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Last Updated on April 7, 2025
News
Why the nursery settling-in process is more important than ever for babies born during the Covid-19 pandemic
May, 4 2022 Read story
How a team member who started as a Modern Apprentice is now thriving as a Nursery Manager
April, 21 2022 Read story
Thrive Childcare and Education have been celebrating Easter with a variety of different activities across sites!
April, 15 2022 Read story
New Director leads Thrive’s vision to transform early years careers and put nursery teams centre stage
March, 18 2022 Read story
February 28th 2022 was International Hygge Day. ‘What is that’? you may ask.
March, 1 2022 Read story
How Thrive gave ex-babysitter Hayley Walker the confidence to climb high to Regional Support Manager
January, 18 2022 Read story
Thrive Childcare and Education begins 2022 with the launch of a new website.
January, 10 2022 Read storyOften children start at our nurseries at the age of 10 to 12 months, usually we find this ties in with mothers’ returning to work after maternity leave. This is also, however, an age at which separation anxiety becomes commonplace.
Children joining us at this age may have spent much of their time enjoying one-to-one time with their parent or carer but, as they grow older, they have to get used to sharing adult attention. They also need to learn to share toys, to take turns, to start looking out for and supporting their friends and to understand routines.
Gaining experience with children of a similar age helps to prepare them for school where they may be in a classroom with 20 to 30 children. If a child is unused to being left by their parent and with other children, settling into school can be a challenge.
We often receive feedback from local schools that children who have attended our Thrive nurseries are confident and settle well into school routines.
One of the benefits of our Thrive nurseries is our commitment to children spending supervised time outside and exploring safe outdoor spaces. At our Nature Kindergartens this ethos is extended to ensure pre-school children spend at least half of their time learning and exploring outside.
Messy play including using sand, water and paints are staples for children at all our nurseries, providing opportunities they may not have at home. In the nursery environment children learning from each other is as important as learning from our nursery teams.
The opportunity to explore new things safely alongside their peers provides significant benefits to children as they progress through nursery and towards school.
For more information, see our blog providing more information about our nursery settling-in processes. (link to Why the nursery settling-in process is more important than ever for babies born during the Covid-19 pandemic).
When their parent leaves, children are naturally afraid that they may not come back for them. Through experience, the child learns to trust that their parent will return. Our nursery teams and managers are well-trained to understand this anxiety and help to ensure each child’s individual needs are met and that they form new attachments.
For those children who remain at home with a parent or family member until they are two or three years’ old, socialisation with other children is an important part of their time at nursery. It is not until around two-years-old that children actually start to play together.
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Why the nursery settling-in process is more important than ever for babies born during the Covid-19 pandemic
May, 4 2022 Read story
Hayley Walker wanted to work in early years education when she was a babysitter in her teens. But, until joining Thrive, she never dreamed she’d have the confidence to rise through the ranks of a national provider to become Regional Support Manager.
Hayley qualified as a level three nursery practitioner in 1997 at Salford City College and got her first taste of early years education when she joined a crèche. It was here that her knack for innovation confirmed her career choice was the right one.
She described: “It was very quiet in the week, so my colleagues and I decided to set up a special weekday playgroup for the children, which went down very well.”
Hayley was given the opportunity to put more of her skills to the test when she joined Thrive’s Holyrood Nursery in Swinton as a Practitioner. It was a new nursery, and she was able to take on several responsibilities that expanded her knowledge.
She said: “I ran the nursery’s first ever holiday club which was a huge responsibility. From there I was able to help manage multiple toddler rooms and learn more about different ages and their needs.”
Taking on a variety of duties helped Hayley progress to Senior Practitioner in 2004. Eight months later, she was offered the position of Deputy Nursery Manager.
She said: “I don’t think I would have had the confidence to apply if it weren’t for Thrive’s ongoing training.
“They book you on to any number of courses that you’re interested in through the local authority and also buddy you up with an experienced manager so you’re continually learning.”
Hayley achieved a level five nursery practitioner diploma while working at Holyrood Nursery and eventually progressed to Nursery Manager. In this role, she experienced some of the proudest moments of her career.
She said: “We had two Ofsted inspections during my ten years as Nursery Manager and in 2018 we achieved an Outstanding rating.”
“As any nursery practitioner will tell you, this is an incredibly difficult and satisfying thing to achieve, and a real testament to the hard work of my team.”
Just as Thrive supported her development, Hayley learned the value of having strong staff as a Nursery Manager and helping them progress. She said: “They are the backbone of what we do and get stuck in with everything.”
After ten years as Nursery Manager, Hayley felt on top of the world. However, this didn’t stop apprehension from setting in when the position of Regional Support Manager came up.
She said: “It is a huge jump with very different duties from those I was used to.”
It was looking unlikely that Hayley would take the plunge until her line manager, Andre Fallows, spoke with her in depth about the role and set up one-to-one learning sessions with other supervisors.
Hayley said: “Andre’s whole approach filled me with confidence. Although I love the day-to-day of running a nursery, I realised I wanted to be challenged.”
“You’re very much a role model to other Nursery Managers as Regional Support Manager as you’ve been there and know how to help, which is a great feeling.”
Now coming up to 20 years with Thrive, Hayley thinks back on her progression from Practitioner to Regional Support Manager and what all of her roles have had in common.
She said: “Thrive helps children thrive but they also enable adults to, not least because of how family orientated they are. My daughters have been able to come to work with me from the age of three months, and there aren’t many jobs that would allow that.
“This in addition to continuous training, personalised support and genuine care for what their staff are thinking and feeling.”
For others looking to advance their career in early years education, Hayley offers some advice:
“You don’t need me to tell you that it can be a rewarding yet challenging career, which is why it’s vital to surround yourself with a strong support group like Thrive that can help you reach your full potential.”
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Leading UK nursery chain, Thrive Childcare and Education begin 2022 with the launch of a new website which will encompass all 38 of its England and Scotland nurseries as well as their latest acquisition, Poplars Nursery in Lancashire.
The new website, designed by the outstanding Manchester-based web-development agency, Juicy Media, will allow parents and carers an opportunity to see for themselves all of the different nurseries and what they have to offer. It will also provide information regarding the Thrive Childcare and Education ethos, its commitment to children as well as the environment. Putting children first every time is paramount to Thrives philosophy as well as providing childcare settings where children can learn through play, explore the world around them and develop respect for nature and the environment.
The easy-to-use website will allow parents to find the nearest nurseries in their areas as well as showcase the awards that Thrive has won, testimonials from parents who have their children attend the nurseries and the caring and educational ethos, with its emphasis on outdoor learning, sustainability and respect for nature, which makes the Thrive Childcare and Education experience so unique. It will also allow parents access to the ParentZone App which will make it easy for them to pay fees as well as keeping them up to speed with discounts that they may be entitled to.
We hope you enjoy the new website, its layout and design, and we look forward to an exciting and productive 2022.
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Thrive Celebrates The Jubilee With A Range Of Royal Activities Fit For A Queen!
June, 2 2022 Read storyThrive Childcare and Education have been celebrating Easter with a variety of different activities across sites!
April, 15 2022 Read story