Abstract

A go-to guide for early years professionals, this book will help you to enhance your leadership skills.

How to Be a Great Leader in Early Years enables you to reflect on your approach to leadership. In doing so it allows you to identify the qualities that make you a good leader and to think about ways to improve. Drawing on insights gained from founding her own award-winning childcare service, Jennie Johnson offers a range of practical strategies to help you become a better leader, inspire others and maintain a first-rate service.

This book is for anyone with an interest in how outstanding childcare settings are led, including nursery owners, nursery managers, unit/room leaders and early years practitioners.

While pitched at those working with small children, the messages are core to a well-led business. Not least the advice that Jennie gives to "know your stuff", "be well read" and "be thirsty for knowledge". Jennie continually reminds the reader that the point of good leadership is to ensure that everything works together to ensure children have a happy fulfilled and fun experience learning. Her book is steeped in good examples which means it can be read in one sitting or dipped into as needed. It would be a very good tool to provoke debate and reflection at a staff meeting or training session.
June O'Sullivan MBE, CEO of London Early Years Foundation
This is a fantastic little book packed with practical ideas that can be applied successfully to any team. Having had first-hand experience of working closely with Jennie and her team I can verify that these are not just ideals, but effective strategies that create great places to work and learn.
Alistair Bryce-Clegg, Early Years Consultant and Author
Jennie has written this book for early years leaders in a reflective and easy-to-use style. It is free from jargon with top tips for inspiring new and existing leaders to use within their practice on the road to excellence. Every setting should have a copy of How to Be a Great Leader in Early Years.
Laura Henry, International Early Years Expert
Strong leadership is pivotal to the long term success of any early years setting. This book clearly and effectively highlights the leadership skills that senior setting staff need, and is essential reading for anyone who manages people in the childcare sector.
Neil Leitch, Chief Executive of The Pre-school Learning Alliance
Jennie provides a handy, accessible guide to leadership in early years settings, drawing from her own experience of building up a nursery group. Nuggets of wise advice and common sense mantras are set out in bite-sized chapters great to dip into for inspiration and ideas. Topics range from culture to cleaning, praise to pay and recruitment to respect.
Liz Roberts, Editor, Nursery World
Jennie Johnson is Founder and Chief Executive of Kids Allowed, a childcare company passionate about delivering high quality childcare. Both she and Kids Allowed have been the recipient of several awards including: A Decade of Excellence in Business 2014 (Women in Business Awards), Nursery Training & Development Award 2013 (Nursery Management Today) and Woman of the Year 2013 (Mancoolian Awards).