Covid forces the permanent closure of two nurseries
Katy Morton
Monday, February 14, 2022
A setting operated by Storal Learning has shut down due to a lack of staff and inability to recruit, exacerbated by the pandemic, while another nursery run by an education trust is to close because it is no longer financially viable.
Storal Learning took the decision to shut its Honeytree Day Nursery & Pre-school in Weston-Super-Mare to the majority of parents for good last weekend after repeated short-term closures due to staff shortages.
The setting is staying open to parents who work at the nearby Weston General Hospital until 31 March to give them time to find alternative provision.
According to Storal, the nursery had become increasingly reliant on agency staff which was ‘an unsustainable strategy in the long-term’.
Managing director Ashwin Grover said, ‘With a very heavy heart we came to the decision to close on Saturday - we decided that if we stayed open, we would experience further closures and this wouldn’t be fair to families or staff.
‘Faced with the continued levels of disruption caused by poor recruitment, it simply wasn't viable to continue operating.’
The closure of the setting leaves the group with 27 nurseries.
Feversham First Steps announces its closure
Another nursery, Feversham First Steps Day Nursery in Bradford, has also been forced to close due to ‘ongoing financial challenges coupled with the impact of the pandemic’.
The setting, which is due to close at the end of the month, is operated by Feversham Education Trust, which also runs academy schools.
A spokesperson for the nursery said, ‘It is with great regret that we have had to take the very difficult decision to close the nursery at the end of February.
‘Due to ongoing financial challenges, coupled with the ongoing impact of Covid-19, it is not sustainable to continue operating under the same high standards that the nursery has always strived to achieve. We recognise the uncertainty that this has caused for families but despite spending considerable time and effort looking at different ways in which we could continue to operate, unfortunately there is no viable option.
‘Our priority is to ensure that all children receive the best possible learning and development opportunities and so we are working closely with parents and the local authority to support them in ensuring children who are currently attending the nursery can secure places with other suitable providers.’
