not supported - Our Team

We are very proud of our enthusiastic and dedicated team of carers who work closely together across all aspects of the nursery, supporting and mentoring each other. They have been chosen for their ability to provide the highest standards of care to each baby/ child in their supervision, and their commitment to delivering an excellent service to the families who come to us.

All members of the team have been carefully screened and vetted through the Criminal Records Bureau and we have a high proportion with a Paediatric First Aid qualifications in both buildings. Each member of staff has received comprehensive in-house training on our policies, procedures and the Early Years Foundation Stage curriculum. As a team we are highly qualified, with over 90% of the team qualified to Level 3 NVQ in childcare, and the remainder training for that qualification on the job.

Katrina Clements – Nursery Manager

Katrina has gained a wealth of childcare experience and qualifications during her thirteen years in the industry. Prior to managing Tiny Acorns she established and managed the Long Crendon Out of School Club, managing a team delivering care for 4-11 year olds before and after school time. In parallel she worked at a local private school as a classroom assistant. Prior to this she was Deputy Manager of a nursery setting.

Katrina is NVQ Level 4 qualified in Childcare and has a degree in Childhood and Youth studies. She is also a qualified SENCO (Special Educational Needs Coordinator) and has trained in many specialist areas such as Equal Opportunities and Behaviour Management. In addition Katrina is a qualified NVQ assessor and as such, plays a key role in helping the team when training for further qualifications. Katrina performs the important role of Safeguarding Children Officer in the nursery and is also Food Hygiene trained and First Aid trained.

Dawn Lewis – Deputy Manager

Dawn Lewis joined Tiny Acorns in 2010 after coming to us for work experience whilst studying for her NVQ Level 3. Having qualified to NVQ Level 3 in the summer of 2010 we decided to offer her a permanent position! Dawn is now our Deputy Manager, with responsibility for overseeing the running of the nursery both alongside Katrina and in her absence, together with responsibility for the day to day management of the brand new Toddler Room and its team of nursery nurses. Dawn is also First Aid trained.

Emily Kingston – Assistant Manager, Head of Baby Room and Lead Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENCo)

Emily joined the nursery in 2010 after completing her A Levels and has completed her Level 3 NVQ qualification in childcare on the job. Emily manages the Baby Room leading a team of qualified nursery nurses providing the vital home from home environment for children coming into nursery for the first time. Emily is also the Nursery Lead SENCO , working with a small of SENCo’s across the nursery to coordinate the support we can offer to children who have additional needs. Emily is also First Aid trained.

Ellie Rees – Assistant Manager and Head of Preschool Room

Ellie has worked for Tiny Acorns since 2011 after completing her A Levels and gained her Level 3 NVQ qualification on the job. Ellie leads the Pre-school room where we prepare our 3+ year olds for school, focusing on all seven areas of the curriculum with a key focus on language, literacy, mark making and maths. Ellie is a very experienced practitioner with this age group having seen four full cycles of children off the school. She is a key worker to a group of children and leads a small team of pre-school practitioners. She is also the Behaviour Management coordinator for the nursery and is First Aid trained.

Kirsty Harper - Under Two Room

Kirsty joined Tiny Acorns in 2012 and is an experienced nursery nurse, with 7 years in the industry and qualified to Level 3 NVQ. She is based in the Under Two Room as a key person to a group of children. Kirsty is First Aid trained.

Liz Hamblin – Under Two Room

Liz Hamblin was a childminder for over 8 years before joining Tiny Acorns. She has looked after all ages of children from babies to school age. Liz is NVQ Level 3 qualified. Liz works in our Under Two room as a key person for a group of our younger children. She is responsible for Risk Assessments and First Aid for the nursery. She is First Aid trained.

Sian Moore – Under Two Room

Sian is Level 3 qualified with six years childcare experience. She is based in the Under Two room and has worked at Tiny Acorns for several years now. She is a key worker to a group of 0-2 year olds.

Kirsty Zelmanowicz – Under Two Room

Kirsty is Level 3 qualified and joined us as a graduate from Aylesbury College after coming to us for work experience. Kirsty is a key person for a group of children in the Under Two Room and is First Aid trained.

Laura Collins – Under Two Room

Laura joined Tiny Acorns at the start of 2015 and is a key worker for a group of children in the Under Two room, taking them from when they start as babies all the way through to when they turn two years old and move to the Over Two room. Laura is qualified to Level 3 NVQ and has several years experience. She is also First Aid trained.

Stephanie Cooper – Under Two Room

Steph is Level 3 qualified and works in the Under Two room. She has worked for the nursery for several years now starting as a nursery SENCO for 2 years working with children with special needs that attended our setting. Prior to this she has been a nursery manager at another nursery, and has over a decade of childcare experience. She is also Food Hygiene trained.

Naomi Oliffe – Over Two Room

Naomi joined Tiny Acorns nursery in 2009, not long after we opened. She is NVQ Level 3 qualified and is a key person for a group of children in the Over Two room. She is our nursery ICT Co-ordinator.

Christina Brooks – Over Two Room

Christina joined the nursery in 2013, Level 2 qualified and with lots of experience as a nursery nurse. She has since achieved her Level 3 NVQ in childcare as well. She is based in the Over Two room where she is a key person to a group of children, taking them from when they come into the room at two years old all the way through to school. Christina is also First Aid trained.

Jennifer Kent – Over Two Room

Jennifer joined the nursery in 2013 as a qualified and experienced nursery nurse, trained to NVQ Level 3. She is based in the Over Two room where she is a key person for a group of children. Jenny is our Outdoor play coordinator, and is also First Aid trained.

Phillip Rance – Outdoor Learning Leader

Phillip works at the nursery every other week, focusing on taking the children out into our wonderful outdoor area to learn about the natural world. Phillip engages the children in lots of exciting activities such as searching for mini-beasts, bird watching at the bird table, planting seeds and bulbs, digging for treasure and learning about the seasons.

Suzanne Harper – Cook

Suznanne is the Nursery Cook and is responsible for preparing and cooking all the food for both our buildings each day. Suzanne is Food Hygiene trained and prepares each meal from scratch using recipes designed for children, with no sugar or salt added. The nursery has achieved ‘Elite’ status for our Environmental Health award, having been given the maximum five stars in two consecutive inspections.

Emma Short – Over Two Room

Emma joined the nursery in 2015 already Level 3 qualified straight from college. Since then she has gained lots of experience and undergone our stringent induction process. Emma is based in the Over Two room where she is a key person to a group of children, taking them from when they come into the room at two years old all the way through to school.

Ellie Newitt – Trainee Nursery Nurse

Ellie is our newest recruit, and is training to become a qualified nursery nurse. She is based in the Baby Room, where she is a key worker to a group of children.