A colourful newsletter has just been launched by Early Years Childcare to celebrate its achievements, discuss important childcare issues and update parents on developments in the nursery chain's nine settings. It will be published three times a year, with its next issues in July and November.
The first edition of the A4 magazine, which is available in hard copy and as a digital version on the chain's website, includes a feature on how the group handles safeguarding, a profile of its nursery in Greenwich and an interview with Crawley nursery manager Rebecca Bourne. There are also articles on making the transition to school, how the nursery approaches building children's communication skills as part of its everyday practice and a preview of what it is looking forward to as warmer days approach.
Marketing co-ordinator Natasha Richardson says, 'The newsletter has been around two and-a-half months in gestation and has been running alongside the development of our new website, which will be launched very soon.
'We decided to use a local design agency, Captiv8, on the basis that we had seen other work they'd done and really liked their design style.'
Investment in the newsletter has been driven by a determination to engage effectively with parents and establish a greater interest and understanding of all aspects of nursery life.
'The newsletter offers us lots of scope to flag up what we are doing and what our achievements are,' Ms Richardson says. 'We have decided to devote the middle spread of each issue to a profile of one of our nurseries and we will ensure that all get a chance to enjoy the spotlight. We are also profiling individuals in different roles and, following on from this issue's nursery manager, we intend to interview one of our in-house chefs. We want to give parents a real flavour of what we do and make them feel a part of our community.'
Feedback from staff has been positive. 'Both the content and look of the newsletter have been well received,' says Ms Richardson. 'The way the content is structured means that staff can see lots of opportunities to get involved and can look forward to some positive coverage in its pages. They can also see the enormous scope it offers to communicate with existing parents and promote the nursery to new ones.'
Early Years Childcare is aiming for a new-look website that delivers the 'wow factor'. All of its nurseries will have their own home pages, with background and information on their staff teams. There will also be a blog spot. 'It will re-inforce our priorities, such as our focus on the individual child, outdoor play and nutritious home-cooked meals,' says Ms Richardson. 'We want to give parents and potential customers as much information about us as possible.'
