My name is Gemma Friend and I am proud to introduce my beautiful child care setting to you. I live in Faygate village, West Sussex with my husband Rob, our 2 beautiful daughters, Kaitlin who is almost 14 and Laila who is 11 and our little friendly cockapoo, Coco.
I have been working in the childcare profession for over 20 years with a large portion of my working life spent in day nurseries, working as a manager and as a SENCO. During this time, I have met many children whom nursery just does not suit. Some children find the busy, bustling environment of a nursery overwhelming and are more suited to a smaller setting, with more individualised care. It is for this reason I have made the decision to open my own childcare setting.
In Spring 2021 my ultimate dream came true, as I have opened my own childcare setting as a childminder. I am an Ofsted registered childminder .
I work from a wonderful log cabin at the bottom of my garden, together with my co-childminder, Lisa (who is also Ofsted registered) and our assistants, Jocelyn, Becky and Sheree. The children benefit from a designated play space where they can play, learn, explore and flourish into competent and independent little people.
Our aim is to create a small nursery style environment where each and every child we care for will thrive day by day, whilst becoming confident communicators and competent learners.
The children will benefit from a dedicated play space inside the log cabin, every aspect of the cabin has been created with little people in mind. We will create a home from home environment where your child will feel comfortable enough to explore, create and learn. With a large range of activities for your child to enjoy, they will be encouraged to try new experiences to broaden their horizons and deepen their curiosity.
My goal is to eventually create an environment based on ‘The Curiosity Approach’ where a huge emphasis is on promoting awe and wonder in early childhood. I hope to work towards becoming an accredited setting in the near future. Please find out more information here: https://www.thecuriosityapproach.com/parents
As well as the main play space the log cabin also has a cosy sleep room, bathroom facilities and a purpose-built kitchenette area.
In addition to our beautiful cabin, the children will be able to enjoy an all-weather outdoor space too. Right outside the cabin there is a paved area, as well as astro turf grass spaces and a gross motor activity zone with swings, climbing ropes and a little wooden playhouse.
We are extremely lucky to live in a lovely village where we have access to a wonderful play park, surrounded by fields and woodland, which means we have many amazing outdoor experiences on our doorstep to enjoy daily, giving us unlimited amounts of nature and outdoor learning.
In 2019 I studied to become a wild beach leader, so I am looking forward to trips down to the coast to give the children opportunities for them to learn about the natural marine environment and give my ‘little friends’ the learning experiences our natural environment provides us with, after all, ‘not all classrooms have four walls.’
My ultimate goal is to make your child feel welcome, cared for and loved. Each child will be treated as an individual and will be supported, encouraged and respected for their own unique personality and character.
