How do I start the enrolment process? Come to the Kidsfirst Kindergarten you'd like your child to attend and we'll take you through the enrolment process and answer any questions you may have. At what age should I enrol my child at Kidsfirst?
It's never too early to enrol your child. Some parents even choose to enrol their children as soon as they're born! The majority of parents enrol their child at the time of enquiry, although you can enrol your child at any time. Your child must be enrolled before he or she can attend kindergarten. Can I look around the kindergarten before I enrol my child?
You're very welcome to come and check things out before enrolling your child. It's a good opportunity to see what goes on at kindergarten and to ask any questions you may have. Will I have to fill in any forms, in order to enrol my child?
Just an enrolment form with your child's details that you can take away to complete and return to us. Do I have to pay any money at the time of enrolment?
No, you do not need to pay anything in order to enrol your child at one of our kindergartens. Will my child be put on a waiting list? What happens next?
Your child must be enrolled in order to go onto a Kidsfirst waiting list. However, you cannot sign your child up for more than one waiting list at a time. Children are placed on the list according to their date of birth. This means that priority will be given to the oldest children on the waiting list first, even though some children may have been on it for a longer period of time. Remember that not all of our kindergartens will have a waiting list. Parents will be notified when their child can become a 'kindy kid' by phone, letter or email. How long will my child have to wait?
The time that a child will spend on a waiting list will vary from kindergarten to kindergarten. It will depend on how much demand there is for places at any particular kindergarten at that time. Spaces usually become available when attending children turn 5. Sometimes this means that there can be a number of spaces that come up in a short period of time as children head off to school, and at other times there may be a longer wait. We want to make it easy for your child to come to Kidsfirst. We're a not-for-profit community-based organisation. Ko tō mātou hiahia kia ngāwari noa te haere mai a tō tamaiti ki Kidsfirst. He whakahaere ā-hapori kore aru-moni mātou. We know that sometimes cost can be an issue. At Kidsfirst we aim to keep our charges as low as we possibly can...to encourage children to come to our kindy and enjoy a learning experience that will be of benefit to them for the rest of their lives. It's important to us that as many Canterbury and Westland children as possible get to be 'kindy kids'. For that reason, Kidsfirst is a community-based, not-for-profit organisation.
Right now, if you use your 20 Hours ECE with us, it will cost you nothing for your child to come to us for extra hours (up to six hours per day), if places are available. You can find out more HERE.
Please talk directly to our teachers for more details, or call us on 0800 4 KIDSFIRST (0800 454 373).
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