About us

Founder led - Quality driven

Eleanor Peters is the visionary founder of Play Together Early Years Group, driven by a clear and unwavering mission: to make high-quality, inclusive early years education accessible to all, with no child left behind. Her work is rooted in the belief that strong foundations in the early years transform lives — not only for children, but for families, communities, and society as a whole.

Eleanor holds an Honours Bachelor's Degree in Early Years Education and Care, alongside dual Master's degrees in Child, Youth and Family Studies and Psychology. She also holds a Diploma in Montessori Teaching, a Level 6 Certificate in Train the Trainer (Adult Education), and a Level 6 Certificate in Therapeutic Play Skills. This multidisciplinary academic foundation allows her to integrate child development theory, psychology, inclusive practice, and professional training into every aspect of her work.

She has extensive expertise in special educational needs provision, with particular specialism in supporting children on the autistic spectrum. Her approach is relational, strengths-based, and grounded in practical experience, ensuring that inclusion is not simply a policy commitment but a lived reality within each setting.

Eleanor was also a co-founder of Carlow Educate Together National School, where she served as School Manager and Chairperson of the Board of Management for six years. In this role, she gained unique insight into primary school governance and operations, being directly involved in every aspect of school establishment and leadership — from staff recruitment and policy development to overseeing the design and construction of the new school building, guiding the project from floor plans through to completion. This experience further strengthened her expertise in governance, compliance, strategic planning, and large-scale educational management.

She has been personally involved in the establishment and development of every early years and school-age childcare centre within the Play Together group. Her hands-on leadership has resulted in consistently high standards, strong governance structures, competent and confident teams, and a reputation for excellence that sets Play Together apart within the sector.

In addition to her operational leadership, Eleanor has designed and delivered third-level education modules in areas such as early years financial management, communication in early years practice, and professional work placement. She was also a key partner in the THRICE Project, an international collaboration between Poland, Portugal, and Ireland. This action research initiative led to the development of open-access CPD modules focused on relational, inclusive, and holistic early years education — further demonstrating her commitment to raising standards beyond her own organisation.

Her combined experience across early years practice, primary school governance, higher education, management, quality assurance, staff training, and centre operation uniquely positions Eleanor to operate as a leader, trainer, consultant, and quality improvement specialist within the early years sector. She brings strategic insight, academic depth, and practical expertise — ensuring that quality is not only envisioned, but effectively implemented and sustained.

Play Together was founded on a simple but powerful belief: that early childhood is the most important foundation for lifelong learning, wellbeing, and success. What began as a commitment to delivering high-quality, child-centred early years education has grown into a broader mission — to raise standards, empower educators, and support excellence across the sector.

 Play Together was established to model what high-quality early education looks like in action — nurturing environments where children thrive and educators feel confident, skilled, and inspired. We started in 2014 with a small Afterschool Club in Carlow Educate Together National School to meet the needs of busy and working parents. Within 3 years we had grown to include a full wraparound school age childcare service and 2 Montessori preschool classrooms. Within the next few years we added an off-site Creche to cater for children from 1 year old and a standalone full day Preschool, providing exceptional early years education and care for children from 2 to 5 years old, all year round. With a team of over 30 fully qualified and experienced Educators, and almost 300 children passing through our doors, we are ready to take our expertise and standards to an international level and bring the exceptional service to your doorstep.