Nurseries

What was your route into working within Education? Have you always wanted to work within Education?

I was a student at EKC Canterbury College studying Sport and Fitness and after I finished, one of my teachers mentioned to me that there was an opening in the sports centre. I was more than happy to apply as I hadn’t worked in a sport environment before and I got the job.

Have you had any other roles within the organisation?

When I started I was only part-time, so it was mainly working weekends and Fridays. My part-time role was a Recreation Assistant and now I’m full-time role as a Sports and Fitness Instructor.

Have you completed any training to help you complete your role?

I will be undergoing a first aid course, but I’ve been doing a personal trainer course as well.

What do you enjoy most about working within the Group / your Business Unit?

I enjoy customer service, talking to people every day. I always enjoy getting the most out of people fitness-wise, so I try to motivate them as much as I can. I struggled with fitness when I was younger so it’s good to think back to what helped me.

What do you think are some of the most important qualities needed for your role?

Communication skills and time management. In my role you need to talk to people a lot and communicate clearly to get the best out of people. Some people are more confident than others and we also have international students who don’t speak much English, so it’s thinking about how you can work around that and how you can help them.

What would you say to anyone else considering applying for the Group?

If you love being in a fitness environment, then be confident and apply.

What was your route into working within Education?

I almost fell into it by accident. I didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life so just applied to do Early Years at University to tie me over. It wasn’t until I started getting experience in placements that I realised I enjoyed it. One of my first experiences was working within a nursery in Thanet that had quite a few clients living in deprivation and the needs of the children were quite high. Seeing the impact we can make to the lives of children really made me realise that I had a passion for it and wanted to continue learning how to support the needs of the children and their families.

I worked my way through various job roles within early years settings, starting as bank staff and progressing to senior practitioner.

Why did you originally apply to work with EKC Group?

I applied to work for the Group when the nursery was first established. It was a new setting and I was excited for a change and fresh challenge. I was ready for the next step in my career and felt I had reached my potential at the setting I was currently in. I knew that being a big organisation, EKC Group would have a lot more knowledge, training and focus on safeguarding and learning and development, so it seemed like the right path for me.

Have you completed any training to help you complete your role?

I’ve always enjoyed learning so jumped at many of the opportunities that have been available to me. I’ve enjoyed learning and specialising more in a SENCO role, having completed the Level 4 SEN Leadership and Management, and recently completed the Thrive Practitioner training. I also completed the assessor course, so am qualified to assess Early Years students.

All of the courses I’ve completed made sense for my role and I’m so grateful to the Group for supporting my development and allowing me to get these qualifications under my belt.

What do you enjoy most about working within the Group?

Having seen how many nurseries function, it’s also great to know we have the support and financial backing of a large-scale organisation. For many independent nurseries it can be such a struggle which can effect the resources and level of care you can give the children. Here, because we’re part of EKC Group many of those immediate pressures are relieved and we can really focus on creating a positive environment where the children can be nurtured and supported to the best of our ability.

Do you have any career highlights or stand out moments from your time with the Group?

For me seeing the individual children’s growth is the most rewarding. There’s one little boy that we’ve worked with. We didn’t think he was ever going to be able to walk, but we managed to get him up and moving and even walking.

What do you think are some of the most important qualities needed for your role?

You really need to have patience, dedication, compassion and empathy. You need to be able to understand the needs of the children as they may not always be able to communicate them.

It’s also good to have a want and thirst for knowledge, as this sector is everchanging and the demands and challenge continue to grow. You need to be wiling to learn and adapt so that we can continue to stay at the forefront of the education.

What would you say to anyone else considering applying for the Group?

I think the constraints other early years settings sometimes put on you can often be overwhelming, but if you work here you’ll be supported as a person as well as the children remaining the priority. It’s just amazing, you don’t find that in every setting, especially locally.

What was your route into working within Education? Have you always wanted to work within Education?

I was interested in working in a childcare setting as previous members of my family have worked in the sector. School wasn’t really for me so I looked into my other options. I found the Early Years Apprenticeship at the EKC Canterbury Nursery and went for it.

How did you originally apply to work with EKC Group?

I came into the role after successfully passing my Apprenticeship, which was a total of 18 months. I liked being able to grow my skills in my future workplace, and like how instead of exams throughout it was focused on the work side of things. It was less stressful than school and more rewarding as I got to do something I enjoyed.

Have you completed any training to help you complete your role(s)? If so, how have you found it?

Aside from the Early Years Apprenticeship, in my role I have done lots of courses to help me improve my knowledge. I’ve likely completed over 80 courses! Some key ones to me were the paediatric first aid course, and Safeguarding training.

I’m now going onto a Level 3 in Safeguarding, which is more in-depth, such as seeing which agencies to work with if there is a safeguarding issue. The training I’m doing means I could potentially become a safeguarding lead in the future should I wish to do so with additional courses.

What do you enjoy most about working within the Group?

I appreciate the diversity in the nursery in terms of the different types of children we have. I feel that in some nurseries, there’s an expectation that your child has to be perfect day in, day out but that’s not the case here. We also look after and support children with learning difficulties, as well as international children who don’t speak much English, which makes the role more rewarding and exciting as you can really make a difference.

The team here is very supportive. One of the reasons I didn’t get on in school is that groups felt very cliquey, but here there’s none of that. It’s tacky to say but we are a family here and enjoy all being together.

Do you have any career highlights or stand out moments from your time with the Group?

I get recommendations from parents of children that I’ve worked with here. It’s always nice for parents to come back and update you on their child’s progress, and for them to say that their child’s growth is down to you is really nice.

What do you think are some of the most important qualities needed for your role?

You need a lot of patience. It’s also important to be caring and nurturing because of the work you do and being very organised really helps too. I’d say the biggest quality though is patience.

What would you say to anyone else considering applying for the Group?

I’d say if you are looking for a team that you can get really involved in, and want to be an active part of that, then working here is for you. It’s more than just a work environment, we all come here to be with each other and make a difference.

What was your route into working within Education?

I went to college and studied a Level 3 in sports and leisure, then onto university for a year. I also worked two jobs whilst studying in a related industry.

How did you originally apply to work with EKC Group?

I learnt about the opportunity on the EKC vacancy website. I applied as I genuinely admire the culture, innovation and opportunities there are for staff and students. It really resonates with my values and career goals, and I felt I could contribute to the role advertised.

Have you completed any training to help you complete your role(s)? If so, how have you found it?

I have completed lots of training already in my first couple of weeks. Before starting my role, I completed online safeguarding and PREVENT and now I am being supported to learn the processes within my department.

What do you enjoy most about working within the Group?

I really enjoy my new role, and the team is so supportive and have a shared passion for fitness. Every day brings new opportunities to help others reach their goals, which makes my job truly rewarding.

Do you have any career highlights or stand out moments from your time with the Group?

Although I’ve only been with the group for a week, a standout moment for me was quickly intergrading into the team. I was also impressed by how supportive everyone was, which helped me learn quickly and feel welcomed. This positive environment has already been a significant highlight for me.

What do you think are some of the most important qualities needed for your role?

Some of the most important qualities include communication skills, empathy and patience, knowledge and expertise, motivational skills, ability and professionalism. All these qualities are important because they collectively ensure safe fitness training.

What would you say to anyone else considering applying for the Group?

This role is fantastic opportunity if you’re passionate about promoting health and wellness. If you're motivated to inspire others and uphold high standards of professionalism, this could be a great fit for you.