Learning made fun

Supporting our franchise network through COVID

Guest blog by Rob Sherr, co-director of Musical Minis

At the beginning of February 2020 I established an incident response team to tackle my growing fears for the coronavirus. This was not however for Musical Minis but for my “full time employer” where I am Chief Operating Officer. At the time, the options for Musical Minis seemed a lot more limited and we focused entirely on ensuring that anyone who attended a class could do so safely, based upon what we knew then. Once this seemed impossible, we shut classes down.

At Musical Minis we were not alone, it seems that franchisors of children activity groups were all in the same boat. We joined a number of communication groups and we were able to discuss possibilities. Many franchisors were looking for ways to avoid providing refunds (something we found morally wrong), others recognised immediately the benefits for going online. What we didn’t agree with was when franchisors put their interests before that of their franchisees and their members.

Musical Minis has been in business for over 30 years. We have sought to remain a small business that can genuinely support every franchisee to the extent that the franchisee wants. So we didn’t insist that fees paid should be refunded, but did insist that everyone who had paid in advance did not lose out, including offering free online classes as a substitute. We also deferred payment of that term’s royalty and extended the period of the franchise agreement by 3 months (subsequently 6 months) so that the franchisee was not disadvantaged contractually because of the lockdown. Furthermore, we absorbed the entire cost of moving Musical Minis online whilst giving the franchisee all the income less direct costs (i.e. PayPal fees) and the royalty.

Once we were ready to come out of lockdown, in partnership with our franchisees, we undertook a significant amount of research and put in place additional policies and assessments to meet the new COVID world. We have been able to share these with hall hirers and the local Public Health England, all of whom have complimented us on the thoroughness of our preparation, which in turn has made it easier for our franchisees to recommence classes.

Whilst it has been financially difficult, we are proud of the way we have supported our franchisees through this difficult time. COVID 19 was nowhere in sight when they chose to invest in the Musical Minis business and to our mind, as a responsible franchisor, it is for us to weather the storm for them. Having done so (although a further national lockdown is threatened) the strength with which the franchisees’ business has bounced back has surprised and delighted us all.

2020 has underpinned for us why franchising is such an excellent model. Running your own business is tough and lonely. Franchising takes the edge off of this and a good franchisor will encourage co-operation and collaboration amongst its network to add strength and to absorb risk when the unexpected happens. Musical Minis, both Head Office and the franchise network, has shown itself to be both resilient and supportive during this difficult time and in a strange way we see this as being a standout moment in our long history.

If you would like to find out more about a Musical Minis Franchise, click here.

Introducing Amy Our New Teesside And South Durham Musical Minis Manager

We are delighted to announce that Teesside and South Durham Musical Minis will recommence in January 2020.

Musical Minis Teesside and South Durham was established in 2008 and ran until 2018 when the franchisee had to leave due to family circumstances. Since then we have been constantly getting requests for classes in the area. Amy Reid, who ran some classes for the franchise, contacted us recently to see if she could start some sessions up again. Musical Minis Head Office is going to do all the administration for the area and Amy will be the local Manager and run weekly classes. Both Musical Minis Head Office ans Amy are excited about this new venture.

Amy has introduced herself below:

Hi, I am Amy and I am delighted to be have been given the opportunity to manage the Musical Minis South Teesside area. I’m originally from South Wales, but I now live in Ingleby Barwick with my husband, our two children Alexis (5) and Owen (3) and our two dogs Finlay and Ivy.

Alexis and Owen were both regulars at the South Teesside Musical Minis sessions before they started into full-time nursery and the classes were hugely beneficial for them both. I started attending with Alexis when she was just 3 months old and since she’s developed into a little singing star – she loves music and sings everywhere she goes!

The classes were even more helpful for Owen who was diagnosed with a swallowing disorder when he was very little. They were great for helping to bring along his speech, co-ordination and confidence in an environment where he could feel relaxed and be around other children of his age. He has since developed into a bright and mischievous little boy – he certainly keeps us and his big sister on our toes!

As for me, my background in music started from a young age and I attended Chetham’s School of Music in Manchester where I specialized in flute, piano and vocals. After leaving school, I worked as a club singer with one of my friends and our band Seren was a regular in the pubs and clubs of South Wales for several years. My day job however was very different, working as Veterinary Nurse and I eventually pursued this as my main career for 10 years before stopping when the children came along. It came as a nice surprise therefore when I was given the opportunity to get back into music and temporarily help with the South Teesside franchise in 2018. And I am even more pleased that I’ve once again been given the opportunity now!

We plan to run classes in Ingleby Barwick, Thornaby and Wolviston and I know the sessions will be very friendly with a lovely atmosphere and offer a great opportunity to meet other parents and children in a fun setting. I look forward to meeting you and your little ones there!

Classes with be available to book into in the next few weeks - we are just waiting to finalise dates and times with venues. As soon as we know we will set online booking live here. If you would like to register your interest email [email protected] .

An Introduction To A Musical Minis Class In Oxford - Video

An introduction to a Musical Minis class in Oxford showing child development through music.The video shows Hayley Clements, the Musical Minis Oxford franchisee, along with children and their carers. Hayley runs classes in Aynho, Bicester and Woodstock.

Meet Our New South Wales Musical Minis Franchisee, Hannah

We are delighted to announce that Hannah Frost has taken over the Musical Minis South Wales franchise from Jo Weaving. We would like to thank Jo for all her hard work and support over the 15 years she has had the franchise. Jo has left behind a great legacy in the area and we are thrilled that Hannah will be continuing to bring lots of fun to the children of  South Wales in the future.

This is what Hannah has to say….

Hi my name is Hannah Frost and I'm excited to introduce myself as the franchise owner for South Wales. I'm a Mum of two boys, Dominic who is 5 and William who is 3 years old, and I came across Musical Minis classes when Dominic was a baby and Jo Weaving ran the classes. My husband and I live in Barry, South Wales with our two boys and I've taken them both to Musical Minis classes from when they were 12 weeks old until they were ready for regular Playgroup sessions. It was an amazing introduction to both music and other children which helped them both so much with their co-ordination, speech and their confidence in themselves.

I have a background in music, having been introduced to classical music by a school teacher, I went on to learn to play the piano and sing. This love for music has stayed with me and I met my husband as we both studied Music at Goldsmiths College, University of London. I have worked with children before in a nursery in Penarth, in this role I co-ordinated the music and thoroughly enjoyed seeing children enjoy songs, instruments and putting actions to the songs. I'm so happy I get to see this enjoyment again and again in Musical Minis classes.

South Wales Musical Minis sessions are currently running in Barry, Bridgend, Dinas Powys and Penarth. Hannah will also be continuing the intergenerational sessions which have been established in Care Homes in Barry and Dinas Powys.

Please visit http://southwales.musicalminis.co.uk/ or email [email protected] for more information.

Meet Our New Bucks And South Northants Musical Minis Franchisee, Sophie

Leena Thakker, our Bucks and South Northants Musical Minis franchisee, has sold her franchise as she has moved to Switzerland. Leena has left behind a great legacy in the area and we are delighted that Sophie Cadigan will be continuing to bring lots of fun to the children of Bucks and South Northants in the future.

This is what Sophie has to say…. "Hi everyone - I am so excited to be able to introduce myself as the new owner of Musical Minis for Buckinghamshire and South Northamptonshire.

A little bit about myself... My name is Sophie Cadigan and I live in a small village on the outskirts of Milton Keynes with my husband, Ben – Head of History at a local secondary school, our little boy – Oliver, who will be 2 in October (where has that time gone?!) and our cat, Tigger. I am a local girl, having grown up in the next village along - so I know the area very well.

Before having Oliver, I was a secondary school teacher – leading the Sociology department in a high school in Milton Keynes. I worked there for 9 years in various roles and loved working with young people. I decided, however, not to return after maternity leave and instead to become a full-time mummy to Oliver – something I have always wanted to do and have not regretted.

One of the groups Oliver and I tried out was Musical Minis run in Winslow by Leena – we were both hooked! Oliver loved the opportunity to make lots of noise, interact with other children and relished learning the moves for each song! I was equally impressed - what struck me was how perfect the balance was between structure and freedom. Coming from a teaching background I really appreciated how well planned the sessions were and the clear routines and reasoning behind each activity, but I also enjoyed the relaxed nature, allowing Oliver to explore instruments freely and dip into as many activities as he felt he wanted to. This love for Musical Minis has meant we have never missed a session and is the only class (aside from swimming!) that we have stuck with. The development in Oliver over the past year has been amazing – he has grown in confidence (often standing in the middle of the circle dancing!), has improved his coordination, developed a longer attention span, fantastic sense of rhythm and a real passion for music – lots of which I credit to Musical Minis.

The opportunity to buy the Bucks and South Northants franchise seemed to fall into place at the right time for me. I was beginning to explore potential new challenges to undertake without compromising on my decision to be a full-time mum, but I also wanted to keep my love of working with children – Musical Minis fits that bill perfectly!

I am really excited about this new role and cannot wait to get started this September!"

Bucks and South Northants Musical Minis sessions are currently running in Winslow, Buckingham, Tingewick, Stony Stratford and Loughton.

Please visit http://buckinghamshire.musicalminis.co.uk or email [email protected] for more information.

Meet Our New Oxford Musical Minis Franchisee, Hayley

Leena Thakker, our Oxford franchisee, after 9 fantastic years has decided to sell her franchise. Leena has left behind a great legacy in Oxford and we are delighted that Hayley Clements will be continuing to bring lots of fun to the children of Oxford in the future.

This is what Hayley has to say…. "Hi I'm Hayley Clements and I’m very excited to be the new owner of Musical Minis Oxford. I'm a mum of three children Poppy (8), Josie, (4) and Oscar (9 months) and I'm thrilled to be joining the Musical Minis Franchisee team. I’ve been working in music education for the last 18 years firstly as a secondary Head of Music and in my role at the Royal College of Music, London where I lead the Learning and Participation team.

In 2015 we made the big decision to move from London to Oxfordshire for my husband's work. Moving to a new area is always exciting and daunting in equal measure - I began to work part-time and so wanted to find local activities that would help me get to know new people and also be fun for Josie, who was still at home. A friend recommended Musical Minis in Aynho - and I literally have never looked back! I met a wonderfully friendly group of people and our lovely leader Jane - so I felt instantly welcome. Josie got stuck in straight away and week to week I could see her develop in so many ways - her confidence continued to grow, along with her listening skills, responding to instructions and of course her musicality. She also made amazing friends - who are now still all her little pals, most of whom she will start school with in September.

Since starting running the classes in Oxfordshire it has been lovely to have the instant feedback from lots of smiling happy faces. The children clearly love the fun, structured format of the Musical Minis sessions which enables them to get fully involved - with singing, movement and actions - there really is something for everyone!

Of course, it's also a steep learning curve for me! But new challenges are positive and have already opened many doors and introduced me to lots of great, new people. I'm looking forward to all that the Musical Minis franchise will offer and teach me."

Hayley would love to hear from you if you thinking about attending one of the classes in Oxfordshire or are interested in booking a party. Musical Minis also run sessions in Children's Centres, playgroups and nurseries, so if this is something that interests you, email or ring Hayley with any enquiries.

Oxford Musical Minis is currently running classes throughout the week in Aynho, Bicester and Fritwell.

Hayley can be contacted by email at [email protected] or you can phone her on 07760 226209.

A Day In The Life Of Louise, The Musical Minis Durham Franchisee

A guest blog by Louise Emerson, the Musical Minis Durham franchisee, about her typical day.

Like most mums, my days are very busy with 3 fairly young children to care for. Our mornings start at 6.30am when I get up and ready before the girls, as once they are awake, chaos ensues! It feels like everything is on fast-forward; rushing around preparing breakfasts, distributing the outfits I’ve hung out the night before for each of them and doing 3 lots of hair before the school run!

Sadie, my youngest is at nursery school and she starts at 8.30am and so I have to take all of the girls with me to drop her off first. When she has gone in and settled, we head back home to drop the car off before I walk Holly and Phoebe to school.

On a Tuesday morning I have a 10am class so I jump straight in the car and head for Lanchester, which is a good 15 minute drive providing the traffic is good. This is a lovely group and I do look forward to seeing the children and their parents each week, to find out what they have been up to and discovering any new skills such as who has taken any first steps or learnt to clap or can now sing the words to a song they couldn’t before.

Following the morning session, I head back to nursery to collect Sadie at 11.30am. I then pop home briefly to grab a quick bite to eat and leave Sadie with my dad who looks after her while I do my Durham classes. She invariably ends up in a soft play centre or a park or farm! I then go to Durham where I have 2 back-to-back sessions from 1-3pm. It’s always a mad rush to get home to collect Sadie before sprinting to school for 3.25pm to collect her big sisters.

When we get home just before 4pm, the girls have a quick snack before we are off out again to take Holly to Harriers which starts at 4.30pm and finishes at 6pm. We don’t have to stay, which is just as well sometimes as it gives me a chance to get tea sorted.

It’s nice to finally get in for the night even though I then have to sort out housework/homework etc. My husband’s job involves him being abroad for weeks at a time so it’s often just the girls and me. After tea and a bit of a play, they all have a bath and get ready for bed. As they all love books, it’s 3 lots of bedtime stories before I can finally come downstairs to sort through any emails or admin I may have to do for Musical Minis.

My days can be very busy but it’s great that I have a job that I can work around my family. I always do the school run; attend any sports days, concerts, assemblies etc. Plus there aren’t many jobs where you can take your child to work with you – which I do on a Thursday. I can’t imagine going back to my previous role as a full time teacher now. I feel I have the best of both worlds; I still get to work with children, which I love but I don’t have to sacrifice time with my own to do it, so I feel very lucky.

Musical Minis Durham runs classes in Belmont, Chester Le Street, Durham, Lanchester and Newton Hall. For details about classes and to book online please click here . Louise can be contacted by email at [email protected]

Musical Minis Announces Franchisee Of The Year 2018!

Children’s music and development franchise Musical Minis has announced that Louise Emerson and Rachel Parker, owners of Musical Minis Durham have been awarded the title ‘ Outstanding Franchisee of the Year’.

At their recent annual conference, founder Karen Sherr and husband Rob revealed that Louise and Rachel, both Mums from Durham, had been selected to recognise their positive and professional approach to running the business. Louise, who has 3 girls aged 9, 6 and 4 years, bought the business 3 years ago when her youngest was a baby. Louise, together with her sister in law, Rachel who has 2 boys, one aged 3 years and one aged 6 months, were both praised by Karen and Rob for supporting Head Office, from writing blog posts to organising a photo library.

Karen said, “Over the past two years Louise and Rachel have been hugely successful in building up contract work in an area that the previous franchisee struggled with. This contract business was put out to tender in 2017 and they were one of a very few businesses that was accepted. Somewhat ironically this has led to a significant reduction in contract work as the council decided to concentrate on something other than early years for the moment. However Louise and Rachel have persevered, demonstrating resilience and tenacity, two qualities that Head Office greatly admire and we are delighted to acknowledge this through the franchisee of the year award.”

Louise said, “We were absolutely over the moon to have won the Outstanding Franchisee of the Year award. We hadn’t expected it at all so it was a very pleasant surprise. We have worked hard this year on our tender application to ensure we made it onto Durham County Council’s list of approved providers, and so it was lovely that this was recognised by our Head Office who supported us a great deal during the application. Musical Minis is a fantastic company to work for and we thoroughly enjoy what we do. Working with young children is one of the most rewarding jobs there is and we are lucky enough to do this with a very supportive team of people behind us. It’s been a great year and this award has been the icing on the cake! We look forward to what the rest of 2018 brings!”

Louise accepted the award on behalf of both her and Rachel as Rachel was unable to attend the Franchise Meeting.

Louise runs Musical Minis Durham classes in Belmont, Chester Le Street, Durham, Lanchester and Newton Hall. For details about classes and to book online please click here . Louise can be contacted by email at [email protected]

Musical Minis - More Than Just A Baby Group

Guest post from Louise Emerson the franchisee for Durham Musical Minis.

They say time flies when you are having fun and that’s certainly been true for Rachel and I as it has now been over 3 years since we bought the Durham Musical Minis franchise. In some respects it doesn’t seem like 5 minutes ago but when I look back at out Facebook profile picture, which I had taken when we first acquired the business, my girls seem so little and I realise a huge chunk of time has actually passed! And that I really need to update that picture….!

So three years on and we are very happy with how the business is going. I remember at the time of buying feeling very nervous but equally excited about the potential for the business. I have always felt it had and continues to do my girls the world of good (as they do still come to classes with me when they can – and not because they have to but because they beg to!). So it was fate really that I got chatting to a lady at a Family Day at our local leisure centre who happened to work in one of Durham’s many Children’s Centres. She was just making general conversation about my girls (who I think I was trying desperately to extract from the building at the time) and she asked what I did and gave me her contact details. She felt from what I’d said that this would be something the Children’s Centres would be very interested in.

Fast forward a year and we are operating in three different Centres and are in discussions with others. At the meetings Rachel and I have attended, it has always been commented upon how passionate we seem to be about what we do - which is very true as we tend to get a bit excited and go into overdrive, talking at 100mph! It’s because we see daily the many benefits of our classes to the children who attend. Whether it’s children learning to share instruments who haven’t previously, or a shy child leaving the safety of their carer’s lap to wander around the room and sit with another child, to blowing a whistle for the first time or singing along to newly learned words to a song. It’s all so rewarding watching these little milestones.

We can now share our evidence of this not only with parents and carers, but the staff in the nurseries and centres where we operate. We tend to work on a 6-week rolling programme; covering a number of nurseries under the umbrella of each Children’s Centre. The difference in the children from session one to six is amazing. We have had some fantastic feedback from the staff, which is always lovely to hear.

As part of the monitoring and evaluation that takes place in a nursery setting, we are asked to fill in paperwork prior to and after each session to set out our objectives and to see whether they have been met. As we map the EYFS framework, this has been quite a standard procedure for us.

We have been privileged to meet many amazing children who have really stood out in our minds. One little girl had never spoken at nursery. She would sit with a member of staff for our session each week and would barely make eye contact, as she was painfully shy. The staff explained she had never spoken yet and not to be disappointed if we didn’t get a reaction from her. Each week we try to tailor our objectives to achieve maximum success in whichever setting we are working in. In this case, one of our objectives was to ensure each child participated in some way and benefited from the session. Quite unbelievably for the nursery staff as well as ourselves; this particular child started to sing in the 4th week. We were all amazed and felt very proud to have made such an impact on her. It was quite a feeling.

In addition to the nursery work, we have also operated groups within the Children’s Centres themselves. Our focus sometimes changes depending on the requirements of the centre at that time. We have worked with groups of children who need extra help with their speech and language development; with young parents and carers who can sometimes feel anxious about attending ‘baby groups’; children with additional needs. We have also done a number of themed parties for Christmas/Summer etc that have gone down very well.

In the spring, we were asked by Durham County Council to apply to be on their provider panel. They decided to re-evaluate the provision they offered within the Children’s Centres by asking interested parties to apply for tender. In a nutshell, this involved attending meetings, gathering evidence and preparing some lengthy documented evidence of what we do and how successful it is. We were told it wasn’t a case of just putting on paper what we do, that it would be a difficult process and many applicants wouldn’t get through. After what seemed like a long wait, we discovered in the summer that we were one of only a small handful of organisations who had been successful in our areas. We were obviously thrilled and this has given both Rachel and myself a real boost to know that other people believe in and recognise the value what we do as much as we ourselves do.

It’s now 2018, a new year and if we continue as we have been for the past 3 years, hopefully our business will go from strength to strength. At least, that’s our aim!

Durham Musical Minis has classes throughout the week in Belmont, Durham, Lanchester and Newton Hall. If you would like to know more about Musical Minis Durham or would like to enquire about them visiting your Children's Centre or nursery, please visit the website, email [email protected] or phone Louise on 07743 827281.

Boy Or Girl - To Know Or Not To Know?

Guest post from Rachel Parker. Rachel runs some sessions for Durham Musical Minis.

I'm currently 18 weeks pregnant with my second baby and in a few days time my husband and I will be attending the routine ultrasound scan where we will have the chance to find out the sex of the baby. We still haven't decided whether to find out or not!

When we attended this scan for our first baby we knew for sure that we wanted to know if was going to be a boy or a girl. We were given the news that I was carrying a healthy baby boy and the thing I remember most was the enormous grin on my husband's face. It was as though I could read his mind and he was imagining taking his son to football matches, passing on his DIY skills and one day popping to the local pub together for a beer. I started buying blue clothes and toy cars and we painted the nursery for our little boy. We picked out a name and always referred to our unborn baby as a he. We were so excited.

Then a few weeks before I was due to give birth I started to wonder, what if they had got it wrong? I had built up this idea of a baby boy in my head, given him a name and decorated his room and what if it was a girl? Would I be disappointed? Would I miss the little boy I had imagined I was having? As it turned out, I was worried over nothing as I gave birth to a healthy baby boy and he was everything I imagined and more!

So this time do I save myself that worry and leave it as a surprise or take the risk again? I just can't decide!

My reasons for finding out at the scan include being able to focus our attention on either boys or girls names (so far we haven't agreed on any for either sex) and finding it that little bit easier to explain to our little boy that he is going to have either a brother or a sister rather than being a bit ambiguous about the whole thing. I also remember from last time that once I knew I was having a boy it suddenly all felt a bit more real and somehow the bond between us and the baby grew stronger and I would love to have that feeling again.

The only reason I can think of why I wouldn't want to find out at the scan (other than the possibility of the sonographer making a mistake) is that it would "spoil" the surprise. I have this idea that my husband could be the one to tell me the sex at the birth and I know he'd love that.

Of course none of these reasons matter that much when all we really care about is that the newest addition to our family is healthy and happy.

At the time I'm writing this I'm leaning more towards finding out at the scan but if it turns out that our little one is camera shy and doesn't want us to know just yet, I don't think I'll be too disappointed.

Durham Musical Minis has classes throughout the week in Belmont, Chester Le Street, Durham, Lanchester and Newton Hall. If you would like to know more about Musical Minis Durham, please visit the website, email [email protected] or phone Louise on 07743 827281.