ABOUT OUR CENTRES
Dolphins Early Education and Childcare Centre was established in 2012, initially as a sessional service offering only Montessori and Preschool. Since then we have grown into a full day care service offering a range of services for your children. We open from 07.30 am to 6/6.30 pm and have a breakfast club, afterschool club, toddler/wobbler room and preschool rooms as well as full-time daycare. All children aged 1-12 are welcome at Dolphins Early Education and Childcare Centre regardless of their abilities, race, gender, religion, cultural background. We embrace diversity, equality and inclusion.
Your children will be nurtured, cared for and have their development stimulated by our highly trained, caring and enthusiastic team members. Our team members are passionate and creative and this is evident when you see them working with the children.
Our services pride themselves on offering a high standard of care for our children. As Childcare is constantly evolving, we know our team must evolve with it, that’s why we are continuously training and upskilling. We strive to offer a “home from home” approach to our service for families and have an open door policy with parents where they are welcome to come in at any time. We encourage parental involvement in our creche and we welcome any feedback from parents that would help us improve our service. We acknowledge how stressful parenting can be in our ever demanding society and we aim to be as flexible as we can be to help.
Our team members have specific training in areas such as Meath Tiny Talk, Smart Start and Better Start. Tiny talk is an innovative pilot project that aims to improve the language and learning skills of children in the 3-6 age group. Smart Start is a programme to ensure children in the pre-school settings are supported to adopt healthy lifestyle behaviours in early childhood. Better Start is an initiative of the Department of Children and Youth Affairs, in collaboration with the Early Years Education Policy Unit of the Department of Education and Skills and Pobal to establish a single, cohesive approach to quality across the Early Childhood Care and Education sector in Ireland.
Jennifer Healy
Managing Director
MANAGEMENT STAFF
Jennifer Healy
Managing Director
Hi My Name is Jennifer Healy, I have worked with children since 2010 and currently hold a QQI level 6 in Early Childhood Care and Education and I am Garda Vetted. I am trained in Child First Child Protection and Special Needs. I have up to date training in First Aid, Fire Safety, Manual Handling and HACCAP. I am committed to upskilling and continuous training of myself and my team members as I believe childcare is continuously evolving and growing and we need to update our skills continuously. I endeavour to provide children at Dolphins with quality childcare and have been in Dolphins since we opened in 2012. I have 4 children of my own so being a working mother I understand the growing pressure on parents. I am approachable and always aim to be flexible as possible and considerate to parent’s and children’s needs.
Email: Jennifer@dolphinsearlyed.ie
Nicole Boylan
Laytown Branch Manager
Hi, I’m Nicole and I work in the Laytown branch. I have been employed at Dolphin’s since 2014. Since beginning my employment, I have completed various training and education courses. I have obtained a BA (Hons) in Early Childhood Studies. As a result, I have been able to progress in my role at Dolphins. I am Garda Vetted and hold certificates in Child Protection, Food Safety, Fire Safety and Manual Handling. I also hold a Certificate in First Aid Response. I am committed to continuous training and professional development to ensure myself and my team are providing all children with meaningful and purposeful learning experiences while in our care.
Email: Nicole@dolphinsearlyed.ie
Tina Gunnery
Clarevillage branch manager
Hi my name is Tina Gunnery and I have been working with children since 2011. I have been employed at Dolphins since 2015. I have experience working with all age groups. I have completed a level 7 QQI in Early Childhood Care and Education and have completed a Special Purpose Level 6 Award in Leadership for the Inclusion of the Early Years Programme. I have undertaken the role of inclusion coordinator at Dolphins. My role is to ensure inclusion for every child and family in our settings. I also train the team in any areas required. I am trained in first aid, manual handling and fire safety and child protection. I am also Garda Vetted. I am also our “Better Start Quality Liaison Person” which means along with the managers, I am responsible for ensuring any new suggestions for our quality childcare is implemented efficiently and effectively. I am also a mother to 3 children.
Email: Tina@dolphinsearlyed.ie
Gillian Turner
Dunshaughlin Branch Manager
Hi my name is Gillian Turner. I have been working with children since 2017 and I have been employed at Dolphins since 2022. I have a level 7 QQI in Early Childhood Care and Education and I also have a special purpose level 6 award for LINC, leadership for inclusion in the early years. I also have certificates in child protection, fire safety, manual handling, food safety and first aid response. I have worked with children of all ages and since working at Dolphins, I have been given the opportunity to progress in my role with continuous support. I am committed to continuous training and development as the childcare sector evolves.
Email: Gillian@dolphinsearlyed.ie
Katie Healy
Office manager
Hi, I’m Katie and I work in Dolphins Clarevillage branch. I have been working in Dolphins since October 2020. I am Garda vetted and I have a QQI level 5 in Early Childhood Care and Education as well as a special purpose level 6 award in leadership for inclusion in early years (LINC). I look after all funding (NCS) queries and payments for each branch.
Email: Katie@dolphinsearlyed.ie
MISSION STATEMENT
Dolphins Early Education and Childcare Centre provide care and education for children aged from 1 year to 12 years of age. Our professional staff provide a safe, stimulating and caring environment where children can learn and play together, ensuring they are happy and protected at all times.
Every child is welcome at our service regardless of race, religion, culture, gender and ability. We offer support to each individual child to help them reach their full potential by providing high levels of care and education taking into account the holistic development of each child.
CURRICULUM STATEMENT
Our Aim at Dolphins Early Education and Childcare Centre is to provide a quality service where all children will be offered a high standard of care and education. We will work closely with the families and communities to ensure this is available to all children. We aim to offer a Home from Home approach to our full daycare children and we aim to ensure they are given the highest standard of care from our trained staff. Each child will have their own key childcare worker and they will liaise with parents/carers on a daily basis to ensure you are fully informed of your child’s daily routine. We also aim to help each child develop to the best of their ability and to reach the milestones for their age.
In our Preschool and Montessori, we aim to provide a high standard of education and care for each child. Our staff will support each child to become independent learners and encourages children to think for themselves and develop confidence and self-esteem to help them become active members of our childcare service.
We aim to embrace equality and diversity at Dolphins Early Education and Childcare Centre. Our service is open to all children. We encourage parents/carers to express their culture and celebrate any special days with everyone in the setting. Any comments or suggestions are very welcome from parents and the community.
CHECK OUT OUR REVIEWS
CHECK OUT OUR REVIEWS
Address: 2 The Walk, Inse Bay, Laytown, Co Meath
Phone: 086 192 5660
Email: enquiries@dolphinsearlyed.ie
