Tuckswood Academy set to close nursery amid falling demand

Broad Horizons Education Trust has this week revealed it is considering shutting down the nursery at Tuckswood Academy due to falling pupil numbers.

Should the plans go ahead the 26-place nursery, which only operates in the morning, would close down from September 2024.

However, Sarah Cook, whose twin five-year-olds Reuban and Imogen attend Tuckswood Academy, has urged the trust to reconsider.

She said: "I think closing the nursery would be completely the wrong thing to do.

"It is run by an amazing teacher, Helen Leverage, who does so much for the children and gets them ready for school. 

"I preferred to have my children at a school-based nursery and I know a lot of other parents feel the same."

Don Evans, chief executive at Broad Horizons Education Trust (Image: Boudica Schools Trust)

But Don Evans, chief executive of Broad Horizons, said the nursery is not set to have enough children in September to make it financially viable.

He said: "Demand for places at Tuckswood Nursery has been falling for a number of years which initially led to a reduction from full-time to morning-only opening.

"Tuckswood is a long-established community with a relatively static population and with no new house-building activity in the area there simply aren't enough children coming through to support the number of available places."

Mr Evans forecast that less than half of the available places in nurseries in the Tuckswood area would be filled come September.

He added: "We appreciate that the current uncertainty regarding the future of the nursery may be concerning and we will ensure we communicate the final decision as soon as possible."

Mrs Cook said she is considering setting up a petition to run alongside the consultation - which is open until April 22.