A closed Mama Bear's nursery branch in Bradley Stoke is set to reopen after the firm sold a number of its Bristol sites. Grandir UK has taken over nine sites in Bristol, which leaves Mama Bear's with 15 nurseries across Bristol, Somerset and Devon.
Grandir UK houses a number of nursery brands across the country, including Kiddi Caru Day Nursery, which the nine Bristol sites will now be called. The locations of the nine nurseries in Bristol are Brislington, Hengrove, Downend Road, Soundwell, Crews Hole, Coronation Road, Hanham, Great Park Road in Bradley Stoke and Bradley Stoke (Bailey's Court, Webbs Wood Road) - the latter will be reopening in 2024.
Back in January, Bristol Live reported that the two Bradley Stoke branches of Mama Bear's would be merging, following an 'inadequate' Ofsted rating, and would be reopening under one roof at Great Park Road. However, with this new acquisition and name change, two nursery branches will remain in Bradley Stoke - now called Kiddi Caru Day Nursery and Preschool, Great Park Road, and Kiddi Caru Day Nursery and Preschool, Webbs Wood Road, respectively.
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The latest acquisition takes Grandir UK to a total of 81 settings across London, the South West, Midlands, South, East and Central England. Tony Driffield, who co-owns Mama Bear's, said: “Our aim has always been to be the bridge between home and school by providing the highest standards of care and education and this has been achieved by providing stimulating, friendly, clean and safe environments whilst being sensitive and responsive to the individual needs of the children.
"I know Grandir UK are aligned on quality and this ethos and will be a great fit to continue what we have successfully achieved over many years.”
Lydia Hopper, CEO of Grandir UK, said: "A very warm welcome to all the children, families and the nursery teams. We are very much looking forward to meeting everyone over the coming weeks.
"Tony and Bev have successfully crafted a stellar reputation providing childcare solutions to families in the local area since 2004. They have confidently left the nurseries in Grandir UK’s capable hands to continue to provide high-quality childcare where children will enjoy an enriched and unique range of education programmes.
"The nursery teams will reap the rewards of being part of a larger group with benefits such as a dedicated resource to professional development and access to the savings and rewards & recognition employee platform, GrandCentral. Thank you to Grant Thornton, who approached us with the opportunity and helped all parties throughout.”