One Minute With Monika Ali Chowdhury - Early Years Strategic Lead for PVIs and Childminders

How long have you worked for BELS?

4 years

Tell us a bit about your role

I provide strategic oversight, co-ordination and leadership of the Early Years team ensuring successful outcomes for children and young people within childcare and early years settings in the PVI and Childminder sector. 

What is our favourite thing about your role?

I feel like my role and the Early Years Standards team make a continued difference to the early years providers within Barnet. I have the autonomy to make decisions that support the development of early education and no two days are the same in my role, so it keeps me on my toes and the job exciting!

What do you find challenging?

One of the key challenges has been navigating changes within the staff team while operating at limited capacity. Despite this, we continue to prioritise the quality and consistency of our service and strive to uphold high standards. We are also supporting an increasing number of providers who have seen a rise of children with additional and complex needs. This requires ensuring that providers have adequate resources, guidance, and specialist support to deliver an inclusive curriculum that meets the individual needs of every child.

Which of our BELS values resonate mostly with you, and why?

Sharing Success - At the heart of our team, I encourage the importance of recognising value, generosity, collaboration, and teamwork. These principles create a positive environment where accomplishments are viewed as collective achievements rather than individual wins.

Sharing success also means fostering a culture of recognition and accountability, where leaders should openly give credit for achievements, and everyone takes ownership of both successes and challenges.

By celebrating success together, we build trust, boost engagement, and strengthen relationships, not only within our immediate teams but also across our partnerships with providers throughout Barnet.

Who is your ideal celebrity dinner party guest?

Sir David Attenborough- All throughout my maternity leave, late night feeds and sleepless nights, his shows were playing in the background keeping me entertained and my son who is now 6, absolutely adores his programmes, the close-up animal imagery, stunning visuals and distinctive story telling! I would thank him for making my son curious about the natural world around him.

What’s the one piece of advice you would give your 13-year-old self?

Don’t rush to have everything figured out. Life isn’t a race, and there’s no perfect path you’re supposed to be on. Just keep learning about the world, about people and about yourself. You will make mistakes but what matters most is that you keep going, keep learning and know that every mistake is a step towards who you are meant to be!

Where’s your favourite place to holiday and why?

I recently went to New York with my best friend, and it was the holiday of a lifetime! The food, iconic landmarks people and diverse culture made it one of my favourite places to travel.

When you have 30 minutes of free time, how do you spend it?

Video call my brother who lives in Dubai, he has been away for 7 years, a

nd I only get to see him once a year so it’s a good time to catch up on family, work and life!