The Co-operative Childcare buys Oxfordshire nursery group
Katy Morton
Friday, May 4, 2012
The Co-operative Childcare has increased the number of places on offer by 50 per cent in the last six months, firmly placing the provider in the top ten of the largest nursery chains in the UK.
The group’s latest acquisition of the Petit Enfant nursery chain of four settings in Oxfordshire, brings the total number of places offered by the group to more than 3,000 from 2,030 last October.
The combined group will operate a total of 44 nurseries and two after-school clubs.
Established in 2002, Petit Enfant has four settings in Carterton, Witney, Upper Rissington and Thrapston, along with two after-school clubs in Thrapston and Langford, Oxfordshire.
All staff will continue to work at the nurseries, including the former director of Petit Enfant Debbie Robinson, who will take on the role of head of resourcing for the Co-operative Childcare.
The chain of four nurseries will be re-branded with the Co-operative Childcare logo, along with the former Places for Children and Banana Moon nurseries the group bought in March.
The Co-operative Childcare group manager Mike Abbott, said, ‘This is a very exciting time for us.
‘We see opportunities to deliver quality childcare around the country, running nurseries according to co-operative values and having strong links to the communities they serve.
‘We have identified nurseries which have a good fit with our existing operations and which we can develop. We are finding owners who are willing to sell because they recognise and trust our ability as a leading childcare provider.
He added, ‘We were interested in Petit Enfant because Oxfordshire is a key trading area for Midcounties.’
