Frequently Asked Questions

If you have an idea of which days you require, please contact us to ascertain availability of places. You will be invited to visit our setting at your convenience. This visit is open to all family members. The next stage is to complete a ‘Pre- Registration Form’ and the fee for this is £30. Once you have completed a pre-registration form we can register your child’s place at the nursery, or enter them on the waiting list if the days you require are not yet available.

Prior to starting at the nursery you will be offered a number of ‘settling in’ sessions..

You will also be required to complete the remaining forms which include information specific to your children (permission slips/medical history/dietary needs etc) and also the contract between the nursery and yourselves.

Please note that all bookings are taken in advance and payment is required even though your child may be absent during booked sessions. Any changes to your regular booking pattern will require 4 weeks’ notice. Regular invoices are issued in advance and this covers contracted sessions. Extra sessions booked in are invoiced in arrears.

Please contact the Nursery Manager who will be happy to help:

Pontardawe Nursery:

[email protected]   01792 869494.

Ystradgynlais Nursery:

[email protected]  01639 846003.

On these occasions registers will be checked and space offered if available. Should you wish to increase/decrease your regular booking pattern please request changes via email to the addresses above. Any extra incidental days will be added to the next invoice.

All medical dietary requirements are catered for, as are any other individual needs your child may have. Your key worker will be able to talk through how the nursery can best provide for your child’s individual needs.

A registration fee of 30 pounds is payable to register your child’s place. Fees are payable monthly in advance, and can be paid by bank transfer, childcare vouchers, cash, standing order or direct debit. A holiday discount of 40% is given on all holidays we are notified of via email by the date on the previous months invoice. Cancellation of your contract with Little Steps requires 1 months’ notice in writing. Unless otherwise agreed fees are calculated on a monthly basis.

Discounts/Savings

• 5% Sibling Discount on youngest child only.
• Childcare Vouchers Accepted including Tax free childcare
• 30 Free Hours Childcare
• Flying Start Funding

View more information on our fees structure.

Families are asked to provide suitable clothing that will enable their child to experience all of the opportunities the nursery provides. Ample spare clothes must be clearly named and provided in a bag on your child’s coat peg. Wellington boots and suitable warm clothing are required for outdoor play in the winter, and sun hats and sun cream are essential for the summer. Children are not allowed to share sun creams. We ask for this to be clearly labelled with your child’s name.

When toilet training is imminent, we will discuss each child’s individual needs with the parent/carers and wherever possible staff will offer guidance and feedback.

During COVID-19 Pandemic: Children should bring with them nappies & wet wipes (where age appropriate), changing of clothing in case of accidents and a personal drinking cup/bottle. Parents will be asked to provide two dummies that will remain onsite, one for use, one for cleaning.

We encourage all families to make a quick transition between parents and staff and ask that if a child is upset, they do not enter the building. We ask that families give us 15 minutes after dropping off to settle the child back into the setting. Parents are welcomed to telephone and discuss with key workers how the transition/settling has gone. Staff will ensure good, clear, honest, sensitive information when updating families.

If your child has any of the following symptoms, we kindly ask that they do not attend the setting but rather book a COVID-19 Test/contact your G.P. for further advise:

• a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or 3 or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be worse than usual) – NHS guidance
• a high temperature – this means 38c or above.
• loss of smell or taste (anosmia)

If any person displays the above symptoms of COVID-19 the child must go home immediately. Staff are to make the Manager on duty aware and then contact their parent to collect the child are soon as possible. Ideally within 30 mins of the phone call. Children can return to the setting once we have received confirmation of a negative test via email. Should a test result come back positive, please contact the setting immediately via telephone or email, whereby the setting will contact Public Health/Track and Trace.

Other illnesses:
We are not able to undertake the care of sick children. In this instance, please phone the nursery to inform the staff of their absence. Should your child become unwell during the nursery day and it becomes necessary to contact you, please come and collect your child as soon as possible. Medication can be administered only if the relevant paperwork has been signed on admission to the nursery (Medicine Consent form). Any changes to the child’s medical needs must be made in writing to the Nursery Manager. Should your child contract an infectious illness, please inform the Nursery manager immediately. For more information on specific illnesses please contact the Nursery Manager. Due to staffing commitments, we are unable to refund families for days absent due to sickness.

Staff can only administer medicine prescribed by a medical practitioner. Children should be absent for at least 24 hours of any treatment, to allow their immune system to respond.

In order to protect your child, he/she can only be collected from the nursery by adults identified on the ‘All About Me‘ form. Any adults on the all ‘About Me’ form that are unknown to staff will be asked to produce identification and a password. Parents/Carers of children who are collected after the stated opening hours will be asked to sign the late book and the company reserve the right to charge an additional fee.

All complaints will be listened to, taken seriously, and acted on. Should you wish to make a formal complaint about any aspect of Little Steps then please read carefully our complaints procedure located within the parent’s handbook (copies available from the Nursery Manager) you should then complete this form and submit it to the appropriate person as highlighted in our complaints procedure. Should you feel that your complaint is not dealt with appropriately then or not resolved or have any concerns you should contact the Care Inspectorate for Wales. Their telephone number is 0300 7900126.

Yes, a copy of the nursery Policies and Procedures is available for you to view and it is kept in the entrance hallway. These will be available to view on request. Copies can also be emailed to parents on request.