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In the News, Uncategorized

Nursery Wins at NMT Awards!

Manager

The Secret Garden Outdoor Nursery has won the category Best Forest School/Nature Kindergarten in the Scottish NMT Nursery Awards 2019.

As Scotland’s first ever fully outdoor nursery, a unique and highly acclaimed philosophy and practice has evolved in the woods crafted around the guiding principles – Presence, Nature, Play. 

Winners of the 6thScottish NMT Nursery Awards 2019 were presented with their trophies by Arlene Stuart at the high-profile gala night held on Friday 30thAugust at the Hilton Glasgow Hotel, attended by over 350 guests.

About the Awards: The Scottish NMT Nursery Awards are an annual event organised by Nursery Management Today, the leading business publication in the nursery sector and sponsored by key companies providing services in the sector. The Awards are designed to discover and reward the very best people in the Scottish Nursery Sector.There were 12 categories to enter overall and there were six finalists in each category with two independent judges.

A word from the Judges: The Judges chose The Secret Garden Outdoor Nursery because of their embedded belief that nature is the facilitator. They recognised the strong, collaborative relationships the nursery has within the local community and how this supports daily experiences. Presence, nature and play all the way.

Naomi and Sarah travelled through to the Glasgow Hilton, replacing their waterproofs and wellies for skirts and heels, to accept the award on behalf of the nursery.

Events, Uncategorized

OPEN DAY SUNDAY 8th SEPT

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Join us in the woods on Sunday as we open up our site for our annual open day! Running 11am – 2pm at Letham woods, Letham Village, just outside of Cupar in Fife.

We hope you will join us for some fun activities, free play in the woods, an opportunity to chat to staff and go on a guided tour of the site. Everyone is welcome whether you are interested in the nursery for your little one, curious about the Secret Garden, interested in a career with an outdoor nursery, wondering about training opportunities or just fancying a free, fun day out. Pack a picnic and your outdoor clothing and come join us in the woods!

We are also delighted to have some of our friends joining us with their exciting ventures to share:

There is a full event page on our Facebook site so please do pop over there to see a map of where we are and info regarding parking and access.

Events

Information Evening Success

Manager

Thank you to everyone who attended our Information Evening last week – we estimated about 40 people popped into Volunteer House to say hi!

We hope to repeat this type of event several times a year to give prospective parents, student interns, volunteers and generally interested folks the chance to meet SG staff and generally find out more about the nursery.

One of the highlights was definitely the screening of ‘Into the Middle of Nowhere’ a film by Anna Ewart which was filmed in the nursery back in 2010. It illustrates beautifully, the SG ethos and approach to early learning and childcare. We have a short clip of this film on our homepage if you are interested.

Finally don’t worry if you missed this event, please just drop us an email or pick up the phone and call – we are inviting enrolments now and would love to hear from you!

enquiries@secretgardenoutdoor-nursery.co.uk

Tel: 01334 652276

 

 

Events

Information Evening 28th February

Manager

The Secret Garden Outdoor Nursery warmly invites you to an information evening at our office base in Volunteer House, Cupar. If you are a parent or carer, and are curious to learn more about our pioneering and award winning nursery, which is based in Letham woods, only five miles from Cupar, then why not pop along and join us for a cup of tea and a chat. Our staff will be on hand to answer questions, and we will have displays, photographs, literature (and hopefully a short film too!) to give you an insight into the unique and wonderful experience we provide for pre-school aged children. We welcome children from the age of three, and enrol throughout the year. We accept Council pre-school funding and childcare vouchers. This is a free, drop-in event, so please do come along and say hello!

 

In the News

Scotland’s Play Awards

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At the end of 2017 we were delighted to have been nominated for the Nancy Ovens Awards. Back in 2008 the nursery won the award for Outstanding Contribution to Play and this time, almost 10 years on, we were ecstatic to win the Play in Nursery and School (rural) category! Kath (our Care Manager – right) and Sarah (our Assistant Care Manager – Left) attended the award ceremony at BT Murrayfield which ran alongside Scotland’s first Play Convention.

The Nancy Oven’s Awards were established in 2003 and are Scotland’s only Play Awards. They are supported by the Scottish Government and each year many wonderful play organisations apply to win the prestigious award. You can read more about the Nancy Oven’s Trust here.