I’m Lucy and I am the Centre Manager. I have been employed at The Family Haven since November 2004 and love every minute of it. I have had a few different roles during my time here, from nursery nurse to family support worker and now manager. Working here is never dull, no two days are the same! The wonderful thing about working at The Family haven is seeing the work we do make a real difference to the lives of our families.
My name is Gail and I am the Fundraiser at The Family Haven. My role involves raising money for and the profile of The Family Haven. I have a Foundation Degree in Early Years Education and I have worked in childcare for 35+ years and started working at The Family Haven in 2016 in the nursery.
The best thing about working at The Family Haven is meeting and spending time with the families who attend. Each and every one is an inspiration.
My name is Jo and I am Canadian. I have been living and working in the UK since April 1999. I held different positions during the years my last position was purchasing and Finance assistant for the Great Western Ambulance Service until they merged with Avon and my department moved in August 2007. I became employed by The Family Haven in December 2007. I enjoy my job tremendously. I enjoy the variety of work. It is a job you never know what you will be doing from day to day or what hat you are wearing when you walk through the door.
The staff, families and children are great and it is so rewarding when you hear the thank you and see the smiles and appreciation on the families faces for everything we do or have done for them. I would not want to work anywhere else.
Hello, I’m Claire Leighton. I’m a key person in the Baby Room and Deputy Manager for the Nursery. I’ve worked at the Family Haven since December 2021.
Before working in childcare I worked as a learning disability nurse in the NHS for 20 years, supporting adults and school age children. I retrained in Early Years in 2012 as I wanted to work with younger children. I worked in a nursery for 4 years. In 2016 I became a family support worker for a children’s charity until September. I ran clinics and groups and provided lots of training.
I love working at the Family Haven and being part of something special. I regularly burst into song, I find singing about anything and everything can help to settle children.
My name is Kat. I moved to Gloucester from Norfolk almost 2 years ago and started here at the Family Haven in September 2021. I’ve been in professional catering for the last 7 years having previously worked in the private sector. As a busy mum of 4 plus a very silly dog – I still try to find time to do even more cooking with my family , as well as enjoying eating out at some of the great local pubs and cafes in and around the Forest. We love to be out and about as a family and most of our summer is spent either watching or playing Cricket!
The Family Haven is such a unique and beloved place to work, it’s a sanctuary, a drop in, a nursery, a crazy fun place with so much laughter support and friendship that it truly is one of the best places I have ever worked!
I am Helen and I’ve been the Nursery Manager for 13 of my 14 years with The Family Haven. I have worked with children and families for over 35 years, managing several settings. Most of my day I help keep the children safe along with an amazing team of practitioners who teach and support the children to flourish with each step. I enjoy being part of The Family Haven, as I am able to see the impact we make.
Hi I’m Baylee, I am the nursery’s Senior Nursery Nurse and the under 2’s key person. I’ve worked in childcare for 5 years. My favourite colour is pink.
I’m Deborah and I am a Senior Nursery Practitioner, SENCO and DSL. I have worked at the Family Haven for two years, previously I have worked in a variety of positions including Early Years, Welsh Ambulance Service and Gloucestershire Constabulary. The Family Haven is a wonderful place to work, every day is different and I love spending time with the amazing children and families that attend.
Hi, my name is Claire and I work at The Family Haven on a Monday and Friday. I live in Cheltenham and enjoy going on adventures. I love play and the endless possibilities and power it provides. At the Family Haven you will often find me singing or being creative.
Hi I’m Leanne. I have worked at The Family Haven for one year. I have been in Early Years for 20+ years. I love working at The Family Haven, it’s a very special and unique place to work.
My name is Alistair I have been helping out with The Family Haven as a volunteer for about 5 years working on the IT (information Telecommunication) side. I have now stepped up to support the Haven more as a Trustee. I have worked in the IT industry for more the 20 years and use this experience to help the Haven in their daily work.
My name is Lorraine Barrett and I have over forty years experience of working with children and families. I am NNEB qualified and have various management, HR, project planning and counselling qualifications as well as the essential skills. I joined The Family Haven as the nursery supervisor in 1992 and was instrumental in preparing the nursery for the initial registration. In January 1993 I took over as The Family Haven manager. I continued as Centre Manager until I took early retirement in 2020, after twenty eight years service. In 2016 I was honoured to receive an award from The High Sheriff of Gloucester in recognition of great and valuable service to the community. After enjoying my retirement for four years I was approached to join the board of trustees and I was pleased to accept. I have accepted the role of trustee supporting the Centre staff and supervising the Centre Manager.
My name is Gerald I have been a trustee for 8 years. As the treasurer of The Family Haven I handle all of the finances. I am a retired international accountant. As well as working abroad I have visited many countries. I now live in my home town of Gloucester.
My name is John I have over 30 plus years of Direct Mail experience, starting at the bottom with hands on production experience progressing to setting up and managing my own business. Along the way I have developed database management skill including programming and analytics. I have completed an apprenticeship, worked for a private company, a large corporate that converted to plc status, lived through the merger of a group of plc companies, run a family business, moved and re-branded a business, put a business into voluntary liquidation, setup a new start-up and brought a Ltd company – if you can do it in business I probably have! I understand the principle of good corporate governance and have an IOD Certificate in Company Direction. When not working in the business I enjoy fixing and riding old British motorcycles and drinking Real Ale but obviously not at the same time! Fun Fact: I was a 2012 Games maker at the London Olympics.
If you are interested please contact lucy@thefamilyhaven.com