The parents of 48 children have been left scrambling for childcare after a nursery which has been open for almost 40 years closed suddenly today. The closure of Beechwood Private Nursery School, Shady Lane, Bromley Cross, Bolton has left 13 workers jobless, children heartbroken and parents facing difficulties in having their children looked after.
The first parents knew of its imminent closure was when an email was sent on Friday, February 24 saying that rising cost issues meant ‘the unfortunate but necessary decision to cease trading’ from Friday, March 3. It said ‘costs in the day to day running of the nursery have increased in the last 12 months’, leaving the business unsustainable.
It is understood the closure was then brought forward to Tuesday, February 28 due to issues with staff wages over the recent period. The nursery, open from 8am-6pm looks after pre-school children of all ages at the building close to Bromley Cross railway station.
One parent of a two-year old boy at the school said the decision had left parents in ‘complete shock’. He said: “The communication on this has been terrible.
“My boy is so happy there. “As parents we have had no notice of this and are in complete shock. “We have no idea where our son will go after today, and how as working parents we will manage this.”
Another parent of a three-year-old girl, said: “The first we knew was in an email just after 6pm on Friday, just after they told the staff. “My daughter calls every member of staff at Beechwood her best friend.
“She’s bonded with many other children there, made friends and they are now being torn apart. “For a lot of us it could mean we have to leave our jobs if we can’t find alternative arrangements and in a cost of living crisis that obviously isn’t ideal. “It’s another layer of worry.”
Beechwood was established in 1984 as a children’s day-care and pre-school education centre and can care for up to 60 children aged two-four. It operated on a five-day week over a 50 week year, closing only over Christmas and Bank Holidays.
The nursery website states: “For more than 30 years the nursery and it’s staff has held an unrivalled reputation for high standards of personal childcare within a loving family environment.”
The owners of the nursery declined to comment further other than to confirm the nursery was closing on Tuesday.
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