Hundreds of nursery managers across the UK choose Blossom’s nursery software to make the business, learning and communications side of running their childcare setting a doddle. Blossom is actively involved in the EY sector, running our own nurseries ourselves.
We’re pleased to add an exciting feature to our nursery software. Drum roll please… in-app notifications!
Watch this update make the daily management of your childcare setting even better. Blossom Co-Founder and Nursery Director, Sara Thakrar, shares her experience on the impact this addition has had on her nursery in North West London – and what it can do for you.
Meet the EYFS expert: Sara Thakrar
Sara Thakrar is the Co-founder and Director of Innovation of Blossom Educational and is a successful Director of a thriving 110-place day Montessori nursery in North West London. Knowing the challenges behind running a nursery, Sara works closely with the product development team to make Blossom’s nursery software reach new heights of efficiency and functionality.
What is the new in-app notifications feature?
The new feature is available to all existing and on-boarding Blossom customers. The in-app notifications flag any interaction requiring authorisation: child observations, new child information shared by parents, first-aid incidents, or enquiries via your website.
These immediate notifications ping up on the Blossom app (similar to your favourite social media platforms), making you aware of all important goings-on in your nursery.
This one new feature feels like so many more because it impacts all the existing Blossom features. You are much more aware of what is happening in your nursery; it’s a real game changer. I can’t wait to see how it helps our customers.
How can Blossom help me improve as a nursery manager?
Your nursery thrives with your leadership, but you can’t be everywhere at once. In Sara Thakrar’s experience, the new notification feature has helped her to manage her setting smoothly because she can continuously keep an eye on things- without phoning team members or having parents phone her!
If I am at a training conference or working away from the nursery site, I can still be aware of everything that has happened throughout the day with my team. I know if there has been a first-aid incident, a parent has altered a child’s likes and dislikes, and the observations that have been completed.
Additionally, as the permissions and visibility are tiered, the owners, managers and deputies have the highest level of notifications, overseeing all events that require notifications immediately. This also applies if another team member resolves the query.
For example, if a parent contacts the nursery via your enquiry section on your website, you (as nursery owner) will receive a notification to say there has been an enquiry submitted.
Your nursery manager or deputy will also receive a notification and may pick up the enquiry before you. You will still be able to see that there has been an enquiry and that it has been resolved, keeping you in the loop no matter where you are.
Moreover, your early years practitioners may be given time away from their rooms to complete child observations, or they may be Level 2 or Level 3 childcare apprentices completing their off-the-job hours.
As the notifications will pop up when they have submitted their observations ready for authorisation, you will be able to monitor how effectively they are using their time away from their rooms.
Suppose an apprentice is struggling with completing the relevant admin in their allotted time. In that case, you will be able to see how many observations they submitted during their admin time.
You can signpost them to support from a colleague who is efficient with their time when completing the necessary admin to mentor them. One of the many ways Blossom helps you to support your team.
How can I use nursery software to spend less time on admin?
Simply put: nursery software should make your role as manager or deputy easier. The new in-app notification feature helps to organise owners, managers and deputy managers’ time effectively by slicing your admin tasks and checks dramatically.
Nursery manager and owner work-life balance is essential; this new notification feature helps to ‘tick off’ tasks as they pop up throughout the day rather than build up until the day’s end.
Or have to be added to tomorrow’s to-do list! And by authorising and being aware of events throughout the day, you can build stronger relationships with parents, your staff and the children in your childcare setting by staying on the ball.
How can nursery software speed up the observation process for my team?
Observations are a focal part of an early years practitioner’s day. Ofsted mentions the need to be present when interacting with children and that the administrative process of observation notes should not overtake the time available with the child.
If you explore Blossom’s packages available, you’ll discover that tracking learning becomes a quick and uncomplicated process for your team.
Using our nursery software via a handheld tablet/iPad allows observations to be filled out in real time, enabling practitioners to be more present with the child every minute.
However, the speed of this admin task is not only improved, but the quality of the observation is as well. The new notifications feature will ping you immediately for your approval or edits before it is sent to a parent.
By your team recording observations quickly and easily, and you/ team leaders monitoring the quality of the observation, it allows you to send regular, accurate observations to your parents- keeping them more involved and improving your parent-nursery relationship with every click.
I can send immediate feedback to the nursery team about observations, which means the parents receive them quicker too. It has a positive ripple effect with efficiency and building a positive reputation for being organised.
Increase your setting’s occupancy with good nursery software
Blossom’s new in-app notification feature tells you as soon as a parent requests additional sessions or marks an absence, and if staff book leave. Allowing you to use your occupancy planner effectively, and maintain maximum profitability.
You can then update your staff rota to ensure you remain within ratio throughout these sessions. Just another way of how the notifications feature helps you to get the most out of all Blossom’s features, and helps to answer the question of: How to increase occupancy in your nursery.
Moreover, by being notified quickly, Blossom’s nursery software can help you to lock in those prospective parents sooner. Beginning at the enquiry stage, parents will be impressed if they are contacted in a timely and friendly manner soon after they submit an enquiry.
As the enquiry notification will immediately pop up on your Blossom dashboard, you will know they are researching now. Therefore you can act quickly with interested customers with the in-app notification feature to get ahead of your competitors.
How can Blossom’s notification feature improve my parent-nursery relationships?
Imagine you are in the middle of a busy Monday afternoon pick-up routine. A parent walks up to their key worker with an excited smile and asks them, “Did you see that Jamie took his first steps at the weekend?” The parent has submitted a picture and comment about Jamie’s first steps via the home observations feature in Blossom’s Parent App.
And the key worker is able to share the parent’s excitement as they received an instant notification from Blossom.
Using the in-app notification feature would immediately highlight this parent upload to the key worker, making it harder to miss these important parent communications and helping build positive parent-nursery relationships.
Parents like to know their key worker is invested in their child, knows their likes and dislikes, and goes above and beyond to organise a fun-filled day.
Additionally, your team will be pinged when a parent updates essential information on their child’s online profile. So your team will be in the know on information like the family relationship, siblings, and likes and dislikes.
Bonus update! An improved feature of the child profile allows parents to edit important information from home (without having permission to alter vital data such as allergies, addresses, and contact information). Saving your nursery team time inputting information parents are keen to share themselves.
Blossom’s award-winning nursery software is used by all types of childcare settings, from charity-ran to large private day nurseries. With budget packages to suit all sizes of nursery, regular, time-saving features released and a friendly, UK-based customer service team. Chat to our team today and book a free 15-min demo.
