Snapdragons Academy Launches

L to R: Siobhan Luker, Apprenticeship Tutor; Liz Fletcher, Academy Manager; Jessica Lennox-Gordon, Apprenticeship Tutor

We’re delighted to announce the launch of our new training academy for early years apprentices marking an exciting new chapter in our commitment to developing the next generation of childcare professionals. Our first cohort of Snapdragons Academy apprentices started with us in April.

Snapdragons Academy will initially provide training for Level 2 and 3 qualifications using a blend of practical nursery-based learning and theoretical teaching in training rooms based at Horner Court, our new building adjacent to Snapdragons Horfield, Bristol. Apprentices will be able to come together away from their nursery settings to attend project sessions, take part in training and sit their exams in a dedicated learning environment designed specifically to support their development. 

The new Snapdragons Academy follows the successful approval of our application to the Apprenticeship Provider and Assessment Register (APAR) in November. The academy team at Snapdragons has developed and finalised its training offer, with delivery beginning in April. Sophie Collard, as the Director of Training, will be overseeing the Academy when she returns from maternity leave. The team is headed up by Academy Manager, Liz Fletcher, with Jessica Lennox-Gordon and Siobhan Luker as Apprenticeship Tutors. Annaleise Berry has joined us as Academy Administrator.

 Over the past few months, they have been designing and building apprenticeship programmes for both the Level 2 Early Years Practitioner and Level 3 Early Years Educator qualifications. By creating our own curricula, we’ve been able to embed our vision and values and distinctive approach to early years education directly into the training. With their roles as mentors supporting our current apprentices, as well as previous experience teaching in schools, lecturing in colleges and working for external qualification providers, the team have the extensive early years academic and practical knowledge needed to launch this latest development.

The programmes have been shaped using feedback from Nursery Managers, Heads of Early Years Practice and current Apprentices across the organisation, ensuring the courses reflect the real needs of the apprentices, the business and the day-to-day practice of working in an early years environment. The result is an apprenticeship that is strongly practice-based, helping learners connect their training directly to their work in the nursery.

Snapdragons Academy will offer a blended learning approach designed to suit different learning styles. Apprentices will begin with a dedicated induction week before continuing with a programme that combines face-to-face learning, online modules and virtual classrooms. Throughout the year, apprentices will also take part in project sessions that allow them to explore key topics in greater depth and apply their learning in practical ways.

One feature that sets Snapdragons Academy apart from many other training providers is its cohort model. Apprentices will start in monthly groups, enabling them to progress through their training together, support one another and build a strong learning community.

With the first in-house academy apprentices on board this April, Snapdragons Academy aims to strengthen career pathways within early years education while investing in the skills and confidence of its growing workforce.

Meet the team

Sophie Collard, Director of Training

While on maternity leave, Sophie is keeping up to date with the Academy developments and is excited for this next phase at Snapdragons! She knows the new Snapdragons Academy apprentices are in capable hands!

Liz Fletcher

Liz has worked in Early Years for 20 years, initially for a large nursery group for 7 years, where she started as unqualified, completing her level 3 and 4 qualification and progressing to Toddler Room Head. She then worked for Learn Direct, a national training provider, where she completed her Assessor Training and first started working with Snapdragons as the external assessor at Keynsham.  Liz progressed to a role at another provider, Lifetime, as an apprenticeship trainer and assessor, for level 2, 3 and 5 apprenticeships. Alongside this challenging programme she also completed a degree in Childhood Studies. Having built a relationship with Snapdragons while delivering apprentice training for us, Liz was delighted to join us four years ago as an Early Years Mentor, taking the opportunity to gain Early Years Teacher Status along the way.

Siobhan Luker, Apprenticeship Tutor

Siobhan has 20 years’ experience in Early Years including 14 in nursery settings where she progressed from Nursery Practitioner to Manager. She then worked for six years as a college lecturer and apprenticeship tutor delivering the level 2, 3 and 5 qualifications to a variety of different early years settings, including Snapdragons. Her knowledge and appreciation of Snapdragons’ vision and values drawn from her experience is what drew her to her new role in the academy.

Jessica Lennox-Gordon, Apprenticeship Tutor

Jessica is a qualified teacher and taught in primary schools for 12 years before moving into the Early Years sector. Starting as a Head of Pre-School, she soon progressed to Head of Early Years Practice, Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Co-ordinator and Manager roles. For the last one and a half years, Jessica has been an Early Years Mentor supporting Apprentices through their practical and theoretical learning at Snapdragons.

Annaleise Berry, Academy Administrator

Annaleise’s career before joining Snapdragons showed her natural talent for enhancing the lives of children and young people. She worked with girl guiding, was a drama teaching assistant, a children's party host and an athletics teaching assistant. After studying Childhood and Youth Studies at university, she worked up to become a Media Day Centre Manager for adults with learning disabilities. This role, “where every day was different”, combined her organisational and nurturing skillset, making her a great fit for Snapdragons Academy Administrator.

Sophie Collard, Director of Training, says, “We're very excited to welcome our new Snapdragons Academy Apprentices. We are confident that our specially designed modules, blending practice-based and theoretical learning, together with an in-depth induction week that introduces our vision and values, will result in a truly inspiring learning experience. The monthly cohort intakes will foster a truly collegiate environment that will enable apprentices across the group to bond and share their experiences. Good luck to our Academy team and welcome to our first Snapdragons Academy Cohort!”

Work begins on our new Snapdragons Nursery in Southville, Bristol

Architect’s image of the finished conversion

We’re really pleased to announce that planning permission has now been granted for Snapdragons Southville, meaning work can soon begin to transform the former Holy Cross RC Church on Dean Lane into a new Snapdragons nursery.

The church itself dates back to the 1920s and is a historic local building, so it’s important to us that the plans treat it with care and respect. The proposals, designed by StudioLime, take a sympathetic approach that restores the building while adapting it for its new use as a modern early years setting.

Inside the main church space, two new floors will be carefully installed within the large volume of the building. This makes the most of the generous height of the church while keeping the character of the space and preserving the exterior that people recognise.

Next door, the existing priest’s house will be demolished. In its place, we’ll build a new, smaller extension attached to the side of the church, providing the additional space needed for the nursery while sitting comfortably alongside the historic structure.

We’re excited that this project will give the building a new lease of life, bringing it back into active use and creating a fantastic nursery environment for families in Southville, Bedminster and the surrounding area. Now that permission has been granted, we’re looking forward to starting the renovation work and will be updating you with the progress.

The nursery is expected to open in summer 2027 and will have places for up to 160 children.

See what’s new in our Weston garden

It’s a new year and a new garden at Snapdragons Weston. We’ve invested in an exciting mini adventure space that excites and challenges the children, with structures for climbing, balancing, sliding, swinging and crawling, as well as a shingle-roof hut for cosier, quieter moments. We commissioned Bristol company Monkey Business Design to design and build the new garden after being impressed by their previous projects and their amazing sustainability credentials. Not only are they a small, local company, but natural environments are their passion. The wood they use is Douglas Fir, grown and milled in Somerset to Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC) standards and the design of the structures eliminates the need for environmentally damaging concrete bases. And, just as importantly, they have a passion for nature and an understanding of spaces that encourage exploration.

The children are loving their new play space, despite the typically dark and dreary January weather, and we know they will have hours of fun ahead of them.

Off to school!

Well, it’s happened! Our 2025 pre-school leavers have come of age and are off to school!

As summer finally fades and we head into September, thoughts turn to a new school year and a new era for our Pre-School leavers. We’d like to say a fond farewell to our wonderful children who are now ready for their next big adventure. We couldn’t be prouder of you. Watching you grow in confidence (and size) has been a joy and a privilege. We’ve been with you as you learnt to walk and talk, climb, cycle, sing, paint, make friends and make jokes. Your laughter, kindness, curiosity, and energy have filled our days with smiles, and we are so lucky to have been a part of your early journey.

You’ve been truly amazing, and we just know you’re going to do brilliantly in your new schools.

To all our leavers, a huge thank you for the memories, and don’t forget to come back and visit! You’ll always be a part of our nursery family.

With all our love and best wishes,
Your Snapdragons Family

The High Sheriff of Wiltshire Visits to Learn About Our Commitment to Healthy, Sustainable Food

We were honoured to welcome Martin Nye, the High Sheriff of Wiltshire, to Snapdragons recently for a special visit focused on one of our core values: nurturing children through healthy, sustainable, and seasonal.

Martin is chair of trustees of the Soil Association, and also has recently started a year of office as the High Sheriff of Wiltshire. In that role, as well as the customary function of supporting the judiciary, police, emergency services and the voluntary sector, he has chosen to spend some time focusing on the theme of "food" - to encompass all aspects of food from farm to fork. He was very keen to hear about our Food for Life Served Here Gold Award from the Soil Association and see how we have maintained the award in our nurseries since 2012.

The visit was an opportunity to showcase the work we do every day to help children build positive relationships with food - from the way we cook to the way we grow it. At Snapdragons, we believe that healthy eating habits begin early, and that it’s our responsibility to offer nutritious, balanced meals made from scratch, using the freshest seasonal ingredients available.

During the visit, our team gave a behind-the-scenes look at our kitchen ethos. Everything we serve is made fresh each day by our talented chefs, who carefully plan menus to ensure a wide variety of tastes, textures, and nutrients. We avoid ultra-processed foods and take pride in introducing children to the natural flavours of wholesome ingredients.

But our approach goes beyond the kitchen. The High Sheriff also had the chance to hear about the supply chain we built up with our supplier, Lovejoys, and explore our gardens, where children are actively involved in growing fruit, vegetables, and herbs. Whether it’s planting seeds, harvesting carrots, or learning how compost works, we teach the children an understanding of where food comes from and why it matters.

This connection to food is at the heart of our sustainability journey. By using seasonal produce and growing ingredients on-site, we reduce food miles and help children appreciate the cycle of nature. It’s all part of a broader commitment to creating a more sustainable future, not just for our nurseries, but for the wider community.

We were thrilled that the High Sheriff took such a keen interest in our food philosophy and spent time speaking with staff and children about the joys of cooking and growing together. It was a valuable moment to reflect on how small, everyday choices—like choosing local veg or cooking a meal from scratch—can have a big impact on health, wellbeing, and the planet.

Martin said it was an “inspiring visit to Broadwood and Atworth Snapdragons nurseries. I saw really appealing healthy and nutritious food being prepared from scratch in the kitchens, and enthusiastic children picking raspberries and strawberries in well-maintained growing areas. A great example of what Food For Life can help passionate and committed people achieve.”

We’d like to thank the High Sheriff for taking the time to visit and for recognising the importance of early years education in shaping a healthier, more sustainable generation.