Nursery Manager Returns To Improve Outcomes Of Children

The manager of one of the South West’s biggest workplace nurseries has increased her own qualifications to build a brighter future for generations to come.

Nicola Davis set the perfect example to the children in her care when she graduated from City of Bath College with an Early Years Foundation Degree.

The 43-year-old mum-of-two returned to College to improve the development and education outcomes of youngsters at the Ministry of Defence’s Abbey Wood site in Bristol.

Nicola has been the manager of Woodpeckers Day Nursery for three years and it is her job to oversee the day-to-day organisation of the 48 staff and up to 200 children.

She said: “I’ve always worked in Early Years but I was keen to improve my own knowledge in order to better prepare children for their futures.

“Abbey Wood MOD is a large nursery so I decided to return to College and gain further qualifications to improve the well-being and learning of future generations.

“I want to be better able to improve the outcomes of children. Early Years childcare can play such a crucial part in a child’s later life.”

Nicola of Ford, a village near Chippenham, has worked in Early Years for 27 years and said it was important to keep “one step ahead” in the rapidly changing and expanding sector.

As part of her Level 4 two-year degree course, she studied how to make learning more visible and the holistic development of young children.

Nicola said: “Early Years has changed and evolved a lot over the last five years and all staff should make it part of their job to keep up.

“I think it’s very important to keep on learning to move with the times.  We owe it to the children in our care.”

Returning to College as an adult learner meant Nicola had to juggle home and work responsibilities alongside her studies. This included making the sacrifice to study rather than spending time with her husband and two children aged 13 and 14.

She said: “Going back to College at my age was challenging. Time management was key as there was a lot to juggle.

“But I enjoyed it and have no regrets. It was such a welcoming environment and there were other students in similar situations.”

And it doesn’t stop there for Nicola as she now has the studying bug and remains “keen to continue improving.”

From next month she will be studying with Bath Spa University to ‘top-up’ her qualification to an honours degree level in BA (Hons) Early Years Education.

City of Bath College offers a range of career-related courses in Early Years, as well as Health and Social Care.