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Since 2007 we have been successively providing Flying Start child care. Flying Start is one of the Welsh Government's top priorities as part of its Tackling Poverty agenda. This provision is a targeted service for those families living in the most disadvantaged area. 

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Children are eligible to attend from the term after their second birthday until the end of term after their third birthday. Flying Start Health Visitors refer children into the provision and the Flying Start committee allocate childcare spaces. Each child is entitled to attend for 12.5 hours per week over a 5 day period for 39 weeks of the year. Flying Start is a structured progamme to help children gain opportunities through play, to make choices, initiate learning, become increasingly independent and begin to explore experiment and develop their own potential and capabilities. 

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Staff in the Flying Start setting have many years' experience and are highly qualified in the childcare field. They have worked in the setting for between 10 and 28 years and show great commitment to looking after and nurturing children in their care. 

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Infant/Toddler Environmental Rating Scale (ITERS-R)

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In 2014, Flying Start introduced the Infant/Toddler Environmental Rating Scale (ITERS-R) into all settings including The Venture Early Years Centre.

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A programme of the FPG Child Development Institute of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, ITERS-R is a standardised quality assessment tool used by Wrexham Flying Start that focusses on the following areas of childcare provision: 

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• Space and furnishings

• Personal care routines

• Listening and talking

• Activities

• Interaction

• Programme structure

• Parents and staff

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It entails an unannounced inspection by two or sometimes three Flying Start advisory teachers. Following the inspection a report is produced scoring each area of our provision. Since its introduction we have been subject to 3 inspections in 2014, 2015 & 2016. Following the 2016 inspection we received a favourable 6 out of 7 resulting in our setting not needing another inspection until 2019.