Sam Tingle

Senior Early Years Consultant

Sam has 11 years experience working with a range of early years providers as a senior consultant within two local authorities. She's responsible for working with a variety of settings in Dodworth, Silkstone, Keresforth and Barugh Green.

Sam leads the team of early years consultants, developing training, guidance materials and leading initiatives. She's also responsible for the statutory moderation process of the early years foundation stage (EYFS) profile within Barnsley.

Sam has worked in primary education and has experience of teaching foundation stage and key stage 1. She opened, led and managed a private day care setting on the school site, and has experience of mentoring newly qualified teachers for Sheffield Hallam University.

Sam has also worked for Manchester Metropolitan University as an assessor for the early years professional status programme.

Lisa Bosson

Early Years Consultant

Lisa has 12 years experience teaching the early years foundation stage (EYFS) in schools. She has worked as both a foundation stage 2 teacher and stage 1 teacher leading a team in a 40-place nursery. Lisa was a foundation stage coordinator, part of the school’s senior leadership team, and also worked closely with the Sure Start children’s centre on site.

Lisa was worked in an early years improvement team for 7 years, supporting a range of settings during which gained early years professional status. She's supported a range of schools and settings to obtain good and outstanding Ofsted judgements.

Lisa has written guidance materials and delivered training on observation, assessment and planning, and tracking children’s progress, as well as courses including creating enabling environments and extending children’s thinking skills.

Richard Lazenby

Early Years Consultant

Richard has 13 years of teaching experience and has worked in a multi-cultural inner-city school and then as a teacher for children with statements for moderate learning difficulties. He's previously been a foundation stage coordinator, and manager of an early years improvement team.

Richard has experience of working with a wide range of schools, settings and children’s centres to support them on their journey to a good or outstanding Ofsted judgement. He's delivered training on subjects including assessment and planning, sustained shared thinking, tracking children’s progress, provision for 2 year olds and the early years foundation stage (EYFS) profile.

Richard has early years professional status.

Tracy Pearson

Early Years Consultant

Tracy has 15 years experience supporting early years teachers and practitioners, having previously taught early years and primary children for 16 years. She's been deputy and acting Head in a school with extended facilities including breakfast club, after-school club and a toddler group. Tracy's taught modules in early years for Huddersfield University and was an assessor and a mentor for early years professional students.

Tracy is responsible for working with leaders and early years foundation stage (EYFS) staff in schools, settings and family hubs to review, refine and develop early years practice and provision. She leads professional development sessions for early years practitioners, including moderation, assessment, continuity and transition, understanding the world and early reading.

Sara Turner

Early Years Consultant

Sara has 12 years teaching experience within schools for key stage 1, 2 and within the early years foundation stage (EYFS). She's led the foundation team and supported the local community whilst teaching foundation stage 1.

Sara has delivered quality improvements in a range of areas including developing enriching continuous provision, outdoor learning environments, and positive indoor provision. She has experience of being the school lead for mathematics within a multi-academy trust, and has developed the teaching and learning within the primary setting. Within schools, Sara has been the education visits coordinator - overseeing planned and monitored learning outside the classroom.

Services the early years consultants provide

Our early years consultants support provision for children from birth to age 5, including their transition into year 1. We have a universal offer which is open to all early education providers in Barnsley, including maintained schools, academies, independent schools, pre-schools and nurseries.

Services for all providers

All early years providers can access the following services:

• early years and childcare provider webpages, resources, email updates and early years consultancy Facebook page
• local network events, including moderation
• training courses
• bespoke support packages

Services for childcare settings

In addition to the services for all providers, childcare settings can also access the following services:

• a named early years consultant
• tailored support in response to the setting's individual needs

Services for schools and academies

In addition to the services for all providers, schools and academies can also access the following services:

• early years consultants annual school conference
• early years foundation stage (EYFS) profile moderation visits, support and training
• EYFS profile data sense check prior to submission
• quality assurance of the EYFS profile data upon submission

Caroline Campbell

Childcare Quality Improvement Officer

Caroline has been a childcare quality improvement officer since 2009, supporting childminders and childcare settings to meet the safeguarding and welfare requirements. She has vast experience of developing and delivering training including team building, safeguarding, early years foundation stage (EYFS), British values, and outdoor training as a qualified outdoor first aider and forest school practitioner.  

She has a background in adult education, teaching and assessing early years levels 1, 2 and 3 to adult learners for Leeds City College and through PACEY. She's also one of the first childminders to achieve early years professional status, with 12 years experience as a childminder and experience of Ofsted inspector training.

She runs a short break forest school service providing sessions for disabled children, encouraging and providing effective outdoor experiences whilst meeting the needs of children within the EYFS.

Jill Duffin

Childcare Quality Improvement Officer

Jill has worked as a development and quality improvement officer for over 15 years. She's supported all different types of childcare providers across Barnsley meet their statutory requirements and with the early years quality improvement agenda.

She's developed and delivered courses including child development, birth to 3 support, early years foundation stage (EYFS), leadership support, cultural diversity, behaviour management, child protection and safeguarding, special educational needs, administering medications and the childminder pre-registration course.

She has experience of being an Ofsted-registered childminder including being on the National Childminding Association's quality first accredited network, delivering nursery education for 3 and 4 year olds prior to the EYFS. She also has experience of caring for children on the sponsored network from social care, including supporting children with complex medical needs.

Maria Hamby

Childcare Quality Improvement Officer

Maria has nine years experience working as a childminder in the Barnsley area and achieved an outstanding grade from Ofsted at an inspection in 2015.

She's worked in the current position since October 2015, providing support and guidance to settings and childminders in continuous quality improvement to obtain good and outstanding Ofsted grades. She's delivered this support a number of ways, including one to one, training and hosting, as well as developing and facilitating the early years forums for childminders and nursery settings.

Maria has experience of leading projects including the Sue Overton Applied Practice project, and has developed Barnsley’s approach and delivered safeguarding courses to a variety of settings and childminders.

Kathy Fletcher

Childcare Quality Improvement Officer

Kathy has been in the current role since 2003 and has 23 years experience in childcare. She's provided support and guidance to childcare settings across the borough, in their journey to improve outcomes for children. She facilitates, develops and delivers training, forums and conferences with team members, making use of tools such as ECERS audits to encourage better outcomes.

With a background in business and finance, Kathy leads on business support for childcare settings, including developing the business toolkit, and has also developed the funding process for the Sure Start out of school grant.

Kathy has experience of supporting settings with funding applications, reviewing occupancy and finance as the monitoring officer, and acted as the grant monitoring officer for the Big Lottery Fund. She has experience of leading and facilitating projects such as the Treasure Box facility and the early years and family services website and social media pages.

Gina Abson

Childcare Quality Improvement Officer

Gina has been in this role since September 2001, providing support and guidance to group settings and childminders in Barnsley. She works closely with childcare providers in preparation for Ofsted inspections and for any other reason that support is required.

She provides support to those interested in becoming an Ofsted registered childminder, helping them through the registration process and making sure they have all the needed information and knowledge for the role. She has experience of supporting out of school clubs in Barnsley and has facilitated and delivered out of school club forums.

Services the quality improvement officers provide

We provide support and guidance to childminders and early years settings (excluding schools) on registration, starting up, business matters and all areas of the early years foundation stage (EYFS).

Services for all providers

All childminders and early years settings can access the following services:

• early years and childcare provider webpages and the Barnsley Virtual Family Hub
• weekly bulletins through the Families Information Service and Barnsley Quality Improvement Team Facebook page
• childcare forums
• quality improvement events
• quality improvement programme, including the annual safeguarding audit
• training courses and team organised events (such as natural explorer days at Silverwood)
• a named officer to contact for email and phone support

Targeted support

Targeted support is also available to providers who:

• are becoming childminders or setting up a childcare setting
• are considered being due an Ofsted inspection
• have an Ofsted grading of ‘requires improvement’, ‘inadequate’ or ‘not met’
• have specifically requested support with an area of need