Starting my early years of employment for social services where I worked as a nursery nurse and then worked my way up the ladder to become Deputy Manager then Acting Manager until I gained the post of Manager at First Steps at Cansfield. I started there in April 1994 when the Nursery was just a shell of a building. I worked very closely with the Head Teacher, Gill Gregory, and the governing body, in particular the Chair of Governors, Alderman Eric Foster. We recruited 2 nursery nurses and opened our doors in May 1994. The nursery and the out of school club grew in size to meet the needs of all the families within the community of Ashton-in-Makerfield, and created employment for 27 staff based on two sites and offering a high quality service for children age 6 weeks to 11 years, which have both celebrated ‘Good’ and ‘Outstanding’ Ofsted inspections.

The pleasure I have had is seeing the children grow into the independent strong young adults they are today, many of whom are still in contact and I feel privileged to have been able to enjoy 18th and 21st birthday celebrations and await the wedding invitations.
During my 25 years of employment I have gained a Foundation Degree in 2009, and continued with my further education to achieve a BA Hons in Childcare and Education in 2010 and in 2011 I achieved the Early Years Professional Status. I have worked with the Wigan Early Years Team on a variety of pilot schemes to ensure that children and families get the best care, support and childcare service possible.

I sit on the Management team for Embrace whose reason for being is to work towards a better life for people with disabilities and their families. Their ethos is that they believe people with disabilities make our communities a more diverse, interesting and worthwhile place to live. That is why everything they do is about ensuring all people are included in their local community. Embrace is everything I believe, feel passionate about and what I have worked for, total inclusion for all.

I have always said to all my staff and students, ‘Every child who walks through our doors is the most precious thing those parents have, and we should treat them the same’, and that is how I intend to continue with my work in Care Love Learn at St Oswald’s.