Childcare facility supports community & school
Cairdeas Childcare, Ballyhass Community owned
Cairdeas Childcare is a community owned creche and pre-school set up in 2006 to support both the local community and national school.
The service operates from a purpose built facility with a large outdoor play area and garden, located next door to Ballyhass National School. It now caters annually for 120 families, with 170 children.
Cairdeas has a voluntary board of directors who support the manager in the management and strategic development of the service. They have a team of highly qualified staff and a strong culture of continuous professional development.
Cairdeas recently achieved the highest possible awards from the Department of Education and Skills for their pre-school service.
They offer a supportive and secure learning environment while respecting the role of parents as the children’s primary educators.
They have excellent home-service links and organise a number of events during the year – Christmas Show, Graduation, Information Evenings, Fund Raisers.
Cairdeas have developed a strong collaborative relationship with the local school and this facilitates an easy transition from Preschool to Primary School.
In 2016 Cairdeas achieved recognition as a Health Promoting Preschool. Staff members have undertaken this national training programme which ensures that their preschool children are supported to adopt healthy lifestyle behaviours in early childhood.
PROVIDING A QUALITY SERVICE
The elements of the programme include health and safety, emotional literacy and well being, nutrition, physical activity and dental health. These themes are woven into curriculum planning.
Staff place great emphasis on healthy eating. Cairdeas has a fully equipped commercial kitchen and a team of kitchen staff. All the food is made fresh on the premises each day.
Children have an opportunity to play outside each day which encourages their bodies to make Vitamin D and to encourage an active lifestyle.
Cairdeas has a play-based curriculum informed by the principles of Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework.
SUPPORTING THE LOCAL COMMUNITY
Since the foundation of Cairdeas the focus has been the provision of a quality service to the children and families in the community, without prejudice, and recognising the needs of each individual child. Staff endeavour to help each child to reach their potential during their time in their care and staff work tirelessly with families to support them in providing the best care and educational opportunity for their child.
Staff and management are never complacent and strive to maintain the quality of the service they provide and continue to reinvest in the business.