East Sussex Nursery Secures New Home, Relieving Parents

Parents have expressed their “delight” following the securing of a new location for an East Sussex nursery, which had faced an uncertain future. Little Fireflies Nursery, situated in Uckfield, reported that the Diocese of Chichester, the site’s owner, had informed them that their lease would not be extended beyond December. The nursery has since reached an agreement to relocate to High Hurstwood Village Hall in January. This move is expected to assist families who, according to the nursery, would have been without childcare services had it ceased operations. Parent Sophia Sharif stated: “We are absolutely delighted, not to mention relieved. It’s been quite a few weeks of quite a lot of stress, been quite tumultuous, and we’re just so happy that we’ve found a really great solution.” The new village hall location is situated a 10-minute drive from the current premises on Belmont Road. Co-owner Debbie Buchner clarified that the chair of the village hall initiated contact after learning about the nursery’s search for a new site through news reports. Parents had previously conveyed their concerns to BBC Radio Sussex during the period when the nursery was seeking a new location. A representative for a group of parents indicated that families had experienced “distress” due to the “critical shortage of childcare options in our area”. Ms Buchner commented: “They [the parents] were fantastic. They grouped together, they went to the MP, they went to the radio.” According to the co-owner, five families will depart from the nursery in January upon its relocation, but all remaining children and staff are expected to stay.