Navigating the Nursery Recruitment Crisis
Keeping and motivating your staff to create a successful nursery
The nursery field is in a crisis, with more and more staff leaving to join other professions, which usually offers more pay and with less responsibility.
Which is why now is more important than ever to work on keeping and motivating your staff.
If you’re not making staff well-being and job satisfaction a priority then it can affect the long-term success of your nursery.
In this article, we will explore the importance of empowering nursery workers and early years workers to manage their rooms, and provide them with opportunities to grow and lead, while also recognising the challenges they face in terms of personal freedom.
It is agreed amongst theorists that in order to keep your staff you need to satisfy certain needs and wants they may have. Usually more important than the actual wage they receive, job satisfaction is usually based on the following.
Starting with:
Personal Freedom
Personal freedom refers to the ability of an individual to make choices and decisions that affect their lives without interference from external forces.
In the context of the workplace, personal freedom can be an important factor in determining job satisfaction and employee retention rates. For instance, when comparing the job of a preschool teacher to someone working in a more restrictive environment, such as a call center, it becomes clear that the former has very little personal freedom.
While call center workers can take breaks whenever they want and make personal phone calls without worrying about ratios, preschool teachers are confined to their classrooms and are required to get permission to leave or use the restroom. This lack of personal freedom is one of the key factors contributing to the high turnover rate in the industry.
Therefore, it is important for employers to recognise the value of personal freedom in the workplace and work towards creating a more empowering and supportive environment for their employees. By doing so, they can improve job satisfaction, reduce turnover rates, and ultimately create a more productive and successful organisation.
Empowerment
Empowering nursery practitioners is an essential aspect of creating a positive and effective classroom environment. In addition to providing early years staff with the necessary tools and structure, it is also important to allow them to manage their classrooms without excessive micromanagement.
By giving practitioners more autonomy, they can be more innovative in their teaching methods and create a learning environment that is tailored to the needs of their students. This approach is also likely to lead to higher job satisfaction for nursery workers, which can result in lower turnover rates and a more stable workforce.
Ultimately, the goal of empowering nursery practitioners is to provide them with the support they need to help their children to succeed, both academically and socially.
As a result, empowering early years staff can have a positive impact on the development of young children and set them on a path towards lifelong learning and success.
Opportunities for Growth and Leadership
In order to support the long-term motivation of nursery workers, it is important to provide them with opportunities for growth and leadership. While these practitioners may not be able to advance within the organisational chart, they can still be given the chance to become grow by becoming specialists in certain areas, like becoming the nursery first aider or Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator, or by mentoring those who are new to the field.
Not only does this benefit your nursery staff by giving them a sense of accomplishment and fulfilment, but it also fosters a more collaborative and supportive work environment that can lead to better outcomes for the children in their care.
Engage with staff
Implementing a Management by Walking Around (MBWA) strategy is crucial for managers to stay connected with their employees and create a supportive work environment. This involves taking the time to walk around your nursery and interacting with staff in a spontaneous and non-planned manner, with the conscious focus of getting up and away from the desk.
In the case of nursery settings, taking time to walk around the rooms and ensuring that practitioners have all the tools they need to do their job is an important factor in supporting them. By doing so, managers can make sure that teachers feel supported, clear about what they’re doing, and have the opportunity to meet with their manager one-on-one if needed.
Not only does this improve the quality of care provided to the children, but it also helps to create a more supportive and collaborative work environment for practitioners.
It also gives you a crucial opportunity to role model good and effective practice to your staff.
Tools and Supplies
Providing early years staff with the necessary tools and supplies is essential in helping them perform their job to the best of their ability. Practitioners often go above and beyond by purchasing their own supplies for their classroom, which is unacceptable.
Employers should ensure that nursery staff have all the resources they need to create a positive learning environment, including curriculum materials, books, manipulatives, and toys. Not only does this provide staff with a sense of support and value, but it also enhances the quality of care provided to the children under their supervision.
Conclusion
Nursery work is a challenging job that requires a lot of patience, empathy, and creativity.
To keep nursery practitioners motivated and supported, it is important to empower them, give them opportunities to grow and lead, manage by walking around, and provide them with the tools and supplies they need to do their job.
Employers should recognise that the lack of personal freedom can be a significant factor in the high turnover rate in the industry, and work to provide their employees with a better experience, a better career, and a better motivational reason to come to work every day.
This is how you can keep and motivate your early years staff, and how you can help your setting survive the current nursery recruitment crisis.
You can find tips on recruiting staff in the article ‘Nursery Recruitment Tips‘.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Q: How can I motivate my staff to perform better?
A: One effective way to motivate your staff is to establish clear goals and expectations, provide ongoing feedback and recognition, and offer opportunities for professional development and growth. Additionally, creating a positive work environment and fostering a sense of community and teamwork can also increase motivation.
Q: How can I improve communication with my staff?
A: Good communication is key to maintaining a motivated staff. Be clear and consistent in your communication, use active listening skills, and encourage open and honest dialogue. Regular staff meetings, performance reviews, and check-ins can also help improve communication and address any issues or concerns.
Q: How can I create a positive work culture?
A: Building a positive work culture involves promoting collaboration, respect, and trust among staff. Encourage team building activities, recognise and celebrate successes, and provide opportunities for staff to offer feedback and contribute to decision-making processes. Offering competitive salaries and benefits, and promoting work-life balance can also contribute to a positive work culture.
Q: How can I support staff well-being?
A: Supporting staff well-being involves promoting a healthy work-life balance, offering mental health resources, and addressing any workplace stressors or concerns. Encourage staff to take breaks and use their paid time off, offer flexible scheduling, and provide opportunities for staff to participate in wellness activities or programs.
Q: How can I address staff turnover?
A: Staff turnover can be addressed by implementing strategies to improve staff motivation, communication, and well-being. Providing competitive salaries and benefits, offering opportunities for professional development and growth, and addressing any workplace issues or concerns can also help retain staff.
Remember, every nursery and staff team is unique, so it’s important to continually assess and address the specific needs and concerns of your staff to keep them motivated and create a successful nursery.
