Stepping Stones Childcare Centre is located in a dedicated building and is managed under the umbrella of Bagenalstown Family Resource Centre. We are committed to providing an Early Years and School-Age Care and Education service of the highest standards. We are registered with Tusla – The Child and Family Agency. Trained, motivated and friendly staff are the cornerstone of our service.
We aim to provide a quality service and a stimulating environment for children to develop their social, personal and educational skills and learn through a planned curriculum. Your child’s welfare and your peace of mind is most important to us. We provide a warm, loving home-from-home environment, where each child is treated with respect and will develop and learn as individuals while feeling safe and secure.
We have a comprehensive set of policies and procedures that our staff are obliged to adhere to. We provide daycare, ECCE (preschool) and School-Age service as well as camps during Summer holidays.
Further details on all elements of the service are available below, but please do not hesitate to contact the Early Years Manager, Catherine Ryan Maher, with any queries on 083 2050456 or email steppingstoneschildcarecentre@yahoo.ie or School-Age Manager, Kate Slawatecka on afterschoolsteppingstones@gmail.com
We offer a ‘Full Day Care’ service as defined in the Child Care Act 1991 (Early Years Services) Regulations 2016. These are the regulations that govern our service and we are inspected under these regulations by Tusla, the Child and Family Agency.
We cater for children aged 12 months – 12 years. We open 50 weeks per year and daily from Monday to Friday. We have capacity to cater for 108 children at any one time and our ratios are listed below. This service is a community-based service operated by the Board of Directors of Bagenalstown Family Resource Centre, directed by Lynda Stacey (Director of Services) and managed by Catherine Maher (Early Years Manager) and Kate Slawatecka (School-Age Manager).
- Opening Hours:
8.00 am—6.00 pm - Weeks per year: 50 (closed 1 week at Easter and Christmas)
- Capacity: 108
- Age Range: 1 year – 12 years
- Ratios: Sessional – 2.6 – 6 years (1:11)
- Full day and part-time care: 1-2 Years (1:5), 2-3 years (1:6), 3-6 years (1:8) School-Age (1:12)
- Curriculum: Play-based child-led emergent
- Funding: Free 2-year preschool ECCE and the National Childcare Scheme – Link to NCS: Home · Applicant Portal (ncs.gov.ie)
– To provide good quality affordable services that meet the needs of the people in the community.
– To empower people to take control of their lives and be involved in their communities.
– To provide quality affordable childcare for parents who wish to return to education, take part in a training course or return to the workforce.
– To provide a child centred environment and service, rich in opportunity for children to learn through play.
– To value each child as an individual regardless of culture, social, religious or economic background.
Our vision is to embrace the uniqueness of every child that comes into our care and build strong supportive and respectful relationships with the child and their family which will enable them to flourish to the best of their abilities.
In a warm caring supportive environment, which has a strong emphasis on inclusion and embraces diversity, we offer an age-appropriate, stimulating play-based curriculum which is tailored to meet the individual developmental needs of all our children.
Our team of highly trained enthusiastic professionals view the child as a capable and competent learner and aim to inspire, motivate, encourage, support and enable every child to receive a solid foundation for their future.
|
Early Years Manager |
Catherine Maher |
|
Deputy in the absence of Manager |
Kate Slawatecka |
|
Health and Safety Officer |
Catherine Maher |
|
Fire Officer |
Noel Ryan |
|
First Aid Coordinator |
Catherine Maher |
|
Designated Liaison Officer |
Lynda Stacey |
|
Deputy Designated Liaison Officers |
Catherine Ryan Maher and Kate Slawateksa |
|
Data Controller |
Bagenalstown Family Resource Centre Board of Directors |
|
School-Age Manager |
Kate Slawateksa |
School-Age service caters for Junior Infants to 6th Class from 2 pm to 6 pm, Monday to Friday. The work of School-Age service is based on respect for the rights of children, commitment to their welfare and recognition of the need for each child to fulfil their potential. We offer:
– Supervised bus collection from local schools
– Healthy, nutritious meals
– Supervised homework
– Full programme of fun activities (e.g. Arts & Crafts, Junk modelling, Sensory play, Science experiments, Gardening, Baking and Cookie Decorating, Board games, Construction and Lego, Bingo, Projects, Quizzes, Free play, Outdoor play and much more)
– To provide an after-school programme with a particular emphasis on small group homework support in order to facilitate full participation of children in education (including one-to-one support for children who struggle at times or if English is not their first language)
– To build each child’s sense of independence, self-esteem and responsibility.
– Not to focus on just occupying children safely and productively after school, but on creating a culture of fun that makes the after school hours their favourite time of day.
– To recognise parents as the primary educators of their children and to work in equal and respectful partnership with parents when supporting their child’s development.
Policies and Procedures are available on request.
4 weeks in July; Monday to Friday 10am – 1pm
Examples of what we do:
– Arts & Crafts
– Cookery & Baking
– Music & Dance
– Junk modelling
– Swimming
– Wide range of toys and games
– Chill out zone
– Team building activities
– Sports and outdoor play (hockey, soccer, tennis, basketball, playground, bikes and scooters)
