Millie’s at Shenley
Shenley Nursery
We are located in Shenley Village Hall, this is a large detached building within impressive surrounding green grounds. There is easy parking to the front of the building and surrounding roads making both drop off and collection hassle free.
Millies nursery in Shenley is a term time provision, we are open for 38 weeks of the school academic year.
We operate Monday to Friday from 8am – 4pm catering for children aged from 1 year – 5 years of age.
Operational times and sessions
Our sessions are:
Extended school day: 8am – 4pm
School day: 9am – 3pm
Long Mornings: 8am – 2pm
Shenley
MONDAY: 8am – 4pm
TUESDAY: 8am – 4pm
WEDNESDAY: 8am – 4pm
THURSDAY: 8am – 4pm
FRIDAY: 8am – 4pm
Classrooms
Discoverers
Discoverers, is our under 3 classroom. This provides our youngest children with daily opportunities to explore, learn and develop within a safe and stimulating environment that offers high level of care. The key worker role is important for care routines of each child. This is how they build relationships and security. Care routines keep the continuity which is important for children to settle and feel secure. This provides a foundation for future learning.
Our beautiful class has stunning community play wooden furniture and high quality toys and resources for our little learners to enjoy. The room has lots of natural resources, treasure investigative baskets, touch and feel experiences and a black and white area for our youngest children.
Our toddlers have daily play experiences within well equipped areas such as home corner, block area, construction area, extended role play area and access to our large stunning safe garden area.
The children’s favourite areas of learning
- Their book area with comfy cushions and a selection of chunky board books for easy turning of pages.
- Their play dough station with natural objects and wooden tools.
- The children are provided with different colours and smells to stimulate their senses and spark curiosity.
- Tuff tray experiences are a huge part of daily life in the Discoverers classroom, these importantly promote language, the desire to discover and to create a sense of awe and wonder as well as develop core and hand strength.
- Role play area with wooden food, pots and pans. We like to use everyday objects from home like tin cans and landline phones alongside authentic objects and resources.
Investigators
Investigators, is our pre school classroom. Children are aged from rising 3 years and can remain in this classroom until statutory school age.
This class is room lead by an experienced and knowledgeable room leader. The Investigators practitioners deliver quality teaching and learning experiences for the children to thrive in. An integral part of this class is to develop a love of learning, to be resilient and bounce back from difficulties that may arise and support children to be school ready by the time they leave us.
This class operates within a great space of the hall, the children have access to plentiful, mainly wooden and authentic resources to support their learning and development.
Our children have access to many areas of leaning including designated Literacy and Maths stations for exploration and in the moment learning. They have access to a well resourced mark making area. Other areas of learning include creative area, book area, construction area, large block area, home corner and extended role play area and access to our large stunning safe garden area.
Investigators have a busy and highly enjoyable daily routine. We offer a rolling snack table to promote independence, encourage healthy choices and support opportunities to promote British Values. Practitioners develop children’s self regulation and learning to work with others by sharing ideas and resources for example, this may be through playing board games, cooking in the home corner or sharing a book.
Investigators practitioners support and develop autonomy within their classroom, by letting children know that they have control over themselves and the choices they make. From activities they participate in, to how they play and interact with their peers. It adds to a real sense of belonging and being part of their class.
The children have a self registration board. When the children arrive they find and put their name onto the board.
Our Garden
The outdoor is an extension to our indoor learning environment. We are very fortunate to have a large, safe garden area for the children to explore the natural environment and our outside world. Children can watch and listen to the birds and discuss the natural environmental sounds they can here. We have a large designated digging mud area for the children to explore and find mini beast in! We also have 2 mud kitchen units to support this enjoyed area.
Our garden has lots of coloured tyres, wooden beams and ladders to practice balancing on and to develop their climbing skills whilst learning to take risks. We also provide opportunities for bikes, scooters, balls, sand and water trays, white boards for mark making, book areas, building and construction and dressing up. There is always tuff trays set up for example with magnifying glasses and bugs or hay and the farm set.
The garden is covered in astro turf, we access the garden in all weathers and the children bring in their own puddle suits and Wellington boots. In warmer weather we cover our area with gazebos and the children provide us with sun hats and sun cream.
Ofsted
Our aim is to provide the very best childcare possible. Like all nurseries, we’re measured on the level and quality of childcare by Ofsted. Our Shenley nursery had its first inspection recently. You can find our Ofsted record page by following the link below and the report will be published in the fullness of time.
Nursery front
Meet The Shenley Team
Manager
Hi my name is Kelly Murray and I am the manager at Millie’s Nursery Shenley. I started at Millie’s when it opened in 2017, I joined Michelle working from a log cabin in her back garden. We outgrew this and moved to Shenley in 2018. I have been the room leader for twinkle stars class and deputy since then and now I am the manager.
I wear many hats in my role at Millie’s, which I embrace. As part of my role I am the designated safeguarding leader. My passion for Early years grows each year and it is always a joy to watch the children thrive in a happy, safe and nurturing environment. That is what motivates me to provide a wonderful, safe, caring and magical setting for our children to be part of.
I always wanted to work with children even from an early age where I started babysitting for family at the age of 14. I studied Child Development in secondary school and once I finished my exams, I became a nanny for families within their homes. I still have contact with the families today. I then started working in a large daycare setting in 1994 and passed my level 2 in 1995. I worked at this nursery for 13 years. During my time there I worked in the toddler room and towards the end of my last years I was the room leader of a very busy baby room, and became a Mummy to my first born during this period.
In 2010 whilst on maternity leave with my second child I passed my level 3. That summer I started working at another day care setting where I stayed for 7 years, here I was a room leader of the under 2’s and then became the deputy manager for Michelle, our founder. In 2014 I passed my level 5 in Leadership and management in Early years.
I love music, chocolate and 80’s music is my favourite!
