parents are welcome to put children’s name on a waiting list during pregnancy or after. To secure an available place in the centre, you must pay the appropriate deposit and fill out the registration form.  This deposit is refunded in the final month’s fees. We require 60 days’ notice of a cancellation or the fee will not be refunded. PLEASE NOTE: If a baby place is accepted and you subsequently cancel in advance of starting your baby, the deposit is non-refundable

Fixed monthly fees for full time daycare are calculated by multiplying the weekly charge by 51 and dividing by 12. All weeks are full fees, regardless of attendance.

We are registered for the ECCE scheme which covers Sessional fees (3 hour morning).

From September 2017 the government has introduced the CCSP (Affordable childcare) scheme and this gives parents a daily contribution for children under 3 years.

A discount of 10% is offered for a second or subsequent child wishing to attend.

All fees are payable monthly in advance.

What are the opening hours?

We are open 51 weeks of the year and operate from 8.00 – 6.00 daily.  We are closed on all bank holidays, Good Friday, Christmas Eve and the week between Christmas and New Year.

You’re always welcome to visit us, we operate an open door policy and encourage parents and guardians to drop in at anytime.

Will my child have a settling-in period ?

Leaving a child can be a traumatic and upsetting experience for parents, and we will do everything possible to ensure a smooth transition for both you and your child. We work together with parents over a settling in period (this could take 2 weeks), to ensure that your child is happy and secure in their new surroundings.
During this period, as your child settles in and establishes a bond with our childcare professionals and gains confidence, we learn about your child’s daily routine, their mealtimes, sleeping patterns and all the other little things special to your child.

What are the ratios?

We run our Centre adhering strictly to the 2016 Childcare Regulations.  We follow the ratios that are included in this Act.

  • Babies (under 1) 3:1 staff member
  • Babies (1–2)       5:1
  • Children (2–3)    6:1
  • Over 3                  8:1
  • Sessional preschool (Montessori), the regulation is 1:11. However, we have 3 teachers in each room of 22.

Is all the food prepared and cooked on the premises?

At Heronswood, we have a full equipped kitchen and qualified chefs who prepare freshly cooked lunch and evening meals for full daycare and afterschool children. We post Menus in the foyer. We use only fresh meat and vegetables in all our dishes and we do not add any salt, artificial flavourings, or colouring, to the food and all our stock is home made.

Children under 12 months who are weaned and eating solids, will be provided with pureed freshly cooked vegetables, etc. However, all bottles of formula must be provided by parents, ready to drink, which will be stored in a fridge clearly labelled. They will not be sterilised in the centre.

Children attending sessional services are provided with a mid morning nutritious snack. Milk and water are served but we do not allow any fizzy drinks or sweets in line with our healthy eating policy.

IF YOU ARE, OR BECOME, AWARE OF ANY KIND OF ALLERGIES REACTION TO FOOD, PLEASE ADVISE US IMMEDIATELY.

My child is toilet training, how do you support this?

When your child is ready for toilet training, we expect that this will be started at home and our staff will do everything to assist in this procedure. Our toilets and washbasins are all child sized and your child is encouraged throughout the day in this process. We work closely with parents and ask that you bring in plenty of spare underwear and clothing.