Skip to content

High contrast

Newstead to have brand new childcare facility

NEWS RELEASE

15 December 2003

Newstead to have brand new childcare facility

The national charity for pre-schools in England, Pre-school Learning Alliance, has been awarded a grant to build a new neighbourhood nursery in the grounds of Newstead Miners Welfare and Community Centre. The nursery will be based in the village of Newstead, Nottinghamshire and, with support from the Pre-school Learning Alliance, hopes to provide the very best childcare facilities to meet the needs of families in the area.

Newstead Neighbourhood Nursery will deliver flexible care for children from birth to school age, including full daycare, allowing for continuity of care for the children and their families in the Newstead area. The facility will provide a safe, friendly and caring environment in which children can learn in preparation for school. The neighbourhood nursery will part of a Sure Start children's centre, which will provide one-stop family health advice as well as family learning opportunities.

Today an award of £250.000 from the New Opportunities Fund and £200,000 from Sure Start was announced. This will be used to build a brand new nursery, which will provide 30 nursery places. The new building, which is expected to be completed in April next year, will be of great benefit to the village of Newstead. The area was previously a mining village and had no local daycare provision for under fives. Newstead is in a designated Sure Start area and is, therefore, part of the Government's initiative which aims to improve facilities for families in the most disadvantaged wards.

Sue Swift-Jackson, Assistant Executive Officer at the Pre-school Learning Alliance in Nottinghamshire commented:

"The nursery will have a healthy impact on regeneration within the village, when it opens its doors in the spring of 2004. It will be a great accomplishment for the school and the village of Newstead".

Neighbourhood Nurseries are part of the Government's wider Neighbourhood Childcare Initiative (NCI). The NCI aims to create new childcare places in the most disadvantaged areas of the country through childminding (25,000), nursery provision (45,000) and out of school care (50,000) and through the support of childminder networks.

The Pre-school Learning Alliance is currently establishing a network of over 30 Neighbourhood Nurseries nationwide. The nurseries will be built to a unique design, designed from the inside out to suit the needs of the children and parents who will use them. The traditional emphasis on the exterior architecture has been replaced with a design based around creating an interior that places children's and parents' needs first. The importance of parental involvement is a key part of the Pre-school Learning Alliance campaign, changing lives changing life.

The campaign is seeking, via its Charter for Parents and the Early Years, to obtain a childcare or nursery place for every child who needs one. The campaign is also calling for the involvement and full consultation of parents in their children's early education; continuity of care for children; and a commitment to ensure a better deal for the voluntary sector as a major contributor to universal childcare.

ENDS

For further information please contact:

Sue Swift-Jackson
Pre-school Learning Alliance
T: 0115 981 6875
Out of hours press calls:
E: Sue Swift-Jackson

Notes for Editors:

  1. The Pre-school Learning Alliance has 15,000 member pre-schools who look after 500,000 young children and their families in England every year. Registered as an educational charity, the Alliance is the national dimension of the pre-school movement. Its member pre-schools are based in the community and most are managed and run by parents, alongside trained staff.
  2. For more information about the new facility at Newstead please contact Sue Swift-Jackson at the Nottinghamshire Office on 0115 981 6875. The Nursery address will be Newstead Neighbourhood Nursery and Sure Start Centre, Newstead Miners Welfare and Community Centre, Tilford Road, Newstead Village, NG19 0BU.
  3. The charity is involved in more Sure Start projects than any other organisation and aims to open around 30 Neighbourhood Nurseries by the end of the year.
  4. Pre-school Learning Alliance members receive a regular magazine (Under Five) reflecting issues affecting the early years sector. If you would like to receive a copy of this please call 020 7833 0991.
  5. Further information and all press releases are available on the Pre-school Learning Alliance's website: www.pre-school.org.uk or email pressoffice@pre-school.org.uk
  6. The charity recently launched the next phase of its changing lives changing life campaign, which seeks to give all children the best possible start in life. For more information visit www.pre-school.org.uk or call 020 7833 0991
1