Since entering the sector in 2000, Stephen Collins and his wife Yvonne have carefully developed their two nurseries and their teams and now believe they have a business model with the potential to grow by leaps and bounds.
With backing from private equity company Downing LLP, Gingerbread is about to open its third nursery in Merseyside and will be opening a fourth in January 2012. The backing it has secured provides the capital to potentially expand the group to ten settings, employing around 250 staff, within the next five years.
Mr Collins has prioritised a reputation for flexibility. 'We are open from 7am to 6pm, which makes a huge difference to the families who use us,' he says. 'We have given a lot of thought to making the nurseries as appealing and practical for parents as we can. They have responded very positively to the high-tech systems we have installed, such as internet viewing systems and biometric finger entry system. These will be carried across to our new nurseries.'
'OFF PLAN' TOURS
Acquiring and converting a period property into a 100-place nursery, in the affluent area of Green Bank Park, in the south of Liverpool, represents a £1m-plus-project. Mr Collins is confident it is in the right location. At the same time he is a firm believer that if a nursery delivers quality, people will also travel to reach it. 
He hasn't left anything to chance. A pre-sale campaign has already secured 25 per cent occupancy.
'We feel this is an exceptional result,' he says. 'We have set up an office on-site with a marketing manager employed to offer an "off plan" tour. People can come in and look at the plans and visuals and hear what we have to offer.'
When it comes to selling points, there are plenty to flag up. 'We have a secure internet viewing system, biometric finger entry system, interactive ICT systems for the children's use, a large and well resourced outdoor area and a dedicated pre-school room,' says Mr Collins.
'The webcam was introduced in all our nurseries five years ago and we've had excellent feedback from parents. Our latest initiative is to launch e-folders, which effectively collect every piece of work a child has done, which we scan and store digitally. Each week we choose one piece to send to parents by email.'
This child record is also stored on a USB stick or CD-Rom which parents can take away with them when their child leaves the nursery.
'This is absolutely unique,' he says. 'Parents love the fact they have this digital record. We also compile room journals and newsletters and make sure we make use of our significant investment in advanced ICT systems.'
One of the most impressive aspects of the Gingerbread family is the calibre of staff. The Greenbank Park Pre-school will employ three EYPs - the manager, deputy manager and lead EYP.
'We need strong leadership to make the business work and have invested in staff who have a strong track record and are well qualified,' says Mr Collins.
RACHEL HOLMES
Rachel Holmes is the EYP and acting deputy manager for the Gingerbread Pre-school in Crosby. She views herself as a catalyst for change in the nursery.
'The EYP is the middle tier between practitioners and managers, and is responsible for leading practice in particular rooms and training the staff who work in them,' she says.
'I see myself very much as a change agent, helping staff to implement the EYFS and moving forward with improvements. We have recently introduced EYFS parent evenings to explain how we are working. Parents can ask questions and look at children's learning journeys.'
Ms Holmes has recently introduced a new planning system. 'We are creating a lot more photographic observations, which we call snapshots, which track children's development. This has become more of a working document for each child, with post-it-notes, pictures, observations and comments from parents. Information from these goes up on boards, which helps us to shape our planning.'
SNAPSHOT
- Gingerbread's nurseries in Crosby and Fazakerley have been graded good by Ofsted in the last 12 months.
- A total of 70 staff are currently employed across the two nurseries. Yvonne Collins is the company's operations director.
- The fourth nursery, named the Gingerbread Academy, will open in January 2012 in Merseyside, offering 100-plus places
- Downing LLP's Paul Beaumont will become a director of the Gingerbread Pre-Schools Group. He says his firm have invested in it on the basis of its enthusiasm, commitment and professionalism.
