Steppingstones

About Me

My name is ‘Michelle’ & i’m an Ofsted registered childminder, fully insured by Morton Michel, with paediatric first aid, also qualified to degree level.
We are a family ran business, and focus on making children feel at home, happy & settled with us.
I work alongside my two assistants:- Leila (my daughter) and Lucy. Both are excellent with the little ones and enjoy to help the children to learn through play, offering a wide range of activities and resources, guiding whilst letting them choose and lead the way. Both Leila and Lucy are working hard practically and theoretically, towards an apprenticeship to pass level 3, to become qualified nursery nurses/early years educators in childcare.
Last but not least is ‘Jay’ my partner who helps with school runs & general maintenance. All the children love Jay and his happy go lucky personality. I feel we all work well together to offer the best care possible.
We’re all fully dbs checked with first aid & relevant ongoing training. Safeguarding is a priority in our setting as is cleanliness & antibacterial cleaning daily.
Most importantly we all have a passion for working with children, enjoy to keep them stimulated & busy, whilst keeping it fun & engaging.

We offer a welcoming & homely environment, in which each child gets full care & individual attention, in order to be happy & settled. Many parents have commented on what a calming atmosphere we have which also helps children settle.

I have over 30 years of varied experience working with children, I have worked in nurseries & schools, as well as some voluntary work with Childline over the years. Due to my vast experience, & also having three children of my own, I feel that I have a natural affinity and also a depth of understanding how to help children develop & learn, whilst offering fun & exciting activites, in a stimulating environment, through research & play. Together we offer structured activities with lots of open ended ones, to allow development to flow, & child to lead the way at their own pace.

We have three daughters, Leila 17, Lexia 7 & lily-Mae 6. They love to be around other children, and are always kind & helpful, whilst being very welcoming. They see other children as ‘friends’ coming to play.

We also go for days out in the school holidays, such as parks, farms, picnics, playcentres etc. One example of a day(pre COVID) out was for an adventure in the forest, we made dens & then went berry picking. In the afternoon we make a blackberry crumble together. The children throrougly enjoyed this & learnt whilst having lots of fun!

We always get parents permission & days out are inclusive in our fees. We have a seven seater with all relevant car seats to suit ages & stages, but try to walk when we are able to promote health & well being.

We also include food, snacks & wipes in our hourly fee so no hidden extras. We provide funding but then meals are chargeable or can bring your own. We’re also big on sanitising & deep clean daily.

We can accommodate a child with allergies or special dietary requirements. We will work with the parent to provide the best care, to suit each individual child such as food preferences and settling in sessions.

Development is recorded through an electronic diary called ‘babysdays’ which is sent via email daily to you. You can also access photographs, or anything new development wise, through this form of communication, as well as daily verbal updates & crafts to take home.

We have a large, purpose built, heated log cabin in our garden, which has a wide variety of toys/resources & activities, to stimulate & learn, whilst following the EYFS. There are also a good range of outdoor toys, ride ons & garden equipment, including sand & water tables, a mud kitchen, a helter skelter slide with swings, and a den which they all enjoy, whilst learning through play & most importantly have lots of fun!

We live in a lovely, quiet part of Wilmslow, which is central to all schools & close to the police & emergency services. We cover before & after school sessions for Ashdene, Lindow, & Gorsey bank school at present, also midday/afternoon nursery drops to any within the area as well as full & half day care.