"At Playmates we realise our
Pre-school is only as strong as the passion and dedication of our team of outstanding staff."
Each staff member is valued within our setting and is regularly reviewed, to ensure they are happy within their roles. We spend a lot of time providing opportunities for them to enhance their skills and qualifications, to ensure the Playmates' environment is fun, safe and stimulating.
Each Keyworker gets to know their individual children and their families, so we can offer a more personal service, and parents feel confident that their child is making the most of their time with us by regular detailed reports.
All staff supervising the children are qualified to Level 3 or above in childcare (with the exception of our apprentices) and we are all qualified in paediatric first aid.
Gail is our longest serving member of staff and has been with us since 2002. Gail supports Playmates by ensuring all the legal and business side of childcare is covered, so everyone else can concentrate on the children's care and education. She also supports the staff in HR to ensure everyone is thriving within their role. Gail is probably the first person you will speak to when you contact us.
Marrilynn is our Pre-school Leader and has been with us since 2006. She oversees all the Pre-school staff in the day-to-day running of activities and ensures every room is being utilised effectively. Marrilynn is also our Designated Safeguarding Lead and has attended training to identify and deal with any child protection issues. She has also attended training on the SEND-Co and Inclusion Manager role and ensures our Pre-school is available to all children regardless of their abilities and background.
Kellie is our Deputy Pre-school Leader and our SEND-Co-ordinator for children needing a little extra support within the setting. Kellie leads the YELLOW Circles Group and is excellent at making lots of noise and/or mess with her exciting activities and ideas. Marrilynn and Kellie work closely together, to ensure all of our families are being supported with our Keyworkers, activities, funding and outside agencies.
Karen has been with us since the beginning of 2016 and is very effective at supporting the more sensitive children who take a little extra time to settle in. She came to us with lots of experience, training and knowledge from her past 12 years in a similar role and has proved to be a very effective member of the team. Karen leads the RED Rectangles Group.
Charlotte joined us in 2018 from another full day care setting, to help us offer a more diverse service with longer opening hours. She is qualified to Level 5 and has completed her Early Years Foundation Degree at the University of Northampton. Charlotte runs our ORANGE Stars Group in the Cabin which is a dedicated area to our 2-year-olds. Charlotte provides appropriate sensory activities suitable for the younger children, which can be adapted and/or extended to include everyone in the fun.
Sara joined us in July 2019 and holds her Level 3 in childcare. She has many years experience working with children and has made a positive impact on our Setting, and the children love her. Sara leads the BLUE Triangles Group.
Penny joined us in November 2017 as a volunteer and just never left, after deciding a career in childcare was for her. Now fully qualified to Level 3 as a Pre-school Practitioner, Penny runs the GREEN Squares Group.
Claire is back where she belongs, after a 3 year sabbatical at another setting. She works with us all year and is mainly based in the Bungalow as Keyworker for the PURPLE Diamonds Group. Claire is qualified to Level 3 and has a very natural ability with the children and is great at getting all children involved in the activities.
Zoe joined us in October 2017 to help us out on busier sessions. The children love her energy, enthusiasm and creativity, and she's brilliant at helping our extra needs children who require one-to-one support. Zoe is qualified to Level 3 in childcare and has developed a passion for working with children in small groups, or as individuals, to support speech and language, sharing and communication.
Jennifer joined us in November 2018 from a popular nursery in Raunds, which helped many of our new starters inherited from their closure. Jennifer helps our children with extra needs during sessions, by ensuring they are accessing the activities with support when needed. Jennifer comes with many years' experience and is great at getting the children to settle in and make friends.
Alice is our Pre-school Apprentice and finished her studies towards her Level 2 qualification in February 2020. She is very popular with the children and is proving to be a real asset to our team. Moving forward, Alice will start working towards her Level 3 in the near future.
Hayley joined us in October 2018, to help Gail with the administration of the business.