Teacher of the Year: Hillstone Pre-School staff

‘MY DAUGHTER pretends all the dolls are her teachers,’ one nominator enthused of the staff at Hillside Pre-School in St Andrew’s.

Helen O’Hara said she wanted to nominate Sharon Coffell, who owns and runs the pre-school, along with all the staff that help run it beside her, for the HSBC-sponsored Teacher of the Year award.

‘They do a fantastic job,’ she said.

‘My daughter Sibbie, who is four, loves it there, she loves the teachers and pretends all her dolls are her teachers.

‘All the ladies are lovely, kind and cheerful.’

Sibbie, who attends three times a week for about five hours a day, also has a brother, Fletch, 6. Ms O’Hara said she was grateful to Mrs Coffell for getting him into her other establishment, Maylands Nursery.

‘My little boy Fletch, who is six, goes to Maylands, and he loves it there,’ she added.

‘It’s great to see him flourish as he has additional needs they can cater for.’

She said all the children were constantly kept entertained with sunflower growing competitions, hatching chicks at Easter, and a nativity at Christmas.

Her belief was that the staff deserved the award because of how amazing and inclusive they are.