Lucy Smith

I am currently employed by Queens Park Academy and manage the Queens Park Community Nursery, which I set up last July (2010). We were rated ‘Outstanding’ by Ofsted in July 2011 which the LA did not expect us to achieve as we were a new setting. We have now moved into a purpose built building, have extended our age range to 6 weeks- 5 years and have extended the number of children we can accommodate. By consequence of all this I now work very closely with other organisations to help place, monitor and support vulnerable families. It is my aim through this nursery to reach families who need support but would not traditionally get it through a nursery setting.

My current aim within work is to get the Community Nursery noticed outside the Queens Park area and subsequently get my name noticed outside the Queens Park area. I will continue to work within this company for a while and am working with the leadership team within the school to help raise standards across age ranges 6 weeks- 9 years. I am undecided as to what I want to do in the future. I know it will involve working within or around the early years sector as an advisor, change agent, researcher etc. I am hoping to complete my MA in childhood studies and families soon (when funds allow) and would really like to do a degree in Child Psychology, purely for interest. I would also like the opportunity to visit other countries which have a successful early year’s strategy. There is often a link between a countries investment to the early years and the academic achievement of children in later school. 

The SAP project I am working with have called themselves ‘Brand 4 Bedford’ I joined them after they had been formed and was impressed by the general goal they were aiming to achieve. We want to get Bedfordians to recognise what Bedford has to offer with regards to leisure, culture, the arts, the diversity, the amount of outstanding educational establishments etc. We hope that we can do this with a focus on multi-culturalism as here in Bedford we feel it works and that it should be shouted about and celebrated as much as possible. We are hoping to have a small event in the town centre where people can highlight their cultural background in a fun and visual manner. We are also hoping (dependent on time scale) to have a large celebration event where local businesses, faith groups, support groups, educational establishments etc can showcase what they have on offer and how they can help the local community.  

I draw my inspiration generally from the people that I come into contact with on a regular basis. This is usually leaders within my field of employment such as local faith leaders, charity leaders and some educational leaders. I am also very inspired by some of the families that I come into contact with, whose daily life is very difficult for. Some of these families find it difficult to give their children breakfast everyday and it is a struggle simply to get to school, due to difficult shift patterns and other family commitments. Yet these families, without any additional help, have spent time and devotion on their children, helping them to grow up to become respectful and confident which will stand them in good stead for their later life. Their children appreciate what is being done for them and they are included in family life. Having all this time and investment put into them costs nothing but will hopefully allow the children to go on and succeed and break the cycle of deprivation. I do not feel that the media gives these families enough acknowledgement and they should be used as a model to fix the so-called ‘broken Britain’