About Us

Our beautifully refurbished nursery has been carefully designed by childcare experts, in order to foster a child friendly and child centred approach to learning.

We offer free funded places (15 & 30 hours) as well as private childcare, with a variety of different sessions to suit all families.

To find out more about the sessions we offer, please get in touch. 

Toddlers

Our toddler unit has two playrooms, each of which has a dedicated craft area where messy play and creativity is encouraged. French doors open out onto green grass steps, and lead out to our exciting outdoor space.

 

Pre-school

Our single storey pre-school unit has been designed to promote school readiness by allowing the children to be as independent as possible. The main playroom is a large, open plan space from which the children can access the colourful children’s toilets at any given time. Large glass windows and doors fill the room with an abundance of natural light, creating a bright and airy feel.

Office

We are dedicated to developing and training our staff to reach their full potential, to ensure that they maintain and improve the knowledge and skills they require to meet the needs of their job and the children we care for.

We have a number of work hub facilities including office space and meeting rooms, where staff complete paperwork, take sensitive phone calls or hold meetings. By hosting meetings on site, we are able to save a large amount of time and travel, which ultimately leads to more time spent with children. We hold regular management meetings, and meet regularly with staff to discuss learning strategies and assess the children’s progress. We also use these adult-friendly spaces to meet with parents.

Our meeting rooms and offices are equipped with flat screen TV’s that are connected to our on-site CCTV system. This allows us to monitor all that is happening whether we are in a meeting, undertaking training or simply having a break; ensuring your child’s complete safety and your total peace of mind.

Garden

Both units offer continuous free flow to the outdoor area throughout the day, and lead directly out under the sheltered outdoor classroom; making it easy for the children to enjoy outdoor learning, all year round. We are currently in the process of landscaping a secondary area in order to introduce a state-of-the-art sensory garden that focuses on touch, sound and smell. This will be particularly useful for children with SEND needs.

Sensory Room

Meet the Team

Kelly

Nursery Manager & DSL

IMG_4869

Charlotte

Assistant Manager (Preschool)

IMG_4881

Naomi

Early Years Practitioner

IMG_4867

Steph

Early Years Practitioner

IMG_4875

Lynsay

Assistant Manager (Toddlers) & SENCO

IMG_4863

Gemma

Preschool Senior

IMG_4865

Aqsa

Early Years Practitioner

IMG_4879

Megan

Early Years Apprentice

Our Activities

The early educational development of a child is a crucial phase where they discover the world through play and hands on learning. We believe by providing children with a rich variety of play activities and learning experiences, your child will be given the best possible start in life.

Extra-curricular activities are extremely beneficial for young children. Not only do they help to develop confidence, but they are also vital to early-stage development. From yoga classes and baking to soft play and trips out in the local community, here are some of the activities we offer at our nursery.

Yoga

Yoga and group exercise is perfect for sparking creative imagination in your child. Our yoga sessions focus on spontaneous movement and spatial awareness development. They are a fantastic way to increase your child’s confidence and also promote their physical development.

Technology

Here at Shining Stars Nursery, we take an active role in promoting creative and educational uses of digital technologies. We believe that technology used appropriately can be used to further enhance children’s learning experiences. For example, interactive storybooks bring a whole new dimension to story-telling! We have a number of high tech resources within our nursery including tablets, cameras and illuminated light tables that we use to support and develop children’s ICT skills. We recognise that for some children, our nursery may be the only place where they have access to both digital technologies and an interested adult to help them make sense of them. It is therefore vital that we make the most of these opportunities, so that children can learn how to use technology appropriately as they grow older.

Baking

Cooking isn’t just for adults! We promote healthy eating habits in all that we do, and use baking as a way to make learning fun! The benefits of cooking with children are so wide-ranging that it is possible to link most of the early years curriculum to this activity. These include:

Numeracy – as children count out spoonful’s, weigh ingredients, calculate how many rolls to make or measure baking trays.

Early science – as they observe the consistency of mixtures change, colours merge and ingredients be transformed by heat or cold. Health– as your child is introduced to new flavours and tastes. Children are more likely to try something new if they have helped to make it.

Physical skills – such as strengthening their grip and practising hand-eye co-ordination, as they handle kitchen implements while helping to peel carrots, chop apples, whisk eggs, sift flour or stir cake mixture.

Language development – as they talk about what they are seeing, such as dough rising, egg mixture fluffing up or soup simmering.

Understanding the world – as they discuss where ingredients come from, such as how vegetables are grown or their country of origin. It also gives children the opportunity to talk about traditional dishes from different cultures.

Emotional development – as they gain confidence from helping with tasks they associate with adults, such as preparing a salad or baking bread. It is also a good way for an adult and child to bond.

Community Trips

We recognise the importance of children’s ‘personal experiences’ and place emphasis on children learning about the local community, and their roles within society. At Shining Stars Nursery, we regularly take groups of children out on local trips to explore different types of public spaces such as the supermarket, post office, children’s library, places of worship, and our local park. The trips are not one-off outings but regular visits to the same places, designed to encourage sustained interaction with spaces and people within the local community. We feel that children should be able to see and interact with a variety of local spaces, and learn from an early age that these spaces are for their use as well. By allowing children to see the world from different perspectives, they are encouraged to grow into cultured and considerate members of today’s society.

Fundraising

At Shining Stars Nursery, we are proud to support our local community and wider charities. Through cake bakes, raffles and sponsored events we work very hard to raise as much money as possible to help others!

We are very grateful to our wonderful children, their families and of course our staff for all the support and donations we receive. We would also like to thank the local businesses who continue to help us raise such fantastic amounts of money.

Kashmir Orphan Relief Trust

Since opening Shining Stars Nursery in 2016, as part of our overall commitment to educate and help children achieve successful futures, we provide sponsorship for three children with Kashmir Orphan Relief Trust (KORT). KORT are a non-profit organisation dedicated to providing hope for orphans and empowering them through education. They have a 100% donation policy which states that every penny donated goes towards the care of the children. Therefore, we are very happy that our £35 a month sponsorship per child provides welfare, food, shelter, clothing, medical care and mainstream education for the children we sponsor. The children are provided with new clothes and fresh meals just like our own children at home.
Find out more

Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

In July 2017, we hosted a Family Fun Day to raise money for Derby Hospitals Charity. We had a bouncy castle, face painting, lots of delicious food and desserts, and various different stall holders all helping to raise money. The turnout was impressive with almost 500 people attending the event, including The Mayor and Mayoress of Derby and Derbyshire Constabulary. The weather was great, and everyone had a fantastic time. We are very pleased to have raised a total of £520 all of which was donated to Derby Hospitals Charity, specifically for the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit to buy sensory toys for older babies in their care.
Find out more

BBC Children in need

The children came to nursery wearing their pyjamas in support of BBC Children in Need. We raised £65.10 by selling cupcakes, guessing how many sweets were in a jar, and a raffle for a chocolate cake! The children also took part in spotty activities. They painted spotty rocks, played with Pudsey playdough and made bear pictures.
Find out more

Red Nose Day

The children all came to nursery wearing red clothes and learnt about a little girl called Haja who was helped by the money donated to Comic Relief. We took part in lots of party games and activities, and also had a cake sale and raised an amazing £65.10!
Find out more