Lucy starts her new business with a Baby Boom

When Lucy Thomson decided she would like to stop commuting into Central London every day she was faced with a real dilemma.  “I really enjoyed the work I was doing as a Project Manager working on financial inclusion projects as I was helping others to plan for the future.” says Lucy.  “It was really important for me to find a new role which enabled me to go home at the end of the day feeling I had made a difference to the people I worked with”. 

Lucy started to look for a change of career to enable her to strike the right balance between work and home life.  She is busy planning her wedding and ultimately plans to have children.  “I was looking for a position where I could adjust my working hours to suit my changing personal circumstances without having to sacrifice job satisfaction” Lucy explains.  “When I came across Baby Sensory, it appeared to offer everything I was looking for in a job and I have not been disappointed.   

Baby Sensory is an innovative form of developmental fun for parents with babies from birth to 13 months.  Parents and babies attend a one hour session each week.  Each session includes activities that have been specifically developed to cater for the developmental need of babies from birth to 13 months.  The session plans draw on current research, the work of theorists and early year’s experts, plus over 30 years of personal experience of the Baby Sensory founder, Lin Day (Dip. Ed. BSc. PGCE. M. Phil). The sessions include baby activities ranging from signing to fibre optic light shows, amazing light balls, bubbles and bells; there is always something different. 

“I have created a programme which is fun for parents, stimulates the babies and passes on parenting tips to the mums and dads who attend the sessions” explains Lin.  “I had been running classes myself and when I decided to make the programme more widely available, I needed to find someone who shared my enthusiasm for the Baby Sensory concept.”  Lucy visited a number of Lin’s classes and was enthralled by the whole experience.  “When I looked at the faces of proud parents as they saw their babies enjoying the sessions and learning new skills such as signing, playing instruments, clapping and dancing, I knew I had found a rewarding role that I would really enjoy”, enthuses Lucy.

Lucy started running her Baby Sensory franchise in October 2006 and she found instant success.  By the end of her first term Lucy had over 100 parents and babies registered for her Baby Sensory sessions. After seven months, over 165 babies now attend her sessions in Bromley, Orpington, Westerham and West Wickham every week.

“I was nervous when I first gave up my full time job and started running my own Baby Sensory franchise” continues Lucy.  “I knew that anyone who turned up for the classes would have a great time and hopefully tell their friends.  I had also been given loads of great ideas and advice on the Baby Sensory training programme.  I had told myself that I was going to be successful, but I was still relieved when the first parents and babies turned up at my first session”

"Lucy was our first franchisee” says Lin Day, “We knew that the Baby Sensory formula worked and we were determined to select someone who shared our passion for the classes.  Lucy was a great choice.  Whenever I visit one of her classes it is great to see how the parents and babies respond to her enthusiastic approach.”

When asked whether running her own Baby Sensory franchise has lived up to her expectations, Lucy has no hesitation.  “I knew it would be hard work to begin with.  I had a lot to learn and I can’t say I was really looking forward to the tough task of promoting my sessions.  I was however pleasantly surprised at the positive response I received and most people wanted to hear more about the classes. My classes have quickly filled and I am making a reasonable living but the real reward is watching the faces of the babies as they enjoy the activities.” Lucy concludes “Last week, one of the babies crawled over to me and gave me a huge cuddle at the end of the session.  I can’t remember a more rewarding moment in my working life”. 

Since Lucy started running her Baby Sensory classes in October 2006, the success story for Baby Sensory has been remarkable.  Classes will be running in 24 locations throughout the UK from July 2007.  These classes include locations in Cheshire, Scotland, Somerset, Kent, Wiltshire and Hampshire.  In addition to this, there is currently considerable interest in the next training programme which will run in August for people wishing to start their own Baby Sensory business in October.

“We worked hard to make our franchise opportunity accessible to people who want to help parents to enjoy quality time and experiences with their babies” says Lin Day. “Our training programme is supplemented by detailed lesson plans which build on the session leader’s knowledge of baby development each term.  Our approach has worked for us as the excellent candidates we have attracted have been able to finance their new business and get started quickly.”

If you would like to visit one of Lucy’s classes you can contact Lucy by e-mail: lucy@babysensory.co.uk .  To find out more about Baby Sensory and running your own classes take a look at the website www.babysensory.co.uk or email info@babysensory.co.uk .