Sale and Davys Playgroup

A behind-the-scenes look at what early years staff actually do every day — beyond “playing with kids”

It’s a common misconception: people think early years staff just play with children all day. Here’s what actually happens behind the scenes 👇

Before the children even arrive: rooms are deep-cleaned and safety-checked, activities are set up based on individual learning plans, and staff review notes from the day before — allergies, sleep patterns, anything a parent flagged at pickup.

Throughout the day, every interaction is intentional. A “messy play” session is building fine motor skills. A snack-time chat is developing language and social skills. Staff are constantly observing and writing notes on each child’s development against early learning goals, all while managing ratios and supervising safely.

But the job goes way beyond the classroom. On any given day, early years staff are also: cooks, preparing meals and snacks to meet dietary needs and allergies; cleaners, sanitising toys, surfaces, and changing areas between every use; first aiders, ready to respond to bumps, falls, and emergencies in seconds; and SEN specialists, adapting activities and communication for children with additional needs, often without extra staffing or time. On top of that, every child has different behaviours, triggers, and needs, and staff are managing all of it, for multiple children, at the same time — calmly and consistently.

Then there’s what happens when children go home: planning tomorrow’s activities around individual needs, updating learning journals, writing daily reports for parents, deep-cleaning toys and equipment, restocking supplies, and attending training on safeguarding, first aid, and child development — most of it unpaid, after-hours work.

And underpinning all of it: safeguarding responsibility. Every staff member is trained to spot signs of abuse or neglect and required by law to act on concerns — a responsibility they carry every single day, for every single child.

Our team also brings a huge range of qualifications to the room. Between just five members of staff, we have over 70 years of combined experience. Every one of those qualifications was hard-earned, and staff continue training throughout their careers to keep developing their skills.

So next time you see your child’s key worker, know this: they’re not just minding your child. They’re a cook, cleaner, first aider, SEN teacher, behaviour specialist, educator, and safeguarder — all rolled into one, all day, every day, backed by decades of experience and qualifications. 💛

Bear-illiant Fun in Sale and Davys Playgroup! 🐻🍯
We’ve had a wonderful time exploring the topic of bears this week! Through these playful activities, the children have been developing key skills across the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) culminating in our fun Teddy Bears picnic!
Paddington’s Marmalade Factory: We made delightfully messy marmalade gloop! This fantastic sensory activity helps children develop their fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination as they mix, pour, and explore textures.
The Bear Cave: Our cozy, darkened cave has been a huge hit! It's been a lovely space for imaginative play, encouraging the children to act out stories, share experiences, and build their social confidence.Three Bears Cottage & Masks: The children designed and crafted their very own bear masks. Wearing their masks, they brought the classic story to life in our cottage role-play area, which boosts communication, language, and storytelling skills.These playful, hands-on experiences are carefully planned to support every child's learning and development in a fun, engaging way!

🚨 Energy bills could be on the rise again! 🚨

Money-saving expert Martin Lewis has warned that the energy price cap is expected to increase by around 13% in July. If you’re currently on a standard variable tariff, now could be the ideal time to review your options and consider fixing your energy rates before any increase takes effect.

The good news? You don’t have to do it alone.

We’re proud to work with Elle Wilson, who helps households explore ways to reduce their monthly outgoings, including energy, broadband, mobile, and other household bills.

If you’d like a free, no-obligation review to see where you could save money, drop us a message or comment below and we’ll put you in touch with Elle.

💡 A few minutes could help protect your budget from rising costs.

❤️ As a charity-run preschool, there’s an added benefit too. If you choose to use Elle’s services to help reduce your household bills, you’ll not only be helping your own family save money, but you’ll also be helping to support our preschool playgroup and the work we do with your children every day. Every referral helps us continue providing a nurturing, engaging environment where children can learn, play, and thrive.

Message us today to find out more.

What a brilliant week we’ve had celebrating the start of summer!
The sun has been shining at times but we have not let the rain stop our play
and the children have absolutely loved diving into our summer-themed activities this week.Here’s a peek at what we’ve been up to-
Sensory Seashell & Sand Play: Little hands dug into our activity trays to explore sand, water, and sea creatures! We have practiced for sports day, had fun with bats, balls, buckets, tubes and drainpipes to experiment. It has been so lovely seeing so many smiling faces, building hand-eye coordination, and watching imaginations soar!

📢 Sale and Davys Playgroup Registration
Notice 📢

If you would like to sign your child up with Sale and Davys Playgroup, please get in touch as soon as possible to secure their place.

All bookings for the current intake must be made no later than the end of June 2026.

Any parents wishing to register their child after the end of June 2026 will need to wait until September 2026 for the next available intake.

To book your child’s place or for more information, please contact us as soon as possible. At [email protected]

Many thanks 🤩

Imagine you run a sandwich shop.

Let's say it costs you £1 to make a sandwich and you charge customers £1.10 per sandwich to make a profit to reinvest into your business.

Now imagine that one day, the government announces that it's going to pay for two free sandwiches a week for all working adults (in a bid to win votes).

The problem is they are only willing to pay sandwich shops like you 50p per sandwich to meet this promise. That's 50p less than it costs you to make them and 60p less than you normally charge for them.

Over the course of a year, this could result in your business losing thousands of pounds.

What would you do?

*****

In light of the news that the education secretary has asked the Competitions and Markets Authority to look into the early years sector, we're resharing our free interactive explainer for you to share with families at your setting, to help them understand the problem with early years underfunding – and the impossible choices that settings are being left to make.

You can view it on our website here: https://bit.ly/47CsVkb or a mobile-friendly version here: https://bit.ly/3T2PdqU.

Round up of the week … Mini beasts and In the garden.
This week we have been busy exploring the great outdoors and learning all about the tiny creatures that share our world.
Children used magnifying glasses to find worms, woodlice, and snails, Little hands explored in our mud kitchen and and we checked our beans we had put into wet tissue, lots of them had started to grow roots and shoots so we planted them.

Round up of the week ….. Around the world 🌍
What a wunderbar topic !
Part of our focus was on the Eyfs - Understanding the World as we talked about similarities and differences between places, communities, and traditions. We also boosted Communication and Language as we learned simple greetings in multiple languages.
We have made erupting volcanoes, danced to different types of world music, and created carnival or Venetian masks.

Round up of the week 🏴‍☠️🏴‍☠️🏴‍☠️
Ahoy there, families!
We’ve had a wonderful week in playgroup as we’ve set sail on the high seas for our "Pirates and Oceans" topic. It has been a "swashbuckling" adventure filled with treasure hunts and deep-sea discoveries!
Our little pirates have been very busy counting their "loot"! We’ve been using gold coins to practice simple counting and subtraction. We made aged treasure maps with teabags and sand alongside our pirate hats.
We looked at lots of different creatures that live in the sea from the smallest to the very largest!

🐛🐛🦋🦋 Round up of the week 🌱🌱
Our little explorers have had a wonderful week diving into the world of Growing and Life Cycles! From tiny seeds to magnificent butterflies, we’ve been observing how living things change.Highlights included - Planting our own magic bean seeds and learning what plants need to grow. Investigating the magic of metamorphosis! From tadpoles to frogs, caterpillars to butterflies and a magic experiment turning white flowers to all colours of the rainbow…
The children have been absolutely fascinated by the changes they can see!