Blog

Mini Explorers Childcare – Keira Gilbert

I started my childminding journey in January 2020 just before the first lockdown. While I absolutely love working with children, I decided that becoming my own boss meant I had the power to implement changes to my practice I had been wanting to do for years but was always met with criticism. I needed to slow down for myself and for the children, especially during the most challenging obstacle we had ever faced: a worldwide pandemic. I wanted to have the facts and skills to be able to implement this new vision and respond to criticism in an informed and positive way. I compared myself too much to nurseries I had previously worked on and was stuck in a loop of trying to churn out huge activities one after another through the day to appease what I thought parents would be looking for. As well as this I was spending almost all my earnings on the latest toys and trends to keep the children happy.

The vision I had for my setting was one that valu...

In this case study (taken from the Autumn Conference) Nikki shares with us how she transformed her nursery. 

Reflection is a huge part of Early Years practice – from

the beginning of our training journey we are encouraged

to evolve and develop our own professional identity, by

exploring practice, making mistakes, and learning how to

be more effective in our roles. This principle is something

that truly is at the heart of the Lullabies ethos, and we

have recently embarked on our own journey as a team.

Lullabies Nursery and Pre-School opened in 2016, in the

centre of Glenfield, Leicestershire. The old Georgian

building lends itself perfectly to a nursery environment and

we worked hard to keep some of the original features to

stay true to the character of the building. We have four

classrooms across two floors as well as 3 outdoor areas for

the children to access, including a forest school. As the

nursery enters its third year our nursery Proprietor, Emma

Platnauer and nursery Manager, Chelsie Shaw, were keen

to reflect on the nursery’s journey so far, and our vision for

the fut...

I feel very fortunate to do the job that I do; work with a range of early educators and support them in their reflections to move practice forward. It’s great to see the transformation a setting has had after working so hard on areas of their practice.

Today I had the chance to visit one of the wonderful local nurseries I’ve been working with for the last year. This was a chance to hear and see the progress they’ve made in not only their ethos but how this has translated into their learning environment.

Emma is an inspirational leader who also leads with a love-based leadership style. Making sure she invests time in getting to know each member of her team and giving them opportunities to lead in areas that are their strength. At the same time, she also understands the importance of supporting staff and has a clear system in place for professional development. Over the last year the team have worked hard on creating a shared and consistent ethos across the three rooms of th...