OUR POLICIES

Preface

All parents and children have the right to have their child in a SAFE and positive environment that allows children the ability to grow socially and academically while being free from stress or bodily harm. We do not tolerate children who exhibit out of control, destructive, biting, hitting behavior or refusal to follow rules. We must consider everyone's needs, happiness and family satisfaction. While every child learns at their own individual level, we ask that parents consider their child's social and development level before considering them for preschool. Safety is our top priority for all children and staff.

You are paying for an enrollment slot and not for attendance, therefore Little Explorers Nursery does not refund paid child care services fees for holidays, staff development, illness, vacation, discontinuation of child care services or the delay, closing, cancellation of days or reduction of operating hours due to inclement weather, public health concerns (e.g., Covid-!) or staffing availability. Little Explorers Nursery will not prorate fees for discontinuation of services within the academic term period or summer term period. More details may be found below, we ask that parents fully understand our transparent policy before proceeding with registration. For further clarification, you may contact our administration team.

Nursery & Program Dates and Timings

Just like adults, children feel more secure and confident when their daily activities are predictable and familiar. A consistent daily schedule and step-by-step routines give children a predictable day, and has been proven to reduce stress, increase confidence and give children a sense of security. While we are flexible within our daily routines once our day starts in nursery, we are strict in our timings at arrival and for dismissal.

Timing is very important for us and we ask that parents get their children to nursery on time. We recommend you drop off your child 10 to 15 minutes early for settling in. Children enrolled in our program must not arrive later than 8:00 AM as our gates are locked at 8:15 AM sharp. In case you need to drop your child off late, we kindly request you inform administration in advance. Failure to do so may result in non-admittance for the day. Late arrivals are disruptive to the group your child is in, and the staff, and may be a difficult transition if tardiness is a continuous habit.

Our dismissal time is at 12:30 PM and the end of the day is just as important to us as the start of the day. Early pick ups must have a valid excuse and advanced notice given so our team may prepare the child for early dismissal.

Our core nursery hours are 8:00 AM to 12:30 PM. We understand that working parents may require before and after hours’ care, therefore we have extended hours from 6:00 AM to 5:00 PM:

Before Care Services - You may drop your child off as early as 7:30 AM, but any care required between 6:00 AM and 7:30 AM is part of our Before Care services and is at a fee.
After Care Services - You may collect your child after 1:00 PM, but any care required between 1:00 PM and 5:00 PM is part of our After Care services and is at a fee.

Children not registered in the Before / After Care Program that are dropped off earlier than 7.30 a.m and /or picked up later than 5.00 p.m. will be charged additional fees to be settled by the next day’s attendance.

Please refer to the nursery calendar to avoid any confusion on term dates and times.

Attendance

In case your child will not be attending nursery due to, but not limited to: illness, travel, did not sleep well, etc, parents are responsible for informing administration the reason of the absence and the number of days the child will not be attending nursery, when possible.

Registration & Fees

Parents must submit all required documents and settle ALL fees (Registration / Tuition) before or on the day their child begins sessions at LEN. Please note that all fees are non-refundable and non-transferable for any reason including holidays, absences or enforced closures out of the nursery’s control. Upon joining, the Annual Registration Fee, Term Fee, term optional extra care (Before Care and/or After Care) and Uniform Fees are due in advance. Payment of the full term's fee is a confirmation of a place for your child(ren) at LEN. We ask that you are certain of your child attending our program as after payment is received, there are no refunds. There are no reduction in fees for absences of any reason whatsoever as our fees are per the term and not on a daily / weekly / monthly basis, even if a monthly installment is accepted or by any other methods.*

Annual Academic Registration Fees (September to May) and Summer Registration Fees (June to August) are included for all children and must be paid in order to secure your child's seat. These fees are due annually for new and returning students, are non-refundable and non-transferable and due upon submission of your child's registration within 48 hours. Failure to pay the fee will result in cancellation of the submitted application form.

Little Explorers Nursery charges an academic year tuition (Term 1, 2 and 3 from September to May) with payments due at the beginning of each term. Tuition fees may be paid for the entire year in one lump sum or through term payment installments. You are paying for an academic enrollment slot and not for attendance. Tuition fees exclude the cost of uniforms, curriculum, field trips, before / afternoon care, or evening baby sitting. Tuition fees for each term must be paid via bank transfer.

Although we are open more days in some months than in others, there are no adjustments or transfers in fees (we close for a portion of some term for breaks, government announced holidays and staff development when declared necessary). Therefore, Little Explorers Nursery does not refund paid child care services fees for holidays, staff development, illness, vacation, discontinuation of child care services or the delay, closing, cancellation of days or reduction of operating hours due to inclement weather, public health concerns (e.g., Covid-!) or staffing availability which would put the health and safety of the children at risk and an enforced closure out of the nursery’s control. In case of a shutdown beyond our control for a period of 10 school days or more, learning packets for all age groups provided online will be substituted in lieu of fees paid for that period. Fees will not be carried over into a subsequent term or year.

If it is found that any information provided within the application form is misleading or false, Little Explorers Nursery reserves the right to withdraw the child from the nursery without refund. Any known developmental or issues must be reported as this may have an impact on your child’s attendance within the program. Little Explorers Nursery does not specialize or cater to children with special needs such as but not limited to ADHD, Autism, Cognitive Disorders, Physical Disabilities or Learning Disabilities. The Ministry of Social Development, Oman may provide a recommendation of reputable institutes that are able to cater to those special needs or cases.

Late Registrations

If a child joins anytime during the academic year and a place has already been reserved from the beginning of the year, the full tuition fees for the term unattended from the beginning of the academic year are payable. If a child joins late in the academic year, the fees for the entire term are due and are not pro-rated.

Withdrawal from the Nursery

Little Explorers Nursery requires a written withdraw notice 30 days in advance via email (admin@littleexplorersoman.com) and fees are required to be paid whether the child attends the final 30 days or not. Please note that a verbal notification or telephone/WhatsApp message to any member of staff is not considered a formality/formal notice of withdrawal. Upon receipt of the written withdraw notice, the child's seat will be made available to an alternate student. If your child would like to rejoin LEN within the academic year in which the withdraw was made, a 50 OMR re-registration fee will be required and is subject to availability of seat. Absence of 7 days without formal notification will be assumed as as a withdraw and seat will be made available to an alternate child.

Little Explorers Nursery will not prorate fees for discontinuation of services within the academic term period or summer term period. If a child withdraws at any time or does not join LEN for any reason during Terms 1-3 or the Summer Term, the Registration Fee and/or Tuition Fee as well as other optional services are NON-refundable.

Staff

Our staff are prohibited in sharing their personal contact details and addresses with parents or students. Any general form of communication or query may be done via our app, telephone, email or face to face with our administration. In case you would like to contact your child's teacher directly, you may do so via the application or contact administration to set up a face-to-face meeting.

Cash gifts or tips are prohibited to be given to any member of staff at Little Explorers Nursery.

Transportation

Little Explorers Nursery does not coordinate or arrange any third party or private transportation services. Little Explorers Nursery holds no liability for transportation for your child sought and utilized by a private or third party. If you so choose to utilize this service, we recommend you have confirmed that the bus driver has appropriate children’s car seat or booster seat and is fully insured in case of any accident. Drivers, nannies or bus drivers must collect the child from the gate for safety and are responsible for signing your child in and out using their own pin code assigned to them for the application.

Uniforms

Uniforms are mandatory for all children at Little Explorers Nursery. The uniform consists of:

a pull over shirt with LEN logo to be worn Sunday to Wednesday, and
a sports uniform to be worn on Thursdays.

Uniforms can be purchased from the Nursery Office and may be exchanged with 24 hours of purchase, provided they are in brand new condition.

All children must wear socks and shoes that are easy to remove as we have a no-shoe indoor policy due to hygiene. No flip-flops or beach sandals allowed! Failure to comply by the uniform policy will result in children being sent home.

Nutrition & Food Safety

We hold a strict NO-Nut (including NO Nutella) policy. We ask that parents that snacks do not include any type of nuts or nut spreads, and no sesame (including sesame seeds, oil, tahina…etc). The safety of all the children at the nursery is a priority and parents must comply with our No Nut and No Sesame Policies.

Parents must notify us if their child has any specific food allergy. Please note that Little Explorers Nursery will not be held liable for any accidental / intentional ingestion, skin exposure, etc. of foodstuff or other substances / allergens of a child with known or unknown allergies. Our premise does not have a school nurse on staff, nor do we keep an epi-pen for such instances. In case of an emergency allergic reaction, 9999 will be called for an ambulance first and parents / emergency contacts will be called immediately thereafter.

All containers and bottles sent in are to be clearly labeled with your child's full name and containers and bottles are not to be glass.

Toys/Jewellery

Toys from home are not allowed. The nursery has plenty of toys and resources for the children that are sanitized daily. Dangling earrings, necklaces rings, bracelets, ankle bracelets, pendants, etc. are prohibited. Little Explorers Nursery cannot be held responsible for the loss of any toy or jewellery nor will the nursery hold any responsibility of a child being injured from wearing jewellery to nursery. Your child's safety is a priority and we urge parents not to send children wearing jewellery.

Potty Training

All children 3 years and older must be potty trained to join or continue at Little Explorers Nursery. Our assistants and teachers will work with your child up to the age of 3 to encourage them, however due to the nature of our program and the transitions to groups, it is essential your child is not in nappies, pampers or pull-ups at the age of 3. While we will work with your child on training, we ask that the same consistency and plan is followed through at home for potty training success. If your child is not fully potty trained by the age of 3 and must transition to the next age group, the child must complete training at home and then return to nursery. There is no refund, transfer of or prorating for the fees for potty training at home.

No Aggression Behaviour Policy

LEN stands by a non-aggressive behavior policy, this includes any sort of bullying, physical abuse and biting. If after all steps have been taken in the Aggressive Behaviour Policy without resolution, a notice to withdraw will be documented and sent in person or via email and the supervising authorities will be informed. Tuition fees will not be refunded.

Aggressive parents or visitors will not be tolerated at any point and will be asked to be removed from the premises immediately. We do not tolerate verbal or physical abuse at Little Explorers Nursery. Repeated offense(s) may result in the child’s parent/family member to be denied access to any part of the premises and the child withdrawn without any refund whatsoever.

Sickness, Medication & Medical Emergencies

Children who are ill should not be brought to nursery with any one of the following:

A cough or runny nose,
a temperature of 37.7c,
vomiting or diarrhoea occurring more than once in a 24 hour period,
a contagious disease such as but not limited to: chicken pox, pink eye, strep throat or hand-foot-mouth disease,
an unidentified rash or constant thick colored nasal discharge.

Parents are responsible to inform administration of an absence with the reason (even if there is no illness, but the child is just staying home via messaging in the application used). If a child is ill, a 24 hour period of full recovery is required before returning from nursery.

If any child with a sign of runny nose, cough or sneezing starts after being dropped off at nursery, they will be separated from their group and parents will be asked to come pick them up. Little Explorers Nursery staff will not administer any medication (over the counter or prescribed by a doctor) unless a written consent form is submitted with specific instructions. Staff will not administer any amount over the recommended dosage as specified on the medication prescription or bottle for the child's age/weight. Medication prescribed by a doctor must be brought in its original container with the child's name and dosage information and instructions clearly marked.

A student who has been prescribed antibiotics may return to nursery as per the following:

24 hours after the first dose has been administered without any adverse reactions (allergic reaction of any sort including but not limited to vomiting, diarrhea, etc)
AND 24 hours have passed fever free.

In the event that the nursery is required to administer any form of medication to a child, parents must contact a member of our Admin Team to explain the nature of their child’s ailment, as well as fill in our Medication Authorization Form which is available at this link https://www.littleexplorersoman.com/medform

In the event of a medical emergency requiring urgent care, parents and any emergency contact person in your child’s file will be contacted. In the event of no-contact, we will contact an ambulance to transport your child to the nearest health center or hospital. Any incurred fees for transport / treatment / medication are the parents responsibility.

Overall, it is important that children show visible signs of improvement and is well enough to return back to nursery.

Personal Hygiene

Children brought with head lice will be sent home for treatment until the nits / eggs have been removed. Staff at Little Explorers Nursery will not cut the nails of any of the children. Instead, if nails are observed to be too long, a notification will be posted to inform parents through Procare or WhatsApp.

Indemnity

Any members of Little Explorers staff, supervisors, teachers, assistants, caregivers, directors, shareholders, volunteers, nannies or owners of the nursery have no responsibility of any nature in respect of bodily injury to a child under any one of these circumstances during a free trial or after your child has been registered:

Prior to actual delivery of our child into the custody of the said teachers or officials inside Little Explorers Nursery grounds, or after our child has been collected from the Little Explorers Nursery grounds by us or a person authorized by us to do so on a normal nursery day.
While on the Little Explorers Nursery grounds before or after the official timings.
At any other time, unless our child is in the direct custody or control of the one said teachers, or on a recognized Little Explorers Nursery outings or function arranged by Little Explorers Nursery.
Unless the injury is cause by or resulting from: The neglectful act or omission of any employee, teacher or other person or persons authorized to act for or on behalf of Little Explorers Nursery or any defect on the premises of Little Explorers Nursery.

Child Protection

In the toddler stage of development, particular concerns may arise and should be brought to the parents attention in which they may seek third party evaluation, opinion and support. In the event that a child’s teacher or a member of staff has a concern about a child’s development, administration will be informed and a meeting will be set up with the child’s parents as necessary to discuss the concerns. A child’s development, and any discussions around this, are kept confidential.

The safety and wellbeing of the children at Little Explorers Nursery is our number one priority. An oral report shall be immediately made by telephone or otherwise to the nursery administration who will call the local office of Ministry of Social Development and/or the Royal Oman Police in the event:

A staff at Little Explorers Nursery has reasonable cause to believe that any child with whom they have come into contact with has suffered abuse, or
That any child with whom the employee comes into contact with has abused a child.

Media

Little Explorers Nursery may hire 3rd party photographers and/or staff to photograph and/or film children attending Little Explorers during his / her learning. These media files may be used for LEN’s online / social media and printed publications / advertisements / displays and these files shall be deemed to be Little Explorers Nursery property. Parents may submit a written request to admin@littleexplorersoman.com should they decline to have photographs of their child shared on any social media platforms or Little Explorers Nursery website. We are sorry, but if a post has been published on Instagram prior to your request to decline use of photos of your child on social media, we are unable to remove or amend that post. Any other channel of communication will not be accepted as a formal request.

CCTV

As per the regulations set forth by the Ministry of Social Development, all areas of LEN including the outdoor playground, outdoor parking lot and classrooms are monitored via CCTV. The CCTV equipment is used to provide a safer, more secure environment for the children, parents and staff who use our setting; as well as protecting the property and equipment. The equipment is accessible by authorized staff only and images / videos are restricted. Due to privacy laws, we do not allow access or share any videos for any reason whatsoever; we respect the privacy of the children and our staff. Digital recordings are made using a digital recorder operating in real time mode, monitoring the setting continuously 24 hours a day. Images will normally be retained for 30 days from the date of recording, and then automatically recorded over.

If a request is made to view footage of a child due to a concern, a formal request with justified reason in writing is to be presented to administration for consideration of approval.

Termly Evaluations and Graduation

There are 3 terms per academic year, and written evaluations of your child’s progress will be provided at the end of each term. Reports are not provided in two instances:

during Summer Camp (from June to August), and
to children who have attended our Little Explorers group (aged 42 months+) for less than 2 months.

There are also 2 scheduled parent/teacher conference days (also known as portfolio days) per academic year; one in Term 1 and one in Term 3. Please note that you may request a conference at any time throughout the academic year as necessary.

A graduation ceremony for the Little Explorers group is held at the end of every academic year. Only children who have attended our Little Explorers group of children (aged 42 months+) will participate in the graduation ceremony. Children who are leaving Little Explorers Nursery prior to entering the Little Explorers group, to honour the start date/age of another school, will not be allowed to participate in the graduation ceremony.

Use of Resources & Equipment

Parents will be charged for any lost or damaged Little Explorers Nursery resources including borrowed books and equipment.

Amendment to Policies

Management and Shareholders reserve the right to change policies at any time.