Our staff are the heart and soul of our nursery
We’ve sought highly experienced, warm, caring and thoughtful Early Years professionals to care for your children
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Remi
NURSERY MANAGER
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Shamsia
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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Zeljka
EARLY YEARS PRACTITIONER
Zeljka is a qualified early years practitioner with over 20 years of experience of caring for children in the early years and primary sector, alongside experience of working with children with complex needs. Having grown up in rural Yugoslavia Zeljka spent much of her own childhood gardening together with her family and playing in nature. This strong connection with nature and the happiness it brought left a lasting impression on her and has formed part of her approach to supporting children in their own education.
She joined Collingham Gardens Nursery in 2020 after being entranced by its hidden, magical garden and unique educational ethos of learning through outdoor and meaningful play, which she believes is the cornerstone of children’s learning and development.
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Sarah
EARLY YEARS PRACTITIONER
Sarah is a highly 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.
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Fatema
EARLY YEARS PRACTITIONER
Fatema is an emerging Early Years Practitioner with a Level 2 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.
The CGN Management Committee (MC)
All the voting members are parents of Collingham Gardens Nursery children or alumni’s, 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, with the exception of August and December. It discusses points raised by a report from 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, including the development of a strategic Three Year Plan.
In practice, membership of the MC implies a willingness to volunteer one’s time, as far as individually possible, with assisting and supporting the Manager and the nursery.
The Subcommittees of the MC, which meet once a term, or as needed, and bring recommendations to the MC, are:
a. Building and maintenance
b. Education and curriculum
c. Website and communications
d. Social inclusion
e. Garden
f. Fundraising
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.