Meet the Team

Liz O’Neill is the Owner and Manager of Tom Thumb Nursery. She is an Early Years Teacher with many years experience. She loves working in the Pre School Room and getting the children ready for school.

Hannah Soutar is the Deputy Manager of Tom Thumb, she has worked here for 11 years and holds a Level 3 qualification. She has a daughter called Dottie, who also came to Tom Thumb. Hannah loves working with the babies and helping new parents to settle into nursery.

Nicky Wilson is the Office Manager and takes care of all the day to day running of the nursery. She loves her job and has worked here for 15 years, her children also attended nursery. Nicky loves talking to parents and ensuring everyone is happy. She is the Special Education Needs Co-Ordinator and is very passionate about getting ‘early help’ for children who need it the most.

We are affectionally known as the ‘triangle’ as we always work better when the 3 of us are in together. We have a strong vision for the nursery and all strive to make it a great place for children, families and staff.

Click on the images above to enlarge

Our team are what makes nursery, we all have a passion for childcare and early years education.

We hold fully enhanced DBS checks and a wide range of both statutory and non-statutory qualifications  including amongst others Early Years Educator Levels 3 to 6, Early Years Teacher, 100% Paediatric First Aid Trained, Advanced Safe Guarding (levels 2 & 3), Food Hygiene, Supporting Mental Health in Children and Young People, Stoke Speaks Out Training, Makaton training and lots more.

Our staff have many years experience and are committed to their own professional development. They are always seeking new learning experiences for the children in our care, we do this through face to face training, webinars, online courses and lots of reading to keep up ourselves up to date.

We are proud that many of our staff have been with us for many years, this has enabled us to create incredibly strong bonds with each other and our wider community.

We follow a safer recruitment process and always aim to promote from within and through a thorough interview process we always ensure we employ only the most caring and enthusiastic practitioners who show a true passion for what they do. The most important attributes for any staff member are to give happy smiles and warm, snuggly hugs for when children need it the most.

The ratios for children are as follows:

0-2 years 1:3

2-3 years 1:4

3-8 years 1:8

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New Staff Member 

This is Granny Mary and she is our ‘housekeeper’. She does lots of jobs around nursery to help us to keep everything running smoothly – she’s an integral part of the team. She’s helpful to everyone and if she sees anything that needs doing – she does it. Everyone needs a Granny Mary!

We have looked after lots of her little grandchildren over the years and she has an incredibly warm nature, big heart and a friendly smile. When she came for interview little India was quite taken with her and held her arms out for a cuddle. At that moment, we were sold and knew she would get the job!! đŸ„°