Questions to ask pre-school

[ZebraZeebra]

I'm starting to look round/ put DS's name down at pre-schools for when he receives his EYE funding when he's three. I'm a SAHM so never did the looking for a nursery that my friends have that went back to work, so I'm a bit clueless. I've looked at a thread about questions to ask a nursery - and have a list about time outside, sickness policy, first aiders, how they communicate with the parents etc - but just wondered if there was any specific I should be asking/looking at for a pre-school?

Thanks in advance!

[KatyN]

How the manage the move to school and what relationship they have with the local schools?
You may find places that are just preschools are less well funded than those who offer private nursery too... Just something to be aware of.

[minipie]

YY to relationship with the local schools and will they help you choose a school that helps your child.

YY to how do they report back/communicate with parents

How structured are they - there is a big variety from ones which allow lots of free play to ones which are more like a mini school

Potty training - do they expect DC to be toilet trained or not.

Costs - does the EYE funding cover the whole place or is there extra (sometimes they charge quite a bit extra by eg charging for extra 15 minutes or for snacks/music etc).

Ratios of staff to children for each age, and is there a specific staff member assigned to each child