Staff
Happy Hours would be nothing without its dedicated staff and committee - they all work hard to make every child's time at pre-school the best it can be.
Staff
All our staff are fully trained in Safeguarding Children and have current Pediatric First Aid Certificates.
Manager - Kate Cromar
Kate is responsible for the day to day running of the Happy Hours and setting the long term vision for the pre-school with the support of the Committee. Kate has worked at Happy Hours since 2006 and gained a Diploma in Pre-School Practice on top of previous managerial experience. In 2015, Kate completed a Level 3 NVQ Certificate in Management. Kate is our Lead Safeguarding Practitioner and Lead Language Practitioner.
Deputy Manager - Hilary Chapman
Hilary helps with the day-to-day organisation of Happy Hours and deputises in Kate's absence. Hilary has a Diploma in Pre-School Practice and is our Assistant Safeguarding Practitioner. Hilary is our longest serving staff member and has been at Happy Hours since April 2004.
SENCo - Gemma Alford
Gemma joined us in 2009. As well as being our fully qualified Early Years Teacher, Gemma is our SENCo (Special Educational Needs Coordinator). This means that she coordinates the resources and support for our children with additional educational needs. She supports colleagues with the implementation of speech and language tracking, writes inclusion plans to help any children who need them, and attends many meetings to keep up to date with the current requirements.
Senior Staff Member – Julie Purton
Julie is our second-longest serving staff member and has been here since September 2004. Julie is our craft coordinator and can often be found covered in glitter at the craft table!
Early Years Educators - Paula Beard, Jean Pettitt, Fiona Kendall and Becky Leong-Kee (pictured below, left to right)
These four are our all-round superheroes - they do so much here at Happy Hours.
Committee
Happy Hours is run by an elected committee of parents who are critical to our fundraising and key decision making.