Nicci Burton

Nicci is passionate about early years education. She is currently executive headteacher for Bedworth Heath and Atherstone Maintained Nursery School Federation. She has 13 years experience of working in Nursery schools across Warwickshire and Coventry. Nicci holds a BA Hons in Stage Management and a Early years specialist PGCE. Nicci has great experience of working closely with multi agencies to gain positive outcomes for families.

Alyson Fuller

Aly is an Independent Safeguarding Trainer with a social work background and has designed and delivered bespoke safeguarding training for over twenty years to a range of local authorities, voluntary organisations and major companies. In 2003 she was approved as a Safeguarding trainer within Warwickshire and accredited as a Safer Recruitment trainer in 2012. Her teaching experience includes eight years as a lecturer with course leader responsibilities for a University of Warwick under graduate widening participation programme.  Aly has a Masters Degree in Education Studies, teaching qualifications and a Safeguarding Children Postgraduate Award.  She has built a reputation for putting learners at ease and providing a safe training environment where people are actively encouraged to ask questions and share good practice.

Ann Seal

Ann has been a safeguarding trainer for Warwickshire Early Years since 2008 and a Protective Behaviours trainer since 2001. She has had a career in nursing, health visiting, teaching and training. Ann taught Childhood Studies and Health & Social Care at a Warwickshire FE college for several years alongside health visiting and then went on to run The Taking Care Scheme in Warwickshire supporting schools to use the Protective Behaviours process as part of their proactive safeguarding protective education. She is experienced in delivering Designated Safeguarding Lead training with over 15 years’ experience working for a local authority Education Safeguarding Service, designing and delivering safeguarding courses and supporting settings with safeguarding queries. Ann is an accredited Protective Behaviours trainer with the Protective Behaviours Training Partnership, delivering training at Foundation, Specialist Practitioner and Train the trainer levels. She has a Master’s degree by research in Applied Social Studies having researched safeguarding children through protective education at the University of Warwick. Ann enjoys working with participants in the training room and evaluations evidence a reputation for approachability, building relationships quickly, helping put people at ease and a sense of humour.

Mark Simmonds

Mark has worked in mental health for 24 years and has been qualified as a mental health nurse for almost 20 years – the last 17 years within a local CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service) where he currently holds a role that is both clinical and as a senior lead. He has extensive experience of delivering a range of safeguarding training within Warwickshire for 15 years and has delivered this training for early year’s practioners in the county for 10 years. Mark has also had a secondment with Warwickshire Safeguarding Children Board for 2 years as their Interagency Training Officer. Mark has been a visiting lecturer within both Warwick University and Manchester Metropolitan University.

Evaluations from the early years training have constantly highlighted his extensive knowledge of the mental health implications of abuse and neglect on children and his ability to relate to real life cases which delegates find really helpful. Mark’s relaxed style of delivery and sense of humour are felt by delegates to help deliver a very sensitive subject.

MDD First Aid

MDD First Aid 'Vital Skills for Life'

MDD First Aid offers professional, certified and quality assured first aid and mental health training programmes to business organisations including educational facilities, social & childcare providers, forensic & health care services, motor sport, automotive, engineering and the public throughout the UK.

Our courses are designed to inspire you and enhance your learning experience.

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We ensure our training programmes meet and exceed the latest recommendations and guidelines by the HSE (Health & Safety Executive), the UK Resuscitation Council and the ERC (European Resuscitation Council), our paediatric courses exceed the requirements laid down by Ofsted, EYFS & Surestart. So you can feel confident you are receiving the highest quality education.

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Our qualified instructors are health care professionals, HCPC Registered Paramedics with valuable medical knowledge and years of experience which will compliment your training and help you to feel supported and in safe hands throughout your chosen course.

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We are committed to developing confidence and enthusiasm, empowering you to achieve your goal, enabling you to make a difference and perhaps save a life.

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Our Mental Health Qualifications are focused around helping candidates understand the difference between mental health and mental ill health, enabling recognition of the latter, which is a 'vital skill' in every workplace.  It is so important to understand and recognise how society, cultural attitudes and social media have a huge impact on every individual's mental health and how we can promote communications and open conversations, by raising awareness and reducing stigma to make a difference.

We also provide a variety of Health & Safety courses including Safe Moving and Handling to improve awareness of safe handling techniques in the workplace to reduce the risk of injury and time lost due to injury. 

Louise Perry

Louise Perry completed a BSc (hons) in Speech and Language Pathology at the University of Strathclyde in 2005. Following a jaunt around the world to explore some distant countries, Louise settled in Warwickshire working at South Warwickshire NHS Foundation Trust as a Preschool Speech and Language Therapist. Louise has a passion for supporting the youngest children develop their early communication skills and this brought her into the ‘time to talk™’ team in 2010. She was involved with ‘time to talk’™ for 7 years before returning to her clinical role. After recently returning from her third maternity leave,  Louise has joined the ‘time to talk™’ team again to implement the strategy across Warwickshire.

Deborah Powers

Deborah completed a BSc in Speech Sciences at University College London and qualified as a Speech and Language Therapist in 2002. She then worked with diverse communities in East London, based in community clinics, child development centres and Sure Start children’s centres where she was a Locality and Clinical Lead Specialist for Early Years. Deborah then worked as a Communication Advisor for the children’s communication charity I CAN before joining ‘time to talk’™ in 2013.

Deborah is interested in the little details in interactions with children – whether it’s a look, a smile, a gurgle or a word – especially when captured on video. She has created ‘time to talk’™ resources and training sessions which promote positive strategies to support  children's early communication across the community. Deborah co-ordinates the ‘time to talk’™ programme and sustains the strategy across the community.  

Ben Kingston-Hughes

Ben Kingston-Hughes is a national award-winning trainer and Managing Director of Inspired Children Ltd. He has worked with children for over 30 years and has twice appeared on television working with vulnerable children.  His transformative training has been mentioned by Ofsted as an example of outstanding staff development and his distinctive blend of humour, neuroscience and real-life practical experiences make his training invaluable for anyone working with children.

Diana Lawton

Diana Lawton is a senior consultant and trainer for Inspired Children. She has a degree in Psychology, an MA in Early Childhood studies and an encyclopaedic knowledge of child development theory and early years procedure. She has worked as both a Clinical Psychologist and Early years specialist and is the owner manager of a group of early years settings in Leicestershire and Derbyshire. She is currently writing her first text-book and is an accomplished trainer having delivered a huge range of training for Inspired Children and being responsible for all in-house training at her settings. She has been invited to present and sit on discussion panels at National Conferences including this year’s Nursery World Business Conference.

Joanne Vallis

Joanne has extensive teaching experience, specialising in early years, and has led and managed various teams both in school and as an Early Years Advisor. Her roles have been many and varied and include working directly with settings and schools, writing and delivering training, leading and managing the Warwickshire Early Years Advisory Team, contributing to a range of reports, articles and publications and speaking at several national and regional conferences and seminars. 

Joanne is an EYFSP moderator and a Link Tutor for the EYITT course at The University of Warwick.

Jean Ferraro

Jean has worked for Coventry and Warwickshire Local Authorities as a Primary and Early Years Teacher and an Early Years Advisor and has extensive experience in both the maintained and non-maintained Early Years sectors.  She has successfully undertaken many roles including the provision of direct support to leaders and practitioners through coaching and training in many areas of Early Years practice and is able to guide setting quality improvement through the use of well-regarded audits and reviews.  Recently Jean worked for a charity focussed on supporting children who are disadvantaged and/or have additional needs/disabilities where she was involved in effectively managing and developing a number of successful projects.

Jean is currently working independently to support Early Years practitioners and children in schools and settings. She is able to support settings to ensure that their Early Years provision is high quality, meets all children’s needs and enables practitioners to move forward confidently.

Lisa Gadsby

My name is Lisa Gadsby and I have over 30 years’ experience of working in early years across a range of sectors and services. I have been delivering training for over 15 years and enjoy learning as much from practitioners as I hope they learn from the sessions I deliver.

My passion is for the freedom of learning, the powerful role of adults in the early years journeys of children and for learning environments that enthuse, invite and excite.

The training I deliver is interactive and participative (but avoids role play at all costs). I aim to share great practice and ensure that you have time to reflect on your current practice and consider where you’d like to be either as an individual or organisation and how you plan to get there. I really look forward to meeting you on training in 2021