Meet the Founders
-Louenna and Jess
Not a weekend course. Not an online certificate. Twelve weeks of immersive, hands-on, residential training — living it, breathing it, and doing it for real.
Louenna Hood BEM
Louenna Hood BEM is a Norland qualified nanny and maternity nurse with over two decades of hands on experience caring for more than 100 children. Her career has taken her across the world, working with private, high profile and royal families, where discretion, professionalism and exceptional standards of care are second nature.
Known as a trusted and reassuring presence for parents, Louenna became a go to expert for families navigating everything from newborn routines to the complexities of early childhood. Wanting to extend that support beyond the homes she worked in, she founded The Louenna App in 2020 – a multi award winning platform often described as the “nanny in your pocket.” With over 50,000 downloads and hundreds of five star reviews, it has become an essential tool for modern parents seeking calm, expert led guidance.
Louenna’s commitment to families goes far beyond childcare. In 2022, she raised £190,000 for Ukrainian refugee families, earning her a Point of Light award and a British Empire Medal in King Charles’ New Year Honours.
She later founded Louenna’s Nannies, a childcare agency built on care, integrity and truly thoughtful matching between families and nannies. With the acquisition of MyTamarin in 2024, the agency now offers an even broader network of exceptional childcare professionals alongside a seamless, modern platform for families.
In the same year, Louenna published her first book, Your Baby’s First Year: A Day by Day Guide – a trusted, practical handbook offering calm, expert advice for every stage of a baby’s first year.
Jess Martin
Jess Martin is a Norland College qualified nanny, maternity nurse and childcare professional with over 15 years of experience supporting families from newborn through to teenage years.
Her career has taken her into private households across the UK and internationally, including high profile families. Working at this level has shaped Jess’s approach – defined by discretion, precision and a deeply personalised understanding of each child and family she supports. From newborn care and sleep guidance to behaviour and developmental milestones, her knowledge is both broad and deeply practical.
Jess quickly became a trusted partner to the families she worked with, offering not only expertise but steady, thoughtful support through every stage of parenting. It was through these relationships that she recognised a desire to reach beyond individual households and support parents on a wider scale.
Alongside her professional work, Jess shares her knowledge through her platform @thelittledreameruk, offering realistic, experience-led guidance on routines, sleep, early development and building confidence in both children and parents. Her voice is calm, honest and grounded in real life, with an intentional, conscious approach to parenting that sits at the heart of everything she shares.
As a parent to a child with Cystic fibrosis, Jess brings a deeply personal understanding of the importance of finding childcare that is not only nurturing, but also capable and confident in supporting additional needs. This perspective shapes her approach, which is thoughtful, empathetic and rooted in genuine care.
Together, Jess and Louenna bring an extraordinary depth of experience, having cared for hundreds of children across the world at the very highest level.
The Nanny Academy was created to pass on that knowledge – shaping the next generation of exceptional childcare professionals through a modern, intensive and truly immersive training experience.
This is childcare education, elevated.
