Following up from our Rough Guide to Statutory Maternity Leave & Pay (for mothers), we follow up with a similar guide for the father (or partner of the mother, including in same-sex relationships). As you’ll see, some of the rules are quite different …
Statutory Paternity Leave
An eligible father/partner of the mother can take just one or two weeks of Statutory Paternity Leave off work when their partner has a baby — so, significantly less than the mother. The length of time they’re entitled to does not increase if twins, triplets or more are born — it remains at 1 or 2 weeks total. It’s also worth noting that the paternity leave needs to be taken in one go, not split up into smaller chunks of time.
We should also clarify what counts as a week. This is however many days they work in an average week in their employment.
Timing
The father, or partner of the mother, must give their employer at least 15 weeks’ advance notice that they wish to take Statutory Paternity Leave. This can be imprecise, however, given that they won’t be 100% certain which day the child(ren) will be born. If they later change the proposed date, employers must be given at least 28 days (4 weeks) notice of the change, made in writing if requested by the employer.
Statutory Paternity Leave must end no later than 8 weeks after the date of the birth (or due date if born early) and must not start until the baby is actually born. Please note that different rules apply for those who are adopting and we do not comprehensively cover those in this article.
Eligibility
To be eligible for Statutory Paternity Leave, the person must be taking time off to look after the child and needs to be:
the child’s father, or- the mother’s husband or partner (including if same-sex), or
- the adopter of the child, or
- if the baby is born through surrogacy, the intended parent.
In addition, the person:
- must be an employee of a company (with an official employment contract);
- must give the correct advance notice (see ‘Timing’ section above);
- must have been working for their employer continuously for 26 or more weeks prior to the 15th week before the baby is due* (N.B. different rules apply for those who are adopting);
- must not have already taken Shared Parental Leave (‘SPL’);
- if adopting, must not have already taken paid time off to attend adoption appointments.
Statutory Paternity Pay
To be eligible for Statutory Paternity Pay, a person needs to:
- earn £120 or more each week, before tax;
- give the correct advance notice to their employer (see ‘Timing’ section above);
- be employed by them right up to the date of the birth;
- have been working for them continuously for 26 or more weeks prior to the 15th week before the baby is due* (N.B. different rules apply for those who are adopting).
* The 15th week before the baby is due is is known as the Qualifying Week.
Those whose income has dropped below an average of £120 per week due to being on furlough during the pandemic may still be eligible.
How Much Do They Get?
An eligible father/partner of the mother will receive the lower of £151.97, or 90% of their average gross weekly earnings, per week. 
The payments are made through their wages by the employer after deducting any tax and National Insurance if due. (Figures correct at September 2021).
Making a Claim
Fathers/partners of the mother can use the same online tool as mothers to check what they’re entitled to. Start here.
Protected Employment Rights
As with mothers, a number of statutory employment rights for the father/partner of the mother are still protected under law. These include rights to possible pay rises, accruing of holiday leave and of returning to work after completion of the paternity leave. Eligible working parents are able to claim several weeks of unpaid parental leave under certain conditions. If met, they are eligible to take 18 weeks off (unpaid, but per child) before their child is 18. Follow the bold link earlier in this paragraph for more information, via our separate post.
Watch this space because we’ll cover the rules around Shared Parental Leave and more in separate, future guides.
An Outstanding Nursery in Streatham SW16
This guide was brought to you by the team at Little Cedars Nursery in Streatham. For parents searching for the best nursery for their child in Streatham, Little Cedars represents a great choice. We offer outstanding weekday childcare in Streatham, also being convenient for those requiring a childcare nursery near Tooting, Furzedown, Streatham Common, Streatham Hill, Streatham Park, Balham, Norbury or Colliers Wood. To book a tour, ask a question or register for a nursery place for your child, please use one of the following options:
Being let loose with coloured paints, art materials and creative opportunities is sure to bring a smile to their faces and a sense of enormous fun, creativity and discovery. No doubt too; they’ll be proud to show others their creations!
As well as being enormous fun, messy play allows children to express themselves in unbounded creative ways. That’s important. Self-expression and creativity will help children to gain a sense of achievement and, through this subtle way, a greater sense of self-worth and confidence.
Hand-eye coordination will also benefit, of course.
We fully understand the many benefits of messy play at Little Cedars Nursery, of course. Indeed, it’s part of the curriculum. Under-fives are encouraged to learn through messy play using an enormous wealth of resources, equipment and materials at the setting. That’s both indoors and in our outside play areas. From paint and paper indoors to sandpits and water play outside, toddlers and preschoolers have a wonderful time with messy play at Little Cedars, all in a safe, structured, fun and educational environment.
Recent studies show that use of connected screens and devices by children, including under-fives, is growing fast. The pandemic appears to have increased kids’ screen use too, as children have spent more time indoors and less time playing ‘in person’ with friends.
Over 75% of children under five have access to a connected device, with up to 60% of preschoolers actually owning their own.
“Parents have always played a huge role in curating what [under-fives] consume and how their time is spent, but toddlers are now confidently navigating digital platforms for themselves, and using touchscreen devices with purpose and determination.” (Childwise)
that the ‘RF wireless radiation’ emitted by Wi-Fi connected screens and devices may carry potential health risks particularly, they argue, for pregnant women, their unborn foetuses and the young. The very young, of course, have brains that are still at a critical development stage. For this reason, the experts concerned advocate that access to devices like mobile phones should be limited, removed from children’s bedrooms at night or, at the very least, placed in Flight Mode when possible. Using devices wired instead of using Wi-Fi apparently reduces risks. Use of them in hands-free mode is another useful approach, so that the devices are not so close to youngsters’ heads. We’re not experts ourselves, but these measures seem like sensible precautions.
While time spent by children on connected screens and devices is rising, it’s not all bad news. The pandemic has also seen an increase in the time that parents have been spending with children, including on shared screen viewing as well as on other pastimes like baking, crafts and family activities. At the end of the day, it’s all about a healthy balance and, of course, adult supervision to ensure children’s wellbeing at all times.
Streatham was the birthplace, home or workplace of a huge number of famous people. Just a few include:
Henry Robertson Bowers, one of the explorers on the ill-fated Terra Nova exploration of the Antarctic with Robert Falcon Scott (better known as Scott of the Antarctic), lived in Streatham and attended Streatham High School for Boys in Pinfold Road.
Super-model Naomi Campbell was born in Streatham in 1970, the maternal daughter of a professional dancer, but never met her father.
Rapper ‘Dave’ Orobosa Omeregie, also known as ‘Santan Dave’ was born in Streatham and has since scored several top-20 records and a number 1 single, as well as winning several high profile awards. One of his top ten singles was even called ‘Streatham’.
The fashion designer John Galliano lived in Streatham from the age of six, until moving later to Dulwich and subsequently other parts of London.
Comedians Eddie Izzard and Paul Merton both have links to Streatham. Eddie used to host a comedy club there, in the White Lion pub. Apparently he often practised his lines when walking around Streatham Common.
007 Actor Roger Moore lived in Streatham, with his then wife Doorn Van Steyn and her family, when he was just 18.
Ken Livingstone was born at 21 Shrubbery Road, Streatham, in 1945 and also later attended the Philippa Fawcett Teacher Training College there. He was an MP, leader of the GLC, and later Mayor of London.
The actor and presenter David Harewood MBE, also lives in Streatham. He is most famous for his role as a CIA operative in the popular American series Homeland.
Even Brad Pitt has connections to Streatham! He was filmed during a fight scene for the movie Snatch at what was then Caesar’s Nightclub at 156 Streatham Hill.
Speaking of The Rolling Stones, Bill Wyman, their bassist, worked for a time as a storekeeper and progress clerk. He earned £11 per week at John A. Sparks, the diesel engineers at Streatham Hill.
June Whitfield, the actress, was born in Streatham in 1925 and later attended Streatham Hill High School.
Famous comedian Tommy Trinder was born at 54 Wellfield Road, Streatham, in 1909. Many will remember him for his catchphrase, “You lucky people!” from the pre- and post-WW2 era.
Another former Prime Minister, John Major, also lived for a time in Streatham with his wife, Norma, at Primrose Court. He had bought the property in 1969.
Despite many dyslexic people being highly intelligent, dyslexia makes it difficult for them to recognise words and/or be able to break them down into their smaller components. It is recognised as a Specific Learning Difficulty (‘SpLD’) and can seriously affect their education if not recognised and addressed early.
Such an affliction can have profound implications for a person. It will adversely affect their reading, writing and comprehension, thereby limiting their overall learning capability and hindering overall literacy. These are particularly critical skills during their early years as that’s at the start of their education, when the knock-on effects of such limiting factors will be at their most significant. It will slow down their progress in many topics and areas of education, also leading potentially to lower self-confidence and possibly even getting them mislabelled as ‘slow’ or ‘lazy’ by the unenlightened. Ultimately, it can severely limit their potential careers and life outcomes.
Children finding it difficult to learn the alphabet;
The child describing words and letters as visually jumbling, blurring or even moving around when they try to read them;
There is no cure for dyslexia, but measures to mitigate its effects can be taken by education professionals, parents, carers and even those affected by it. It’s incredibly important, though, for both parents and education professionals to try to recognise it early, for example at nursery or pre-school, so that a suitable teaching programme can be introduced as early as possible.
Babies benefit enormously from breast milk; from simple, practical considerations to major health benefits, many of which continue to benefit them into adulthood. Let’s take a look:
Breastfeeding also has a range of significant health (and other) benefits for mothers. These include:
The childcare professionals at Little Cedars Nursery are keen to fall in with the wishes of parents when it comes to baby and infant milk. To that end, parents are free to supply 
Also known as complementary feeding, weaning is an important milestone for any parent or baby and usually occurs when the baby reaches the age of about 6 months. Sometimes babies simply tire of milk and weaning thereby comes naturally. In other cases, a baby needs a bit more encouragement to make their transition towards solids. Here, we’ll explore the whole topic of weaning in more detail, including ways parents can help to make the transition smoothly and stress-free for all parties.
Weaning should be fun and it’s also the only time in a child’s life where they won’t have any preconceived ideas about what foods they “do or don’t like”. So, parents can experiment, within reason of course. It’s a time when introducing new foods to the baby comes naturally once the baby has caught on to the idea of this new experience.
Don’t rush it; set aside some time with baby so it’s relaxed, otherwise everyone can get stressed, especially initially.
You can later move on to whole, (adult) finger-sized pieces of very soft fruits that baby can learn to hold. However, do read the Health & Safety Considerations section below before moving to un-mashed foods.
Huge care needs to be taken to avoid giving infants anything that’s going to represent a potential choking hazard. Whole grapes, cherry tomatoes or anything else of a similar size would be examples of this as they are perfectly sized to block a baby’s airway if not first chopped up. Also avoid anything hard like nuts, raw vegetables or un-mashed apple and ensure that any pips/seeds/stones are removed from fruit and bones are removed from fish or meat.
Always try to maintain a varied diet for the infant, so they get all the vitamins and nutrients they need as they intake less and less milk. Ensure the foods contain sufficient iron, which can be sought from fortified cereal, fish, milk, dark green vegetables, lentils and beans. Giving them finger foods to hold and eat themselves is a great way to encourage them to feed themselves (under supervision, of course). As they grow older they can be encouraged to eat at the family table with parents/siblings and eventually upskill to using cutlery, along with eventually learning the rules around good table manners etc.
The EYFS framework sets the statutory approach required for pretty much every aspect of early years childcare and education provision in the UK. The standards cover the learning and development programmes, learning goals, approach to assessment, safeguarding, welfare of children, staffing, and much more. In this guide, however, we’ll focus purely on the 7 key areas of learning and development covered by the EYFS. Essentially, these form the core curriculum at nurseries like Little Cedars Nursery in Streatham. Let’s take a look …
It would be hard to overstate the importance of good communication and language skills, as they underpin early years progress in just about everything else. So, early years providers like Little Cedars encourage two-way interactions and language-rich communications between staff and children right from the outset. Childcare professionals will introduce new vocabulary regularly and help children to understand it and use it themselves through activities like story-telling, role play and question-and-answer sessions. Practitioners will regularly read with (not just to) children, using a wide variety of high quality reading materials, encouraging feedback and engagement from the children as they progress. In this way, new vocabulary is embedded, conversations come naturally and children will thrive in their language and communication skills.
Physical development is, of course, another key skill that is foundational for children. After all, it impacts on health, mobility, strength, fitness, agility, coordination, wellbeing and general happiness. So, great care is taken at nurseries like Little Cedars to help children hone their physical skills and development incrementally, to improve all of the above. This is done through the EYFS programmes that are set and customised for each individual child. Skills like balance, gross and fine motor skills, coordination, spatial awareness, hand/eye coordination, strength and agility will therefore gradually improve and become second nature to each child as they grow. Active children will generally become more healthy children. They will also improve social skills and confidence through the activities that they participate in alongside peers. It is also, of course, great fun!
Health, happiness and even the development of early years cognitive function are all underpinned by children’s personal, social and emotional development (‘PSED’). Indeed, PSED forms the backbone of children’s relationships to all adults and peers around them — and also governs how they feel they fit in. That’s all incredibly important, so childcare settings like Little Cedars Nursery approach PSED as a ‘prime’ element within the EYFS curriculum. The result is that children are supported and support one another, they learn how to manage emotions and behaviours, how to eat healthy diets, look after themselves physically, and independently manage their own personal needs. All of this will have the knock-on effect of improving confidence and self-esteem and even allow them to set some of their own goals. Close bonds will be made with both staff and other children and conflicts will be more easily resolved peaceably.
Reading and writing are crucial elements within every child’s education. Without these skills, learning about other topics would become much more difficult. Literacy is therefore a key area of focus within the EYFS learning and development framework. Like other nurseries, pre-schools and childcare settings that adhere to the EYFS approach, Little Cedars Nursery will therefore endeavour to encourage a love of reading within every child. Reading teaches children to comprehend language, vocabulary, grammar and spelling as well as learning more about the underlying topics themselves.
Nurseries, pre-schools, kindergartens and other childcare settings also recognise the importance of mathematics within children’s learning and development. The EYFS curriculum caters well for this, encouraging early years professionals to help children master counting first to 10 and later to 20 and beyond. Children will learn the patterns around numbers, including recognition of odd and even numbers, along with skills like simple addition and subtraction, and the ability to recognise low quantities without having to count. They will also learn to recognise when one quantity is more than, less than or equal to another. In so doing, children will also learn the vocabulary around mathematics in readiness for school once they leave their early years setting.
A good early years education is nothing unless children understand the world around them. The EYFS framework used by early years nurseries like Little Cedars builds in programmes to help children learn more about the world. This includes helping them to learn how to observe, recognise, describe and even draw what’s immediately around them as well as exposing them to environments like the natural world, local parks and museums. It even teaches them to recognise similarities and differences between other cultures, religions and communities in the UK and lives being lived abroad. They will get to know more about people’s roles in society too, for example through visits from police officers, firefighters and nurses. A broad range of written material (both fiction and non-fiction) will inform them further. Topics explored will touch on culture, technology, ecology, religion, community, nature and much, much more. This will enrich their knowledge and understanding of the world they live within, giving context to what they see, hear and read about as they grow older.
Expressive arts and design are also integral elements within the EYFS curriculum. Early years childcare settings like Little Cedars ensure that children are given a wide range of opportunities to be creative and to free their imaginations. A huge variety of media, materials, tools and activities can be used by children to express themselves and communicate both visually and audibly. Colour, texture, form and function are explored along with opportunities for role play, story-telling, poetry, singing, performance and even dancing when appropriate.
Little Cedars Nursery (Streatham) uses the EYFS framework to shape the educational activities and programmes that babies and children experience at the nursery. Part of this includes the setting of learning goals that each child needs to work towards as they gradually approach the age of 5, when they will move on to school. These are individual goals, tailored to the unique needs, interests, abilities – and any disabilities – of each individual child. A continuous regime of assessment will be undertaken by staff to monitor each child’s progress during their time with the nursery, with the learning programme adjusted, as necessary, along the way. A ‘Key Person’, allocated to each child, facilitates that assessment proactively. Additionally, staff will regularly engage with parents or carers/guardians to ensure that progress towards the learning and development goals is continued at home, wherever possible. Progress is communicated and a learning journal retained and available to parents at any time. In this way, each child achieves personal bests in all areas and everyone is kept up-to-date with the child’s progress.
In April last year, we published a compelling article about 
Reading with children also makes the task less daunting, particularly for the youngest children. Reading together also makes it more interesting and more fun. When it’s more interesting and more fun, the child is going to enjoy it more and naturally want to read more often — eventually independently — and all of that is priceless as part of their education and general knowledge going forwards. Reading can also bring parent and child closer through the time spent together. It can be great fun for the adult too, particularly when the child gets older and adults are exposed to classic children’s books that perhaps they were not, themselves, exposed to when they were young.
The Nuffield Foundation’s mission is to advance social wellbeing and educational opportunity. In a partnership with the University of Newcastle, the foundation funded a deep study
It will come as no surprise, therefore, to learn that we put all of the above into practice at Little Cedars Nursery in Streatham. Getting closely involved in children’s reading, using a huge variety of reading material in an interactive way, gives our nursery children the very best start in life. Indeed, our childcare professionals prepare them thoroughly for school by the time they leave us. They take with them reading, writing, literacy, language, vocabulary and self-expression skills in the process — and all this accomplished at least in part through guided reading.