Staffing boost for nurseries

MORAY has welcomed a sizeable intake of nursery staff as the new school year kicks off.

The staffing increase is a result of the early learning and childcare (ELC) expansion of hours – now into phase two – with almost 1,000 children in Moray receiving their new entitlement of 1,140 funded hours in nursery or with a childminder.

A further round of recruitment is planned for spring 2020 to ensure appropriate staffing levels ahead of the full roll-out of the extended hours in August next year.

The council has filled more than 40 early-years posts since January, with the majority starting work this month. The recruitment surge includes new entrants to the sector, staff moving on from other settings and existing staff taking advantage of career progression opportunities.

Nine local authority nurseries will now come under the leadership of a nursery manager following the 2018 pilot phase.

One such manager is Mitch Fraser, who was previously senior nursery nurse at Tomintoul Primary School Nursery, and has stepped up to the role as nursery manager at Tomintoul and Keith Nurseries.

Mitch said: "The expansion has been great for me. I would never have had the opportunity to step up without it.

"It will be great for all early-years staff, giving them a chance to progress with their career."

Children and Young People’s Services Committee chairwoman Councillor Sonya Warren said: "We expected the expansion of ELC funded hours would bring recruitment challenges. However, we’ve had consistently high-quality applications, with over 200 applications for 10 posts in spring 2019.

"We now know that we have an enthusiastic workforce making the most of the opportunities open to them and they’re a welcome addition to any funded provider early-years team."

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