“They amaze me every single day… They set themselves challenges, find solutions, and they are these mini scientists roving around our environment.”

– Laura, Nursery Manager

In this episode of Atelier Talks, we’re showing you what life at Atelier looks like through the eyes of our youngest children, our babies. As more children enter nursery at an earlier age and for longer hours, it's more important than ever that as nursery leaders and educators we create truly thoughtful, respectful and responsive environments for babies to thrive.

From baby brain development and physical environments to rich interactions and the role of the key person, we explore how to support confident, capable learning right from the start. You’ll hear real examples of daily practice, challenges we’ve navigated, and the non-negotiables that make our baby provision at Atelier second to none.

In this episode:

• Why babies are not passive observers and how to recognise them as researchers
• The science behind baby brain development
• Designing calming, stimulating, responsive baby environments (without overstimulation!)
• What heuristic play and treasure baskets look like in a mixed-age setting
• How to build slow, nurturing routines that honour each child’s needs and rhythm
• The role of the key person in building deep trust and emotional safety for babies
• How to support your team to value and advocate for babies as communicators and learners
• Why “just sit and love your baby” is not only okay, it’s essential

Standing on the shoulders of giants

The magic of Atelier draws on foundational thinking from a range of influential Early Years theorists and educators. If you’d like to find out more about the voices that shape our deeply relational, child-centred practice here at Atelier, those mentioned in today’s episode are as follows:

• Elinor Goldschmied – for her work on treasure baskets, heuristic play and “islands of intimacy”
• Peter Elfer – for the Key Person approach and emotionally responsive care
• Jools Page – for the concept of Professional Love and her research into emotional attachment
• John Bowlby – for foundational attachment theory that supports our relational approach
• Anne Langston & Lesley Abbott – for raising the status of baby practitioners and promoting child rights
• Loris Malaguzzi & Reggio Children – for inspiring our view of babies as capable learners and researchers
• Sonia Jackson – for advocating for children’s rights in Early Years care and education

Find out more:

Website and newsletter: ateliernursery.co.uk

Instagram: @ateliernurseryltd

Consultancy enquiries: Contact us via our website

Together, we’ll unlock the potential for incredible growth and learning.

Atelier Talks is a Decibelle Creative original podcast decibellecreative.com / @decibelle_creative

Keywords: babies in nursery, early years baby provision, key person approach, heuristic play, treasure baskets, attachment in babies, professional love, baby room design, first 1001 days, baby brain development, slowing down in EYFS, respectful caregiving, early years consultant UK, Reggio for babies