Dear Parents
Yet another summer has passed by very quickly and we have had some extremely hot weather to deal with over the summer months. Amazingly, after just a couple of weeks with some cooler air and rain, all the gardens and fields are back to our usual vibrant green! We hope everyone managed to have some lovely holidays this summer too. We have had a very busy few months here at Millfield enjoying our sports days and lots of other activities. We have also welcomed visitors linked to People who Help us.
As always, several new children have joined us here at Millfield in the main nursery and in Millfield Babies over the summer months. We send everyone a big welcome to Millfield and we are delighted that you have joined us.
Now that the autumn is approaching and the mornings are already beginning to feel quite damp, we do still like to take the children for walks in our fields behind the nursery. The grass can be quite wet at this time of year so if you would like your child to join in with the walks, please bring a pair of named wellies along for the winter months. We do have lots of spare pairs so children can always borrow a pair if necessary!
With kind regards
Liz and John Miller
Our autumn topic focus will begin with Harvest Festival followed by ‘All about me’.
From the end of October we will spend the rest of the Autumn Term focusing on ‘Festivals’ - there are so many festivals and events during the Autumn Term: Diwali, Halloween, Bonfire Night, Children in Need and finally Christmas. The staff are planning some lovely activities with the children as always and please see the link to our website calendar at the end of this newsletter for more information. We usually send emails out before each event too as a reminder. Our ongoing ‘Growing’ topic in the main nursery will continue throughout the winter months as usual.
Over the summer, the children have been planting sunflowers, sweet peas, strawberries, tomatoes, cucumbers and lots of other vegetables including pumpkins for Halloween! The children really learn so much from this wonderful activity and it is so beneficial for them to learn where some of our food comes from (not just the supermarket!!). They have also understood the importance of keeping all our plants well watered!! The very hot weather we have experienced this summer has meant that watering became a daily job. Everyone has been very keen to try the fruit and vegetables we have grown and we have had courgettes and cucumbers every week.
We will be continuing all the other lovely activities that the children enjoy, including our ‘Woodland Explorers’ sessions in our copse in the fields and which will be organised by Miss Lauren.
Thank you so much to everyone for coming along to support the children at our two sports days in July. With early starts in the morning, we managed to avoid a lot of the very hot temperatures which increased as the day went on!
Well done to all the parents who valiantly took part in the parent races too.
The children all performed admirably and were all presented with medals and a big thank you to Miss Kat, our weekly sports coach for running the events for us.
We had thought all the road works on Tythby Road had been completed, however for the last few weeks there has been a sign at each end of the lane advising that major resurfacing work will be carried out in 2026.
We have been in touch with VIA East Midlands for further information and we have been advised that the work will be taking place between 9th and 27th November 2026.
VIA's operations manager has said that the road will be closed for resurfacing. They are aware that we need to remain operational throughout and have advised that they will liaise with us while they are here to advise which end of the lane you will need to enter each day. They are aware that our busiest times are between 8.00am and 9.00am, then 5.00pm and 6.00pm. The main inconvenience will be when they are working outside the property so we will be keeping in close contact with VIA for any arrangements they will make for us all. Once they are past the nursery, you will all be able to access Millfield from the opposite end to where they are working
We will keep you all informed regularly about the access arrangements and hopefully once completed, the lane will be pothole free!!
WOODLAND EXPLORERS for the children in the main nursery: The copse in our second field has matured beautifully now into a lovely woodland area and we are continuing with our ‘Woodland Explorers’ sessions each week. The children will build on their confidence skills and begin to think about nature and how it is so important to us. They will have a chance to further develop their social skills. We know it is vital to children’s development that they get to experience what the great outdoors has to offer and so we are very excited to explore its possibilities further!
BAKING in the main nursery and Millfield Babies: We will continue to offer baking sessions as this is another hugely beneficial activity for the children to enjoy. Baking encourages children’s thinking, problem solving and creativity. It also allows children the opportunity to use the knowledge they have and apply it by counting, measuring, following a sequence, following directions and cause and effect. Baking with children helps their development in many ways – not only does it prepare then for later life but it helps build their confidence, their academic skills (maths, literacy and science) and we get something really yummy at the end!
SINGING in the main nursery and Millfield Babies: The daily singing of songs and nursery rhymes is important for children to learn new words, develop their non-verbal communication skills and boost their language, communication and literacy skills. Children begin to understand how words are formed and it enables them to copy actions. Singing promotes early maths skills, develops children’s social skills and they earn about different beats and rhythms. It provides excellent opportunities for children to value language and become confident learners. It can create a close relationship between adults and children
MULTISPORT SESSIONS for the children in the main nursery: Our weekly multisport sessions for the older children will begin again after a break in August. Urban Movement Primary operate the sessions for us and Kat Plimmer the company owner runs them – Miss Kat is very popular with the children. They are on Tuesday and Friday mornings from 9.15am – 11.15am.
As we move towards the autumn and winter months, we know that we will start to see more childhood ailments returning. This is just a reminder of our policy and also important information for new families to Millfield.
Respiratory infections are common in children and young people, particularly during the winter months. Children with mild symptoms such as a runny nose, sore throat, or mild cough, who are otherwise well, can continue to attend nursery.
Children who are unwell and have a high temperature should stay at home and where possible avoid contact with other
people. They can return to nursery when they no longer have a high temperature and they are well enough.
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a common cause of coughs and colds. RSV infections usually get better by
themselves, but can sometimes be serious for babies and older adults. RSV infections are very common and almost
all children get them at least once before they’re 2 years old. They’re not usually serious, but some babies and adults have
a higher risk of getting seriously ill. See the NHS link below for full information: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/respiratory-syncytial-virus-rsv/
Other childhood ailments – there are many different ailments that young children can suffer from. See the NHS link below for more information:
https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/is-my-child-too-ill-for-school/
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/rashes-babies-and-children/
Finally, we do follow a strict policy as advised by the NHS with regard to exclusions for vomiting and diarrhoea bugs. These bugs spread rapidly and because of this, we do ask that children are kept at home for 48 hours (two days) after the last time they were either sick or had the diarrhoea. We appreciate that this does seem a long time, however due to the nature of how young children play together with lots of close contact with each other and staff, we do need to ensure that everyone at Millfield remains fit and healthy including the whole staff team so that we can remain open at all times. Thank you for your cooperation.
Finally, we have been asked by a local GP practice to circulate information about their pharmacy and how they can support families with lots of childhood ailments without the need to make a GP appointment.
We had a very exciting morning back in July when two police officers very kindly visited Millfield and brought a police van with them. The children had a wonderful time trying on the police uniforms and hats, sitting in the police van and sitting in the drivers seat.
Very many thanks to PC Caroline Voce and her colleague who kindly gave their time to visit us.
Our youngest children have had a busy summer time too and enjoyed lots of outdoor activities. Our air conditioning in the new Millfield Babies has proved extremely beneficial this year! Welcome to all the new families who have joined Millfield Babies this September!
We always have an abundance of apples on the trees in the front garden of the car park. It is such a shame to throw them away so please help yourselves to the fallen apples or ones on the trees if you are keen on home baking or like apple sauce! The trees are both the James Grieves apple variety which starts out crisp, sharp, and tangy in early September, then softens and sweetens into a rich, aromatic dessert apple later in the month.
