'Wedding Nanny' scoops six major awards

Seven years ago, Antrim’s Catherine Nicholson, fondly known as Nanny Cat and founder of The Wedding & Events Nanny, spotted a gap in the wedding market and decided to fill it.

As a qualified childcare professional and mummy of four, Catherine saw first-hand how many couples struggled to balance the excitement of their wedding day with caring for their little ones.

Her idea was simple but powerful: to create a bespoke childcare service so parents could relax, enjoy every moment, and know their children were being cared for like the little VIPs they are.

What started as a one-woman service soon became a trusted part of wedding days across Northern Ireland, offering calm, nurturing care tailored to each family.

And now, Catherine’s pioneering work has been recognised at the highest level with six major industry awards in just two years, and a brand-new awards category created for the very first time to recognise her unique role.

At the Wedding Help NI Awards 2024, Catherine won both Newcomer of the Year and Specialist Supplier of the Year, followed by The Wedding Industry Awards (TWIA) title of Specialist Supplier of the Year 2024 and Highly Commended at the Northern Ireland Wedding Awards 2024.

This year, she made history again, taking home both titles in the brand new Wedding Nanny of the Year category at the Wedding Help NI Awards 2025, winning both the public vote and supplier vote in the same night.

And just days later, Catherine received Highly Commended in her category at the 2025 TWIA, a prestigious national recognition celebrating the UK’s very best wedding professionals.

Catherine said “When I started The Wedding & Events Nanny, there wasn’t anyone else offering what I did, it was just an idea built from love, experience, and a belief that children deserve to be part of the day too.

“The fact that there is now a whole category dedicated to Wedding Nannies is just incredible. It shows how far the industry has come, and how much families value that balance between being a bride and a mummy.”

From caring for tiny babies to entertaining excitable toddlers, Nanny Cat’s days are filled with stories of first dances, aisle walks, and the quiet little moments parents can often miss.

Her service has become known for creating a sense of calm, joy, and connection on one of life’s biggest days and now, with regional and national recognition to her name, The Wedding & Events Nanny is helping to shape a new level of child-led, heart-led care, within the wedding world.

“I still get butterflies before every wedding” she smiles, “Because it’s never just another job, it’s someone’s most important day and I’m caring for their whole world in the process”.