Education minister visits nursery recently graded as excellent

WALES’ education minister Kirsty Williams has applauded the Mamhilad Park Estate based children’s nursery recognised for its excellence in childcare, education and staff development.

Ms Williams spent almost an hour at the Little Stars children’s nursery chatting with staff and mixing with children.

The nursery was described in a recent Estyn report as excellent for its current performance and excellent for its prospectus for improvement. The nursery, with a roll of 110 children aged from six weeks to five years, also received an award for excellence in the Estyn annual awards last year.

Little Stars has also played an active part in Welsh Curriculum Reform as part of the Child Development group.

Ms Williams said: “I was delighted to visit Little Stars to see the commitment and hard work they’ve given to the development of the new curriculum. I saw for myself the high standard of teaching our youngest learners are having at this Foundational Phase setting.”

Nursery owner, Emma Matthews, welcoming the minister to the nursery, said: “We are delighted that our commitment to setting improvement, staff professional development and delivering quality childcare and education, has been acknowledged with a visit from Kirsty Williams.”

Little Stars Nursery, which opened in January 2003, is owned and managed by Emma Matthews and Marie Ellis-Jones, two qualified and experienced Early Years School teachers who have total commitment to the quality provision for the pre-school child.

Set in the grounds of Mamhilad Park Estate Little Stars sees a quarter of the children its cares for coming from businesses based on the park.

James Crawford, chief executive officer of Johnsey Estates which owns Mamhilad Park Estate, said: “Little Stars is a terrific asset for the business park offering parents a first rate start in life for their children. The nursery helps us to attract occupiers to the business park offering, as it does, first class educational and nursery facilities right here on site.”