Nursery set to open in old manor
Gurpreet Samrai • Published 18 Mar 2012 13:00
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ONE of the town's oldest buildings is being transformed into a unique day nursery.
Fed-up with rigid day care, busy professional parents Kit and Fiona Lewis are behind plans to turn historic Upton Court, in Datchet Road, Slough, into a flexible nursery for 90 children from three months to five years old.
The new venture, named CrackerJacks Day Nursery, inspired by the couple's two-year-old son, will open from 6.30am-8pm, Monday to Friday and will offer extra touches such as a pick-up and drop-off service.
Mr Lewis, a police officer, said: "As parents of Jack, our two-year-old boy, we have had first-hand experience of the nursery providers in the local area.
"We know from our own experience that there is an overall lack of flexibility with regard to meeting the needs of busy professional parents, especially those with management responsibilities or who have shift working."
He added: "I was stuck on the motorway one day coming back from work and I called the nursery saying I was going to be late and they said: 'If you aren't back in 30 minutes we will have to call social services'."
More than £140,000 has been invested in the nursery by the couple, who have spent the last two years searching for the perfect premises. The historic building with three acres of grounds is now being renovated in time for the grand opening in April.
Plans include transforming The Great Hall at the heart of the building into the nursery's social hub, where children can come together for meals and play.
Other extra touches include a quiet room for parents, sensory room, dressing-up room and large outdoor play areas including a woodland, allotments, hidden garden and tree swings.
Mr Lewis said: "This is such a unique premises we have here and we think the atmosphere and the premises have been worth waiting for."
"Having not run a business before it is a daunting process, but thinking what we are bringing to the community is great."
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