Wraparound childcare is a form of childcare that is becoming increasingly essential in the UK, with its demand driven by government investment and a rise in parental workforce participation. This vital service provides a convenient solution for many parents struggling to coordinate their schedules with school timings. Located in Enfield, Sticky Fingers is a leading wraparound care provider, providing children with breakfast and after school care. We heard more from Manager Darlene McClain, below. Leading Breakfast & After School Childcare Provider 2025 – Enfield Established for over two decades, Sticky Fingers is a community-rooted childcare provider offering high-quality wraparound care year round for children aged 3-11. The business serves a diverse clientele, comprising working families, schools, and local authorities who trust the team to deliver a nurturing and engaging environment to children before and after school during termtime. To achieve this, Sticky Fingers provides breakfast clubs, after-school care, holiday playscheme out of termtime, and bespoke support for children with additional needs, ensuring all are included in its services. “Every day, we aim to create a safe, joyful, and enriching space where children are free to play, explore, and grow,” Darlene told us. “Our core values are inclusion, creativity, consistency, and compassion. These values are embedded in everything we do – from the way we train our staff to how we have fun engagements with families and schools. They guide our long-term goal of expanding accessible, high quality childcare across North London.” There are many childcare providers across the region, but none recognise the importance of play in child development as much as Sticky Fingers. The business understands that play is not only crucial in downtime, but also as a critical learning tool. Play is a multifaceted tool that fuels cognitive, social, emotional, and physical development in a child, ultimately contributing towards their overall wellbeing. This is an integral aspect of childcare that should not be overlooked by providers, and Sticky Fingers wholeheartedly embodies this ethos by continually placing the child at the forefront of its operations. Alongside its holistic approach to childcare, the business further distinguishes itself from the crowd by being responsive to both community needs and sector shifts, such as changes to government funding and early years policy updates. The team remains highly adaptable in the face of change, with great emphasis placed on reflective practice, ongoing training, and strong partnerships. This enables Sticky Fingers to continually evolve alongside the industry, never falling behind in methodologies or best practices. When expanding the team, Sticky Fingers seeks candidates with passion, patience, and a genuine love for children, with the children typically included in making choices regarding new recruits. While qualifications certainly do matter, the business has found that values and teamwork matter most. Once onboarded, Sticky Fingers invests in continuous staff development through training in the EYFS framework, inclusion, and safeguarding, offering pathways into higher roles and further education to enable each member of the team to grow and thrive. Keeping a close eye on the market for emerging trends, Sticky Fingers has observed a growing emphasis on mental health, outdoor play, and inclusivity in childcare – especially in post-COVID times. Care providers within the UK have been supplied with various funding schemes by the government to provide further support, but as Darlene explained, staff-to-child ratios remain a persistent challenge. In 2023, the UK government introduced a change in childcare ratios from 1:4 to 1:5 for two-year-olds, a change that has created certain operational difficulties in maintaining quality care. Such challenges will not deter a business as determined as Sticky Fingers, however. In fact, these obstacles and trends merely push the team to innovate further – from creating outdoor learning with fun activities to supporting children with SEND through tailored activities and sensory play zones, both in and outdoors. Being located in Enfield, Sticky Fingers serves a wide range of cultural communities as it meets the rising demand for flexible childcare. The business is motivated by the benefits its services bring: uplifting local families and supporting the workforce by providing parents with peace of mind and children with a high quality start that is both fun and entertaining. This is a mission that Sticky Fingers strives to continue, with future plans to expand and enhance its services to meet the needs of both its community and the broader childcare industry. “We’re currently working on expanding our services to all new schools in the area and are planning to launch an early year’s nursery for children aged six months to five years,” Darlene announced. “We’re also piloting new training modules for staff focused on inclusive play and leadership development. By 2025, we aim to become a recognised training hub for aspiring childcare professionals.” Contact: Darlene McClain Company: Sticky Fingers Web Address: www.stickyfingersenfield.co.uk Apr25235
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