Staff Information

At Hillcross we ensure that all our staff are highly qualified and share our school ethos of nurturing and teaching the children holistically.

• The staff to child ratio is a minimum of 1:13.
• We employ Early Years Practitioners who have a sound knowledge of learning in the early years, at least one of the team is a qualified teacher.

All children will learn alongside all members of the nursery team so that they have access to all of the expertise that each staff member can offer. There are a number of roles that the nursery team take on each week:

1. Outside Leader: This adult will plan, set up and develop the outdoor learning environment building on the ideas of the children. Activities will help children secure and develop their skills within specific areas of learning, including Maths, Literacy, Expressive Arts and Understanding of the World. They will also collect evidence of all children’s learning linked to the prime areas of learning – personal, social and emotional development, physical development, communication and language.
2. Activity Leader: This adult will plan, set up and develop the main nursery rooms and engage all learners in activities linked to the topic. They will lead the larger group at learning times when children are taught specific knowledge and skills, and they will be the adult at the main door at the beginning and end of each session.
3. Interactor. This is the most important adult role within the team. This adult will interact, scaffold, support and challenge children’s independent play so that children have the opportunity to practice and apply knowledge and skills they have learnt so that they know more and remember more. They will also play alongside children to encourage the children to extend and challenge their thinking and to focus on their specific learning targets. This adult will plan, set up and develop the activities on offer in the creative spaces across the nursery and will be available in the corridor at the start of the day to welcome children and families,
4. Small Group Leader (Learning Lab): The role of this adult is to work with children individually or in small groups leading activities that will support them to close gaps in learning or to develop targeted skills. The activities led by this adult are often practical, quieter activities designed to build communication and language skills, social skills and Physical Development. They will also lead the larger group at learning times when children are taught specific knowledge and skills and be at the door to dismiss. They will also be in the Learning Lab to welcome children in the morning and assist in supporting families to use the Nursery Lending Library.

These roles will be rotated weekly so that families get to know all the adults their children learn with. All staff receive Planning, Preparation and Assessment (PPA) time every week. This is time out of the unit to complete paperwork. This time is covered by other staff members who take on the role of the person they are covering.

Key Worker

Each child/family will have an allocated key worker. Key workers offer families a familiar person to talk to and discuss their child with during their nursery experience. The Key Worker is responsible for collecting evidence of your child’s learning, liaising with other staff to develop their learning journey, assess their ongoing development and planning next steps and targets for them. Parent meetings, which are offered twice across the school year, will also be led by your key worker. Where possible, they will keep their key worker for the duration of their time in nursery, but this is not always possible.