Interview – Little Kidz Garden Nursery

Little Kidz Garden Nursery is owned by Ms Patricia and Ms Sabrina. Little Kidz Garden Nursery is a registered, licensed childcare centre that is run by professionally trained, registered nurses who specialize in Neonatal and Paediatric care as well as qualified Early Childhood Educators.

Please give us some basic introduction of Little Kidz Garden (LKG).

LKG is a registered, licensed childcare centre opened in March 2013. It is run by professionals – trained, registered nurses who specialize in Neonatal (Baby) and Paediatric (Children) care nursing as well as Early Childhood educators.

Our philosophy is to provide a safe, child-centred community and a specially prepared environment for the young ones to grow, to explore, to experiment, to learn, to have fun and most of all, to enjoy childhood!

We adopt the ‘Montessori Approach’, where we see the child as :-

• A unique being (an individual), “As many people, as many minds, everyone to his own way”.
• A whole being (social, physical, intellectual, language, emotional growth), “Towards a holistic development”.
• A growing being in need of exploration, activity, independence, order, self-discipline and self-perfection, “Children learn to love when they are loved”.

What inspired you to start a business in child care?

It all started when I was 6 years old, I had a DREAM – to have a lovely kids’ garden for all my children to PLAY and have FUN! Just like my wonderful
kindergarten way back in 1970s. My headmistress was Ms Tabble from London and she really loved us (the kids) and made us all enjoyed childhood.

And all these while, I knew I would venture into children’s business because I love children and I’m very comfortable with them and most of all I love to play, too, hence that’s why I did my specialization in Neonatal Intensive Care Nursing and also Paediatric Care Nursing after I graduated as a basic Nurse. I want the children to enjoy childhood!

What makes your centre unique compare to other similar players?

My centre is operated by registered and well-trained Nurses who specialize in Baby and Children as well as qualified teachers, and I’m also an Early Childhood educator, whereby I did my Diploma in ECCE (Early Childhood Care and Education – Montessori Method). I strongly encourage plays at my centre as young children learn through play and we have ample outdoor and indoor space for the children to play.

What is your advice for parents who are looking for a child care centre?

Parents should look out for:-

1. A registered, licensed centre with professional operators and staffs.

Has sufficient and qualified staffs who are loving and caring towards the children. To have trained and qualified staffs are important and it’s something that most nannies or babysitters lacked of, especially staffs who are well-trained and skilled in CPR and first aids. The staffs need to constantly stay up-to-date with the latest knowledge by attending seminars, conferences and forums. To ensure the staffs ratio to children is observed.  

• 12 months and below – 1 : 3  
• 1 – 2 years old – 1 : 5  
• 3 – 4 years old – 1 : 10 with assistant

2. The Centre should have ample space and well-ventilated for both outdoor and indoor play for growth and development.

3. A structured schedules should include time for physical activities, quiet time, reading session, group and individual activities (stimulating curriculum), etc. to ensure there’s plenty of play time.

4. The Centre should have established ground rules like operating hours, handling of emergencies, dispensing of medicines, etc. That way parents know they take its responsibility of your baby and children seriously. And they should practice a strict sick-child policy, e.g., what type of illness should the sick child to refrain from coming to the centre and for how long to minimize and prevent the risk of spreading certain illnesses among children and staffs. Parents must be understanding regarding this health issue.

5. The centre should have a weekly well-planned food menu on the notice board for all to view. It should be nutritious diet, which cover all the essential food group, such as carbohydrates, proteins, fibres, fruits, etc.

6. A good centre should be safe, clean and thoroughly sanitize. There should be sufficient hand washing liquid at every wash basins. Also, fire extinguishers should be available on every floor and functional with consistent yearly inspection and to obtain licenses from the fire and safety department. The centre should be fully secured with main gates securely locked at all times during operating hours.

What are the biggest challenges facing the business you are running?

Staffing! Nowadays, it is not easy to hire good staff, be it registered nurse or qualified teachers. These days, fresh graduates are quite finicky and some have attitude issues, hence they are not easy to handle like 20 years back, which resulted to high staff turnover.

Luckily, my nurses are very good and we even have one great nurse whom has worked with LKG since its establishment. The other nurses as well as teachers and assistant teachers have worked more than a year and they are equally committed, therefore I’m very proud to say that my staffs are great team workers who love all the children and the kids adore them, too.

How did you deal with these challenges?

I treat all my staffs very well, just like how I would like other people to treat me and I love them as my own family. I always remind my staffs to make themselves comfortable at home in the centre and treat the staffs and children like their own family. We adopt the open-door policy for better communication, where my staffs can see me at my office to discuss any uncertainties or to share any ideas or suggestion regarding the curriculum, etc., as I’m open to new ideas and changes provided it’s for the betterment of the centre.

In addition, in LKG we respect one another regardless of age, race and religion and I allow flexibility and freedom for my staffs. The staff needs to constantly stay up-to-date with the latest knowledge, hence we constantly conduct staff trainings and meetings regularly as well as appointing them to attend seminars, workshops or forums. I always remind my staff that this is not just a job for them, it’s a career. If you love what you do, you’ll enjoy coming to work every day and you’ll build your career.

What advice would you offer to someone thinking about starting a similar business?

Managing a childcare centre is a job with big responsibilities. That person needs to love children, understand people and can handle the business side of child care. The centre director’s responsibility is to ensure that each child is receiving the very best care as possible. Each child must be treated with love, respect and they need to help the child to be holistically developed. The job is not easy and it can be quite erratic, but the rewards are great. The director must first be an Early Childhood educator with at least a minimum qualification of Diploma in ECCE.

To do the best job as a Centre Director or Principal, one need to:-

• Manage: Knows what needs to be done
• Lead: Get things done through your staff. Guide, coach and motivate your staff frequently.
• Use Resources Wisely: Make the best of what you have

Are you planning to expand your business in near future?

YES! Once we fully establish this current centre, we will be looking for another area to open our next branch, hopefully by next year.

My vision is to have LKG branches in different parts of the Klang Valley area and the person-in-charge will have to be registered nurse with early childhood education. I want our LKG to be centres with a difference. We are not just nurses, but early childhood educators. We are professionals!