I am Alison the manager and owner of Cosy Tots Childcare. I am married with 2 children Harry who is 18 and Millie who is 13. I live with my husband Colin and Millie and Harry is away at college and home weekends and school holidays. I have lived in the same house in Borehamwood for 13 years. I worked at Shenley Primary school for 6 years as a teaching assistant and was fortunate enough to work in all areas of the school. In 2013 I completed my Level 3 diploma in teaching and learning in schools. I have always believed that children achieve academically when they are happy and feel safe. While at Shenley I was put forward to go on some training that focused on Emotional Literacy and wellbeing. I have a huge passion for the wellbeing of children and after my training I set up a ran the schools nurture groups. I started my degree in children’s and young people’s services in 2015 while working at the school. In 2016 I went to work for the BECC Childrens Centre in Borehamwood. There I worked within the community supporting at play and stay sessions. I was responsible of the delivery workshops to support families such as Introducing Solids, Parenting Puzzle and home learning. In addition, I carried on with my nurture group background delivering sessions in local schools and pre-schools. I graduated in 2017 with a BA honors in Childhood and Youth studies. While working within the community and getting to know the local families I recognised a need for more provisions in the area I spoke to many families who stated they would like to send their children to nursery or pre-school but had concerns on the type of care they would receive with many settings providing day care for more than 20 –30 children at one time. My vision was to provide a ‘home from home’ environment where every child is treated as an individual and able to play, learn and socialise under close adult attention giving time to encourage children to be kind, and helpful as they learn to share and make new friends.

Cosy Tots aims to provide a warm and nurturing environment where children can learn, socialise and have fun. Cosy Tots is different to other settings as it works as a small setting of only 8 children per session. Here, your child will receive close adult care and attention. Our vision is to create a “home from home’ experience within a stimulating environment where children can socialise and learn from each other. Children will be able to play in a purpose-built building in a beautiful garden. It has been suggested by many experts that children who are able to play freely and are able to feel secure enough to immerse in deep concentration has positive impact on later academic success.