Hello I am Sarah Williams and I am the Nursery Lead here at ST Giles, I started my career in a main stream nursery and was given the opportunity to take a Level 3 NVQ diploma in The Young Children Workforce which I completed 2016.

I was able to visit a specialist provision known as The Croydon Opportunity Preschool for children with complex needs, I knew from the moment I walked into the setting this was where I would love to specialise in my career. I started to volunteer 2 afternoons a week I loved and thrived within the setting. So when a vacancy came up I quickly applied and secured a position. During my time here I completed my level 1 in BSL enabling to communicate with one of my colleagues.

We would accompany our children and parents on visits to St Giles on open days the School felt warm and inviting, so when we were taken under the wing of St Giles back in 2021 I was very happy about the move. It wasn’t till the following year 2022 when we were brought up to the site here at Pamisford Road, and I was asked if I would like to take on the responsibility of the nursery lead which was quite daunting at the time but I received support from St Giles and was soon settling into my new role.

I was going into a new build and the Nursery needed to be set up from scratch, with help from the nursery staff and the wider team at St Giles we were ready for the September intake. I have taken on training for portage and many in-house training courses provided by the school. I enjoy supporting children to transition from home, building on their resilience and independence to be ready to start nursery and then onto school, and extending that support to our families as they begin a new journey as their children enter a new phase, building on trust and forming positive relationships.

The children are given lots of opportunities in the nursery and it is so rewarding to see the progress they make, the team in nursery want the very best for the children, we can have very busy days which can be challenging but so fulfilling, which constantly brings a smile to your face. The children and the staff make the school a very special place to be, I feel very lucky and privileged to be a part of it.