Little Ferns
Childminder in Leicester
Usually responds within 1 hour
Female Member since Jun 2009 Last Updated Apr 2025 Last Login 12 May 2025
My Summary
About Me
I am an Ofsted registered childminder and hold an outstanding grading from my last inspection. I am fully qualified in childcare and Forest School leadership.
I have over 20 years childcare experience including Senior/Management nursery roles.
I am situated in Houghton-On-The-Hill near to the surrounding villages of Thurnby, Bushby, Stoughton, Billesdon, Great Glen and Tilton.
My experience has been gained by working with various age groups of children in playgroups, youth work and nurseries but decided to become a childminder after having my first child.
This setting offers a safe, fun, warm, caring, and nurturing home from home environment where children are provided with many learning opportunities.
Daily activities can include creative play, messy play, construction, role play, physical play, cooking, story time/ reading opprtunities, music and movement and more.
Being a Fully Qualified Forest School Leader means that I believe that spending time outdoors is very important. The children have the opportunity to go outdoors here no matter what the weather because I believe that fresh air and wide open spaces are good for them! I live near to lovely parks, woodland areas and nature reserves that we visit regularly.
Forest School sessions are fantastic for learning. The main approach being through investigation, exploration, participation and encouragement facilitated through a range of outdoor (preferably woodland) learning oportunities. Sessions aim to develop the physical, cognitive, linguistic, emotional, social and spiritual aspects of the participant. Opportunities can include den building, tree climbing, digging, exploring, hikes, woodland walks, bug hunting, whittling, use of saws and other tools, fire making and cooking on fires all of which I am fully insured to do being a qualified leader. Training means I understand the safety measures required to keep myself safe and have the knowledge to teach children how to safely carry out activities of this nature too, based on my knowledge of them and their individual capabilities.
Children within my care are taught key life skills such as manners, politeness, socialising and making friendships. My home is a warm, caring home from home environment where children can feel safe and valued.
I support individuality and encourage learning through your child's likes and interests. This makes learning an enjoyable and fun experience. Learning is tailored to challenge at a level suitable for them individually.
This setting teaches children in accordance with the Early Years Foundation Stages (EYFS) in an innovative and exciting way. Children thrive and develop well.
Development through the Early Years Foundation Stages is recorded through the use of photographs, observations and childrens work. All progress will be available for you to view through your own personal and very secure online account via baby's days so that you can monitor progress at any time, from the comfort of your own home, 24 hours a day. Your child will participate in lots of fun learning activities and this will be evident in their online account.
You will easily be able to see how the various activities support your child's learning and development.
You will be given support on using the online system, but I am always here for you and your child and will happily discuss with you in person your child's care and development too.
I love working with children and understand how hard it can be to leave them. I am also here to help you as a parent. I am always honest, reliable, and trustworthy every step of the way. I have children of my own and would not want anything less for them!
I have an Enhanced DBS certificate, OFSTED Registration certificate, and insurance certificate with documents all available to view on request.
My Experience
I have been working with children for over 20 years and have worked with all ages of children from 0-18 years.
I am most experienced in the early years age group (0-5) with the majority of my previous work being nursery based. Positions held:- Nursery nurse, Room Manager, Deputy Manager and Acting Manager.
I have now been childminding for over 15 years and love the freedom we have to get outdoors and explore.
I have references available to view from my last nursery, schools and also previous parents.
My Qualifications
GCSE's - English Language, English Literature, Mathematics, Science, Religious Education, Art and Sociology.
BTEC National Diploma in childhood studies (level 3)
Level 3 Award in Paediatric First Aid. I am epipen trained (my own son requires an epipen)
ICP in homebased childcare
Forest School Leader trained and qualified, level 3.
Understanding ADHD
School Readiness
Safeguarding-
*Safer recruitment
*Child exploitation, gangs, and county lines
*E-Safety
*Understanding the impacts of hate crimes
*Working with children with learning difficulties and disabilities.
*Safeguarding paperwork
I constantly further my training to provide the best care available.
My Availability
I offer care from Monday - Thursday between the hours of 8:00am - 5:00pm.
1 SPACE AVAILABLE SEPTEMBER 2025 FOR CHILDREN AGED 2 YEARS AND ABOVE.
Registered to provide FREE GOVERNMENT FUNDED spaces for eligible 2 , 3 & 4 year old children.
Before and after school care available for those attending Houghton on the Hill C of E Primary School.
Please feel free to contact me with any further enquiries you may have.
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Before School | yes | yes | yes | no | no | no | no |
| Morning | yes | yes | yes | no | no | no | no |
| Afternoon | yes | yes | yes | no | no | no | no |
| After School | yes | yes | yes | no | no | no | no |
| Evening | no | no | no | no | no | no | no |
| Overnight | no | no | no | no | no | no | no |
| Last Updated: 23/04/2025 | |||||||
My Fees
- Childminding from £5.00 per hour
£5.00 per hour
My Local Schools
- I provide drop offs and pick ups at Houghton-on-the-Hill Church of England Primary School
My Ofsted Inspections
The inspection grades below have been obtained from the Ofsted website based upon the registration number the childminder has provided to us. You should verify this information yourself prior to using the childminder.
My Documents
- DBS Check (added 20/10/2021)
- UK Passport (added 15/06/2021)
- Ofsted Certificate (added 06/04/2021)
Reviews
5 out of 5
Latest reviews
Below are the latest reviews for Little Ferns. Please note that reviews represent the subjective opinions of other Childcare.co.uk members and not of Childcare.co.uk. Parents must carry out their own checks and references on childcare providers to ensure that they are completely happy before enaging in the use of their services.
Michelle has been a God send during the pandemic for our little boy. He was a very anxious 18 month old when we first took him to little ferns (and we were too) but she settled us all in perfectly with such a gentle and understanding manner.
I really can’t recommend her enough for what she has done for our boy. He has become so experienced and now shows such confidence in himself. He has learnt so many new skills thanks to her making him feel like part of the family, with her equally accommodating and gentle older boys -who he adores!
We love the daily photos of the wonderful nature trips and activities she provides, it is well worth the money twice over.
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Sam
on 04/08/2021
Michelle has been childminding my son Bodhi since September 2018 when he was 14 months old. In this time Michelle has built a brilliant relationship with Bodhi and has helped improve his confidence. Before this Bodhi was very clingy to me and his dad and would sob if he was left with others however he has been happy to be left with Michelle from the beginning and he’s now more confident with family and friends in general. Being with Michelle has also helped Bodhi interact more effectively with other children, previously he was nervous and didn’t interact or play with other children where as now he loves being around other children and quite happily plays with them rather than alongside them.
Michelle is very patient with Bodhi while encouraging him to try more foods as he typically likes to eat the same foods. During this time Bodhi has rejected a lot of foods in the first instance but Michelle has persisted, and he now eats a wide variety of foods.
Whilst Bodhi is in Michelle’s care they do a variety of indoor and outdoor activities, they go to nature reserves, parks, woodland areas, local museums and on days where the weather is to hot or to cold they do indoor activities such as yoga, reading books, bingo, drawing etc.
Michelle is very good at keeping me updated with Bodhi progress, she updates the Baby Days app daily with his toilet movements and sleep times as well as photo’s and learning and development, new skills etc. Each day when I collect Bodhi she lets me know what they’ve been up to, new words Bodhi has said, how he has eaten and his overall mood.
I have been very lucky to find Michelle as she has such a great bond with Bodhi, he genuinely looks forward to being dropped off in the mornings.
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by
Toni
on 13/06/2019
I have been incredibly fortunate to find a childminder as capable, dedicated and selfless as Michelle. She exudes energy and evidently loves working with children. My youngest daughter has benefited from daily interaction with Michelle since she was just 6 months old - but has now started school. Obviously returning to work after maternity leave was something I dreaded, yet Michelle made the transition as pain-free as possible. Her home is a friendly, warm and welcoming environment, and Michelle is meticulous in her organisation and management, ensuring cleanliness, healthiness and indeed safety. It is a wonderful privilege to know that my baby has been in such a caring and loving environment that is conducive to her development and socialisation.
There are never any tears at morning drop-off; to the contrary my daughter runs straight towards the toys and dressing-up items, immediately interacting with the other children and forgetting to kiss me goodbye! This is reflective of how comfortable she feels in Michelle's home, and I am delighted that my baby is enchanted by her surroundings. How could she not be? There is a wide variety of toys and books, a beautiful garden outside (weather permitting!), and Michelle always plans fun activities that encourage growth, both educationally and socially.
The social aspect has been crucial to my daughter's development - it has been brilliant to see her mix with other children, and Michelle has taught her how to share properly, how to adopt the fundamentals of etiquette such as table manners, and also how to function happily in group settings. She is a particular fan of the more creative activities (especially if she can make a mess!), and Michelle is always switched on to special dates in the family calendar, regularly sending my daughter home with lovely cards and art work for the fridge.
Michelle also provides a daily summary of my daughter's nappy changes, meals, sleep patterns, and general activities. This allows me to plan our evenings more succinctly, and I always find it very helpful that Michelle works in tandem so naturally with parents.
Michelle is an absolute delight to work with, and I can genuinely surmise that there is no one else I would rather have had looking after my child.
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by
Parent
on 12/04/2014
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This profile has been produced from information provided to us by the user. We have not verified or confirmed the accuracy of any of the information and members should undertake their own vigorous checks and references. Please ensure you read our Safety Advice and information on how to Check Childcare Provider Documents.
