Provision
Staff-baby ratios add up to new concept for nursery chain
Nursery group the Childcare Corporation has launched a new nursery brand offering higher staff ratios for babies under one, with the opening of Westchester House Nursery School in Farnham, Surrey.
Alan Bentley with Jillian Bailey of RBS
The flagship nursery has been described by the company as 'a totally new concept' for the nursery chain, which operates 20 settings in England under the Kiddi Caru brand.
Nurseries opening under the Westchester name will offer organic food sourced from local producers within a 35-mile radius. After company research conducted in the area, the nursery will also offer the flexibility of longer opening hours for commuter parents.
The Farnham setting is the first Childcare Corporation nursery to open in Surrey and the company plans to open more nurseries in the area and in Hampshire, at a rate of around one a year.
The new-build Farnham nursery was financed through a £935,000 loan from the Royal Bank of Scotland. RBS also made an unknown sum available to buy the land.
Childcare Corporation chairman Alan Bentley said, 'We are really excited about Westchester House Nursery, as this is the largest and latest concept to be pioneered. We have chosen Farnham as a place to provide nursery care as we felt there were limited opportunities in the area, plus it will create a hub for our Home County operations.'
Marketing manager Caron Pardoe said that the ratio of one staff member to two babies under a year old, and locally sourced organic food, were the two key differences between the Westchester and Kiddi Caru brands.
'We've started to see a shift in the take-up of under-one places, with babies coming in earlier at around four of five months, rather than nine months,' she said.
The 98-place Farnham nursery will have six places in the special baby unit and the nursery has been designed so that there are three rooms available for oneto two-year-olds, which can be arranged flexibly.
The Farnham nursery's core hours are 7.30am to 6.30pm, but parents will also have the option to drop their children off at 7am and collect them at 7pm.
