At the Early Childhood Ireland Gala Awards Evening on Saturday 5th April, Cheeky Cherubs Early Years Schools was awarded FOUR awards for our work on Síolta Accreditation, Innovation and Learning Stories!!!
Early Childhood Ireland supports and represents the people who play a role in the development, delivery and oversight of quality Early Childhood Care and Education in Ireland.
Síolta Accreditation
Síolta, the National Quality Framework for Early Childhood Education, was developed by the Centre for Early Childhood Development and Education on behalf of the Department of Education and Skills.
The aim of the Síolta programme is to introduce participants to the principles, standards and processes of Síolta so that they become familiar with the framework and are informed, ready and able to engage with the Formal Síolta QAP. It was a two year process which involved us creating a 90,000 word portfolio documenting and showing evidence of our high standards. We also attended monthly cluster groups in the evenings and worked with our Síolta mentor, Lucy Connolly, through several onsite visits. The journey culminated with a final validation visit from Marie Willoughby on Tuesday 1st of April. This was a very positive experience and her feedback was excellent. We received the highest level of quality possible, a level 4, across the board. This is a huge achievement and testament to the hard work the Cheeky Cherubs team put in. We have received a plaque for this accreditation and will proudly display it, along with our other awards, in the lobby. Watch this space!
Learning Stories Awards:
Early Childhood Ireland launched the “Learning Stories Awards” in 2012. These awards were initiated to showcase the wonderful work and learning that is happening in members’ services. This year, we won an award for “Our Very Own Story Book”. In this Learning Story, the children were supported to explore books through a range of perspectives. The teachers noticed the children’s interest in reading stories to each other and built on this interest with a variety of activities and experiences. The children progressed to creating their own storybook. They explored all different types of books, discussed all parts of a book and visited their local library. The children became authors, illustrators and publishers of their own storybook. This was an exciting and empowering way to support children’s language, literacy and sense of development.
Two Innovation Awards:
- Cheeky Cherubs Early Years School, Ballincollig – Fine Dining
- Cheeky Cherubs Early Years School, Bishopstown – Environment and Design
The Early Childhood Ireland Innovation Awards recognise Early Child Care and Education services who generate spirit, energy and drive in providing better experiences for the children and families accessing their services. We won awards for “Innovation in Environment and Design” for bringing practices normally found in a Reggio Emilia Preschool into an Irish context. Our emphasis on open plan environments and allowing the children to move freely from one space to another as well as our focus on the dining experience here in Cheeky Cherubs clinched the award for us.
We would like to sincerely thank all of you families for your support and for your consent, allowing your children to be included in this work.
Images From the Gala Awards
Anne-Marie Murray (Manager, Cheeky Cherubs), Sara O’Donnell (Area Training Manager, Cheeky Cherubs), Sarah O’Leary (Co-Director, Cheeky Cherubs), Michele Akerlind (Co-Director, Cheeky Cherubs) and Janine Urquhart (Manager, Cheeky Cherubs).
Sarah O’Leary (Co-Director, Cheeky Cherubs), Mariesa Duignan (Early Years Education Policy Unit), Anne-Marie Murray (Manager, Cheeky Cherubs) and Janine Urquhart (Manager, Cheeky Cherubs).
Michele Akerlind (Co-Director, Cheeky Cherubs), Mariesa Duignan (Early Years Education Policy Unit), Sara O’Donnell (Area Training Manager, Cheeky Cherubs).
Janine Urquhart (Manager, Cheeky Cherubs), Mariesa Duignan (Early Years Education Policy Unit), Sarah O’Leary (Co-Director, Cheeky Cherubs) and Anne-Marie Murray (Manager, Cheeky Cherubs).
Anne-Marie Murray (Manager, Cheeky Cherubs), Sara O’Donnell (Area Training Manager, Cheeky Cherubs), Sarah O’Leary (Co-Director, Cheeky Cherubs), Michele Akerlind (Co-Director, Cheeky Cherubs) and Janine Urquhart (Manager, Cheeky Cherubs).
Anne-Marie Murray (Manager, Cheeky Cherubs), Sara O’Donnell (Area Training Manager, Cheeky Cherubs), Sarah O’Leary (Co-Director, Cheeky Cherubs), Michele Akerlind (Co-Director, Cheeky Cherubs) and Janine Urquhart (Manager, Cheeky Cherubs).
