Attachment

Secure attachment is vital to learning and brain development, feeling safe and secure allows children to focus on activities and exploring. Without attachment children within early years settings would always be focused on fight or flight and would never be comfortable to show who they or begin to investigate their surroundings.

First attachments are with parents, that consistent role of protection and providing for their child enables a strong bond. Often attending nursery can be one of the first situations where the child is with other people. This can at first be distressing for both parents and children but is also essential for school readiness.

Within a nursery setting each child would have a key worker, this is where the child makes a stronger bond with a particular member of staff of which they are able to seek comfort and find security. Generally, children who attend nursery build a good bond with every member of staff but at first it is important that each child has an understanding that they are able to find initial comfort from one person in particular. Generally, this bond is at its strongest in the 0-2 years rooms as those children need the most support with health care routines and have minimal independent skills. As children grow and progress in to the older rooms the emotional bond is still made, and children will seek our team members for support and reassurance, but the team are not needed as much for support with independent skills.

Without this early support from nurseries the transition from home straight in to school can often cause difficulties for the children, the teachers and parents. Children who have not attended nursery simply do not understand why they have always been with parents or carers and are now attending school. This can cause delay in early education that in many cases children will not be able to catch up to their peers.