Chris Amies

My name is Chris. I have been happily married to Pete for 33 years. We have 3 daughters, Jenny 28, Katie 24, and Sophie 22, and a gorgeous granddaughter, Holly 19 months.

I was born and lived in London for 31 years. In August 1991 we decided to move to Haverhill, leaving all our family and friends back in London. It was a difficult time with Pete travelling to his job as a fireman in London and me being left in Haverhill without the support of family or friends. 9 months later I had Sophie (never believed the old saying “new house new baby” until then)! It was a struggle and I was very lonely, so I can understand how difficult it is for many of the families moving to Haverhill now. When it was time for Katie to go to playgroup I chose Sandcastles….The best thing I ever did. She thrived, and then it was Sophie’s turn. I’d met Janette a couple of times in the 1st year of moving here and by now she had taken over the running of Sandcastles. I soon got to know Jane and the others. When Sophie left playgroup I offered to help if they ever needed it. Just a short while after, in April 1996, Janette asked me to cover for them while they attended their training course, 1 day a week.

The rest, as they say, is history. Last year, Janette asked if I would consider helping her with the mountain of paperwork that needs to be done to keep the playgroup running. I jumped at the chance, although a bit concerned that I would miss being in the playroom, I have always enjoyed office work, but to be able to combine it with working with the children as well is just a dream job. I began after Easter 2009. My concerns were soon put to one side. The children often pop into the office to find me; I still get to ‘play’ on occasion, and very rarely stay in the office all day. I am still grateful for having the opportunity to continue working at Sandcastles with the fantastic children, parents and the ever-increasing staff who I consider to be some of my closest friends. Working with them all is a pleasure.

I firmly believe that all the children that come to playgroup deserve to be cared for as we would want our own children cared for, in a welcoming, caring and happy environment where they can learn as they play. I was extremely happy with the way my children were cared for at Sandcastles and feel it is a privilege to be able to help other children taking their first steps in becoming independent, confident children ready to take on the demands of future school life.