00:00Jolly Gestures is a registered private daycare provider and a fully funded preschool located in the heart of Drummoor.
00:08We first opened our doors in 2001 and we are well established and provide a home from home environment for children and parents.
00:16We encourage all of our children to express themselves through movement, art, music and storytelling.
00:23We currently care for 91 children and employ 18 full time members of staff.
00:29So how long have you worked at Jolly Gestures?
00:31So I've been here 14 years now this year, at the end of this year.
00:34My name is Leanne Hutchinson and I have worked in Jolly Gestures for 18 years.
00:38My name is Heather and in total I've worked at Jolly's for about five and a half years.
00:43Can you describe your overall experience working here?
00:46My experience in working here has been really good.
00:49I started here as a student and have grown alongside the children and it's a real positive place to work.
00:55So can you tell us about the most rewarding part of your job?
00:59The most rewarding part would definitely be seeing the kids grow up throughout the years and meeting their milestones.
01:06Just watching their wee personalities come through.
01:09We work with kids from their babies and then come right through the nursery and you see them as they get older and how they progress.
01:16It's definitely the most rewarding part.
01:18How has your role involved since you first started?
01:22So I started here as a student and I then took on the supervisor role and then I worked my way up to Deputy Manager.
01:30So I did my Level 5, Jolly Gestures put me through my Level 5 and now I'm Deputy Manager so I've worked my way up.
01:37So can you tell us about the new room approach?
01:39So the new approach that's happening throughout the nursery is the Curiosity approach, the Regio.
01:45So we're trying to bring the outdoor nature aspect of things into the classroom environment.
01:51Everything's all natural and all scentry and it's lovely for the kids to learn new things using this approach.
01:59And what would you say to a parent who's considering joining Jolly Gestures for their children?
02:04Well I think it would be really good for them to come for the socialisation of it as well as it's a family environment here.
02:12We like to make everyone feel welcome and they'll be more than welcome to come in and join the team.
02:17Can you describe a really special memory or milestone at the nursery that you can remember?
02:22You build such strong bonds with the children and with the parents as well.
02:27There's parents that came through here that I would now class as really good friends.
02:32Friendships have come from it and it's just really rewarding to see the change in the children as well.
02:39It's a really nice place to work.
02:42So can you tell us how long the children have been attending Jolly Gestures?
02:46So my children started at six months and they're now six years of age so five and a half years living in Jolly Gestures.
02:52Ben is seven and Lucy is two.
02:56So Ben's been attending Jolly Gestures for about six years and Lucy's been here for around about a year and a half.
03:04Jack Armstrong has been here for six years now. He's in senior after school.
03:08Eli has been coming here from, he was just over two, which is two and a half years now and he's in pre-school.
03:16What made you choose Jolly Gestures Nursery for your child?
03:20We chose Jolly Gestures because we visited a lot of places around Drumore and we felt this was just the nicest atmosphere.
03:27Rebecca had a lot to do with it. When she came in she was very friendly and she just liked her nature and things.
03:34Can you describe your children's experience at the nursery in a few lines?
03:38So my children have had an amazing time at the nursery. They love coming into Jolly Gestures every day.
03:43They love all the girls and some of the girls have been with them since they were six months old.
03:49So they've grown with the rooms and the girls have moved with them. It's been absolutely amazing for them.
03:55They love the outdoor activities. They love their days out. They love the trips on the bus.
04:00They love the activities, the movie days. It's just an amazing place for children.
04:06Can you tell us about some positive changes that you've noticed in Jack being at Jolly Gestures?
04:10Yeah, some really positive changes I've noticed in Jack over the years would be his increased independence.
04:16He's a lot more curious and a lot more playful as well as I would imagine he's developed really high empathy for other children.
04:26So can you tell us about a time where you felt really reassured about Eli's time here at nursery?
04:31Well I was really reassured whenever the girls said that they would take Eli on a school trip out to the soft play
04:39which I was surprised about because Eli was not mobile and it would have been hard work for him to go
04:46but if they said no they would take him and he had a ball.
04:51And can you describe a moment when you felt really happy and reassured with the staff supporting your children?
04:57Well what stands out the most is when my son Ben was asked to speak a poem at Christmas time.
05:04It's just lovely how he can do that and he felt comfortable and they felt that they could ask him.
05:09If you had to describe the nursery in three words what would they be?
05:13I would describe the nursery as a caring, safe, nurturing place.
05:18Welcoming, nurturing and creative.
05:21Fun, happiness and content.
05:24Family environment, it's so friendly and there's such a nurturing and caring team.
05:35They look after all the children that they have in the nursery and every child as an individual they know each child individually.
05:45It's such an amazing place for children.
05:47We hope you enjoyed a look around our nursery. To book a tour please visit our website.
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