Our staff are the heart and soul of our nursery
Our highly-experienced, warm, caring, and thoughtful Early Years professionals will care for your children
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Remi
NURSERY MANAGER
Remi has over 15 years of experience in early years education, including many years as a nursery manager where she oversaw her settings with care, dedication, and a strong focus on safeguarding and inclusion. Alongside her managerial expertise, she has worked as a SENCo and safeguarding officer, supporting both children and staff to flourish. Remi brings warmth, reliability, and excellent communication skills to every role, and her wealth of experience ensures that children and families feel nurtured and supported. With a background in both childcare and wider community care services, Remi believes in creating safe, engaging, and loving environments where children can thrive.
Remi is the heart and soul of our nursery team. She is both an excellent practitioner, able to manage all of our complex nursery admin with aplumb, and an expert leader for our nursery staff.
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Shamsia
THIRD IN CHARGE, EARLY YEARS PRACTITIONER
Shamsia is a qualified early year practitioner and childcare worker with a broad experience of working in nurseries, crèches, primary schools and drop-in centres, all of which have provided a high standard of care to children and their families. She also has experience as a community outreach worker to support and encourage local families to access provisions and services independently. Shamsia has undertaken her Level 2 Forest School training and is currently completing her Level 3 Forest School Leader programme.
Shamsia is always looking for new ideas to support the children’s interests in the nursery and delights in building a loving rapport with the children and their families.
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Fatema
EARLY YEARS PRACTITIONER
Fatema is an Early Years Practitioner with a Level 3 Diploma in Childcare and Education. She is dedicated to supporting children’s early development through creative, safe, and engaging learning environments. Passionate about fostering strong relationships, Fatema enjoys connecting with children and their families, ensuring every child feels nurtured and valued.
Fatema is warm-hearted and playful, and well-loved by our children.
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Albina
NURSERY CHEF
Albina is our wonderful chef, seamlessly cooking healthy, fresh food so delicious that even our picky eaters ask for seconds! With a Level 3 qualification in Food Hygiene and years of experience in catering and customer service, she brings both skill and passion to every meal she prepares.
Albina takes great pride in creating nutritious dishes that the children genuinely enjoy, helping to make mealtimes happy, social moments in the nursery day. Her kind and gentle nature shines through in everything she does, and the children adore her warmth, care, and the comforting meals she lovingly prepares for them.
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Sarah
EARLY YEARS PRACTITIONER
Sarah is an experienced and qualified nursery practitioner with an NVQ Level 2 and 3 in Early Years and 21 years of experience working in childcare. She has worked with children from 3 months to 4 years across various nurseries, including a Montessori setting, where she enjoyed fostering children’s growth and confidence.
Sarah has Forest School training and is passionate about connecting children with nature, nurturing their creativity, independence, and well-being. She is dedicated to creating meaningful learning experiences for children and building positive relationships with families.
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Toni
EARLY YEARS PRACTITIONER
Toni is a highly experienced childcare professional with a background in nannying, childminding, and nursery work. She began her career as a nanny in Spain before moving to London, where she worked as an au pair and later as a nanny for families with young children. Toni pursued her passion for early childhood education by completing a diploma, foundation degree, and degree in Early Years Studies at Metropolitan University in London.
Toni’s experience includes working as a childminder assistant and nursery nurse, where she creatively supported children’s development by teaching Spanish and introducing tai chi and yoga for physical growth. Toni is passionate about fostering children’s creativity and independence through the forest school approach, providing meaningful connections with nature to nurture their development.
The CGN Management Committee (MC)
All voting members of the Management Committee are parents of Collingham Gardens Nursery children or alumni, and get elected at the Annual General Meeting. All members are directors of the company, responsible for ensuring that the nursery meets all its legal requirements, including those of Ofsted, the Charities Commission and Companies House. Ofsted requires that all MC members are Enhanced DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) checked and an Ofsted Inspector meets with any newly elected Chair.
The MC usually meets once a month. It discusses points raised by the Manager, hears reports from the MC Subcommittees if and when relevant, approves the annual budget and any other major ad hoc expenditures, approves new policies and procedures, and discusses major issues arising with regard to staffing. In summary, it deals with any matter outside the daily running of the nursery, or which may affect the nursery’s medium-to-long term future.
In practice, membership of the MC implies a willingness to volunteer one’s time, as far as individually possible, assisting and supporting the Manager and the nursery.
The Subcommittees of the MC, which meet as needed and bring recommendations to the MC, are:
a. Buildings and sustainability;
b. Education and curriculum;
c. Finance.
Parents who are unable to commit to full membership of the MC, but who would like to be involved in the running of the nursery, are strongly encouraged to join one or several of these Subcommittees.