To mark the company’s ten-year anniversary, owner, Peter Ellse has invested in a 45,000-square foot specially-adapted building set in two acres of land in the heart of the countryside on the border of Staffordshire and Derbyshire.
With a £10m turnover and a 100-strong team, the move will enable the company to double its current capacity over the next five years; increase its exports to 100 counties and increase the product range and supply network, which is made up predominantly of small local companies.
Mr Ellse said that 'none of this would be possible without the support of the sector, which is why part of the plan involves giving something back’.
He added, ‘The vision is to provide a community space for the early years sector, where they can take part in training sessions; be inspired by our product ranges which are on display on our “nursery” and enjoy the peace of the countryside.
‘We are providing this platform because huge amounts of independent trainers have supported us and this is our way of saying thank you for the partnership and the friendship.’
Independent trainers Anna Ephgrave, Kym Scott, and the Greg Bottrill, the author of ‘Can I go and play now?’, have already signed up to deliver training sessions for groups of practitioners and teachers, starting in June.
Mr Ellse says, ‘The training room has space for 30 people and is free of charge. It will be particularly useful for trainers who don’t want the worry of booking a hotel close to a training venue and not knowing who is going to attend so this solution helps them out. It’s got good links to major motorways and is an hour from the major cities of Birmingham and Manchester.’
The room that houses the ‘nursery’ is Cosy’s vision of how natural childhood can look in a centre. There’s a reading area; natural maths area; baby play area; physical development area and small world play area. Practitioners who visit will get discounts on resources they purchase – and there are plans to open the centre on Saturdays so that teachers can tie in a visit with a stroll around Tutbury Castle or Sudbury Museum of Childhood, which the centre is positioned in between.
The outdoor area, which is still under development, will include a children’s garden with play equipment, a beehive, doves and indoor-outdoor light, airy learning spaces.
With increased interest internationally, Cosy also plans to run remote training sessions and it has also entered into a partnership with Early Education to promote its training this summer.
- For more information visit www.cosydirect.com