Nursery welcomes guests from Canada in exchange scheme to share culture

Two Canadian visitors were shown the British way of nursery life in the North East as part of an international exchange trip.
Chief academic officer and one of the founders of Busy Bees Marg Randles (far left) with the TEP participantsChief academic officer and one of the founders of Busy Bees Marg Randles (far left) with the TEP participants
Chief academic officer and one of the founders of Busy Bees Marg Randles (far left) with the TEP participants

Elizabeth Camara and Bradley Caranto swapped their native Canada for Cleadon to spend time at Busy Bees Nursery - part of its Talent Exchange Programme (TEP).

The duo are the first participants from the country to take part in the scheme which aims to share skills, expertise and knowledge across cultures.

Bradley Caranto and Elizabeth Camara with youngsters from the nurseryBradley Caranto and Elizabeth Camara with youngsters from the nursery
Bradley Caranto and Elizabeth Camara with youngsters from the nursery
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Faye Mitchell, nursery manager at Busy Bees said: “We really enjoyed welcoming fellow Busy Bees from Canada. The knowledge and observations shared between practitioners is invaluable to the care and education we provide for our children.

“It’s great to be able to offer local people international opportunities like this. We’re really thankful that TEP has given us such a valuable learning experience for both our team and for our colleagues across the world. It has fantastic benefits for the children as the international influence on our care takes the best practices from around the globe to help us support our children to fulfil their potential. We can’t wait to take part in it again soon.”

During their visit, Elizabeth a centre director at Peekaboo Day Care Centre and Bradley an assistant director at Brightpath Day Care Centre, in Canada, took part in the day-to-day running of nursery life, observing differences in everyday activities such as naps, meal times and types of play, as part of their study project.

They also took excursions to Beamish Museum, the Northern Spire Bridge, Sunderland Illuminations and joined in with the children’s Diwali celebrations.

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Claire Phizacklea, chief talent officer said: “As Busy Bees has grown and expanded into new countries, it has given us the opportunity to explore similarities and differences in practice from across the world.

“That’s why we introduced TEP, to give our talented early years practitioners first-hand experience of working in cultures with different curriculums, expectations and needs.

“It gives our staff the chance to enhance their professional skills and increase their knowledge to continue to give the best care. We look forward to providing more members of our team with these exciting opportunities.”