Glendee ELCC RNRA
We are an early years setting who support children from 2-5 years of age in their learning, development, and wellbeing. We work with a variety of diverse families and have a holistic approach in delivering support and care within a nurturing and welcoming environment. Within our community we have LAC, ASN, EAL children and a range of SIMD which supports workless and working parents.
Within the community we work collaborate with multi agencies and local schools to link with RNRA principles and support our families and children to the best of our ability.
What we did:
- Within our centre we began RNRA with a whole staff approach training to ensure our staff were all familiar with our principles and goals of RNRA.
- We then involved parents and carers through questionnaires. Due to the restrictions of Covid, we were unable to welcome parents into the building for working parties, however this is a focus for us moving forward in involving our families in the wellbeing of their children and the strategies used within the establishment.
- We created a blanket approach to RNRA throughout the establishment where we provided nurturing quiet break out spaces as well as ‘Glen’s den’ which is a sensory room and new resources to compliment the nurturing ethos.
- We linked with the educational psychologist to deliver our training and decide collaboratively on nurture principles that suited the service.
- Alongside children, we adapted the language within the environment to make connections to our children, we changed our ‘Glendee Golden Rules’ to ‘Glendee Goals’.
- Family trees were created within each playroom to ensure a sense of owner ship and belonging alongside our emotional check in wall which links with our PATHS programme.
- We embedded RNRA for families and staff to understand a nurturing approach and this led for us as a service to change our behaviour policy.
- We introduced bedtime stories virtually over lockdown to inform and involve parents in the importance of 1-1 story time.
- Conversation Café supported parents in the understanding of transition and the understanding that children’s behaviours can change during transition.
- Family Yoga involved our families in the holistic wellbeing for our families, breathing, language and relaxation techniques as a family.
Resources and activities we found most useful:
- Quiet spaces
- Glens Den
- Family Tree
- PATHS programme
- Makaton
- Sensory resources
- Staff adapting language and their practice
- Training from educational psychologist
- Linking with our establishments and multi–agency
- Cross sector colleagues
- Transition programme
- Conversation Café to ensure parents are involved in transition
- Family Yoga to bring families together to be involved in their own wellbeing
- Bedtime stories
- BookBug
The impact and outcomes:
Children are more engaged and motivated resulting in higher level of achievements within all curricular areas, and able to identify their own emotions as well as their peers. They have support strategies to support each other and will identify their emotions through our PATHS programme which links with our RNRA.
Children now use the breakout spaces within the establishment to self- regulate their emotions.
Our families are now welcomed back in the building, with use of our family room and parents’ evenings, conversation café, PATHS, and Family Yoga our families our families have a better understanding of RNRA and the principles we focus on.
The importance of adapting your mind set and language has positively impacted on our children, staff, and families.
Practitioner talking: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g58DHtIgL8g
