Meet the Team

Footsteps Day Nursery and Preschool

Tara Gatford

Nursery Manager

Tara Gatford has had 12 years of experience and has worked in many positions within the nursery environment. Tara started off in a nursery in Ash School and worked her way up through the nursery to Preschool Room Manager.

In 2003 she joined Nursery on the Green in Frimley as a Room Manager and worked in all rooms within the Nursery before being promoted to Deputy Nursery Manager.

Tara has a son who attended a Casterbridge nursery from the age of three months untill he started "big school" in September this year. She also has a little girl who attends Footsteps and is currently in the Baby Room.

Sarah Murray

Deputy Manager

Sarah has had 10 years experience working within the childcare field. Since early 2009, she has worked with Casterbridge Nurseries. She worked as Junior Deputy Manager at our sister nursery, Nursery on the Green in Frimley, before transferring to Footsteps In March 2011 to become Deputy Manager.

Sarah has experience working with children of all ages including children with complex special needs and is the nursery's designated Special Education Needs Coordinator. She is also in her second year of a degree in Early Years Education.

Rachael Salvidge

Deputy Manager

Rachael has been working at Footsteps Day Nursery since August 2002. She started at the nursery as a Junior Nursery Nurse looking after children aged 12-18 months. Throughout her time at Footsteps Rachael has worked her way up to become Deputy Manager of the nursery.

Rachael is qualified in childcare to NVQ level 3 and is currently completing her NVQ level 3 in Management.

In her spare time Rachael is an Assistant Scout Leader with a local Scout Troup. Rachael's daughter attends Footsteps.

Kate Richards

Preschool Principle

Kate has worked at Footsteps since June 2011, coming from a children's centre in Ash. She brings a wealth of knowledge regarding delivery of the EYFS and preparing the children for school.

Kate is a qualified teacher and has a strong focus on outdoor play. She has attended courses on Forestry schooling and has adopted some of the practices in her approach to the children's learning and development.

Yusuf Huseyin

Nursery Chef

Yusuf has worked at Footsteps Day Nursery since April 2004 and has brought his passion for food and nutrition to the children. Yusuf has introduced a vegetable patch that the children really enjoy using to plant all kinds of wonderful fruits and vegetables. He regularly spends time in each room cooking with the children or preparing healthy snacks like smoothies or fruit snacks. The four weekly menus are designed so that children are never bored of a certain meal. We source all our fruit, vegetables and meat from local butchers and green grocers and everything is made fresh.

Yusuf has dealt with a variety of allergies, intolerances and dislikes over the years and can handle all of these fantastically, always making an alternative for those children that is just as delicious as the original.

In 2011 Yusuf won two prestigious awards: Casterbridge Nurseries' Chef of the Year and a special competition run by 3663 foods. He was also runner-up at the NMT (Nursery Management Today) awards 2009, the most prestigious awards in the childcare sector, in their Nursery Chef of the Year category.

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Forthcoming Events

Our Three Peaks Challenge

Stay and Play Mornings

Preschool Patrol are out and about

More events