Carter’s Sunflowers Nursery School was created when three women, passionate about learning met through an inspirational little boy named Carter.

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Carter explores the world with all his senses. He is inquisitive and learns by ‘doing’. He does not always pick up on the rules of the places he visits, and he doesn’t always understand what adults tell him to do. He is full of energy and always curious. Carter learns in a different way to many children. He is autistic. He did not talk when he started nursery and his understanding of spoken words was limited. Together with this, Carter has sensory sensitivities that make him cover his ears in noisy environments, he jumps up and down and rarely sits still and he explores making sounds when everyone else is quiet. This was met by negative attitudes by many nurseries that Lucy and her husband visited with Carter. People didn’t understand autism and didn’t feel Carter would fit in. At just 2 years old Carter and his family were facing rejection and having to navigate the SEND system on their own to get the support he needed and the education he deserved. Lucy worked tirelessly to hold down a job within education and find her way through the SEND system to get Carter’s needs recognised and to access therapies she knew her son would benefit from. Then she met Zoe; a Teacher who was excited to meet Carter and put everything he needed in place to help him learn. Finally, Carter had somewhere he could be himself.

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Zoe and her nursery team welcomed Carter with open arms. They enjoyed everyday with Carter and the different perspective that he taught them as he played and learned. Zoe worked closely with Lucy to provide what Carter needed, but it was noisy and busy and was still a place Carter coped within and together they questioned if coping was enough.

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But Carter had to cope, he gained an Education Health Care Plan (EHCP) at age 4 but waited for 2 years before a suitable school place became available. There was nowhere else for him to go so he stayed at Nursery until a space at a specialist setting became available.

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During this time Carter worked with Sarah, a Specialist Autism Teacher, through the Connective Play programme.  Lucy invited the adults supporting Carter at nursery along to the sessions to help them learn how to develop Carter’s communication and play skills. This is where all three ladies joined forces.

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Together Lucy, Zoe and Sarah shared a passion for Carter’s development and well-being. This inspired them to create a space where children like Carter would not just cope, but would thrive. Where children could learn and get the care and teaching that every child deserves.

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Carter’s Sunflowers was established as a place where families feel accepted and supported every day and where children of ALL abilities learn through play.