As a parent, one of the hardest things to do is find the right care provider to look after your young one while you are at work.
Luckily the staff at Ninewells Nursery pride themselves on providing excellent care and learning. They are headed up by manager Adelle Taylor.
Adelle began her time at the nursery 18 years ago as a nursery assistant – her first job after leaving school.
Following a closure of the nursery, Adelle continued to work with the company in various locations as a deputy manager, before being approached by the company to take her staff and head up the reopened Ninewells site six years ago.
Adelle, who is from Lochee, said: “Working at the nursery was my very first job after leaving school and I started as a nursery assistant.
“In the following years I gained my qualifications in early years and childcare through inhouse training which was great as I was training on the job, getting hands on so it was really the best of both worlds.”
The kids are not the nursery’s only focus though, Adelle ensures the facility is as family friendly as possible.
She added: “We class ourselves as very family orientated. We want to provide a home away from home for both the children and their parents, catering for every child’s needs.
“The kids we have come from all over Dundee so we open the nursery some weekends to hold family events including grandparent days and mother’s day breakfasts, so the staff really go over and above to welcome families to the nursery.”
The nursery also organises fun events including visits from animals, trips to local landmarks like the V&A and lots of woodland walks.
Adelle said: “We want to give children the best possible experiences and do things that they maybe wouldn’t do outwith the nursery.
“Everything we do has a purpose though, we don’t do anything just for the sake of it.
“We really encourage the children and follow the learning for excellence curriculum too.
“As a career, working in a nursery environment is extremely rewarding.
“The staff I have at Ninewells Nursery have stuck with me for the past 10 years, so they are really committed to what they are doing and supporting each child.”
Nursery wins place in awards’ final
Now the hard work and dedication from the nursery has not only been recognised by the children and parents, Ninewells Nursery has also been named as a finalist in the Nursery Management Today awards for best individual nursery.
Adelle added: “I was absolutely over the moon when I found out we reached the final.
“It is the first time I have entered us into anything like this but I am so proud of the nursery and the staff.
“This is our biggest achievement to date, so I am not too bothered if we don’t win as it is still amazing.”
The nursery will find out if they have won the award on August 30 at a special ceremony at the Hilton Glasgow.
