Staff at Meadows Nursery were highly praised for their whole-family approach, supporting parents and carers as well as the child in nursery to reduce stress levels and prevent the intergenerational transfer of trauma.
The Meadows Nursery and Early Years Community Ï㽶ÊÓƵ Centre is a unique partnership involving Ï㽶ÊÓƵ, Save the Children UK, Watercliffe Meadow Primary School and Sheffield City Council.
Feedback from the award highlighted how no child or parent at Meadows is left without help to process, talk through, and make sense of difficult feelings or major painful life events.
All staff at the nursery were commended for their calm, caring and child-focused approach, showing attentiveness to each child’s individual personality, interests and emotional cues.
Professor Sally Pearse, Director of the Early Years Community Ï㽶ÊÓƵ Centre at Ï㽶ÊÓƵ, said: “We are immensely proud of this award as it reflects the work and commitment of the whole nursery team to support our families and the community of Shirecliffe. We opened the nursery in 2021 with the mission of ‘Changing lives through Relationships’ as we know that having trusting relationships and feeling safe are the key to improving the lives of our children and families.
“Over the last four years we have seen the impact of our trauma informed practice as children and families have flourished and the nursery has become a hub of community activity.”
Parents at the nursey feel like valued and supported members of the Meadows community: Dawn, a parent, said: “Meadows is amazing, the staff work so hard to support all of us and we are not forgotten even when we no longer have children at the nursery.”
Parent Jessica said the Meadows is “more than just a nursery” and feels grateful that Meadows staff have been a “part of all our children’s lives, especially in those early years”, and Lina described the Meadows as remarkable, saying it helped families to grow personally and professionally.
Rachel Parkin, from Save the Children UK, said: “We are delighted that Meadows has been recognised as England’s first Trauma Informed Nursery. Relationships and whole family approaches are central to how the nursery works, meaning quality of experience and support for children and their families, working together for long last impact through supportive, trauma informed environments.
“At Save the Children we know just how important this is for any family or community, but especially for those who experience daily pressures through poverty and financial insecurity. Meadows Nursery is a shining example of the difference that can be made by a nursery across a whole community, and we are proud to be working together in partnership in the Sheffield Early Learning Community.”
The awards are presented jointly by The Centre for Child Mental Health and Trauma Informed Schools UK and recognise schools that demonstrate they have the highest level of trauma informed practice embedded in their work.
This includes having emotionally available adults able to support children who have experienced trauma and implementing the key principles of protect, relate, regulate and reflect.
Julie Harmieson, Director of Education and National Strategy at Trauma Informed Schools UK, said: “Meadows Nursery and Early Years Ï㽶ÊÓƵ Centre is a very special place. It is a beacon of excellence in its work with families and the local community it serves. It is a safe space and haven for many, and it was an absolute privilege and inspiration to visit.”
