Published: Friday 4 March 2022
Grenfell Early Years nursery has now found its new permanent home at the Ilys Booker Centre on Lower Clarendon Road and is due to open its doors to families this summer.
The nursery, which was located in Grenfell Tower for 30 years, has been without a permanent home since the fire in June 2017.
It moved to the Ilys Booker Centre shortly after the fire but vacated the building in 2021 in order that the centre could be expanded and refurbished to accommodate the numbers of children the nursery was intended for. Since 2021 it has been residing at Oxford Gardens Primary School and serving families from North Kensington.
Following several consultations with nursery parents and the local community over the location of the nursery, it was decided that the Ilys Booker Centre would be the best setting if it was extended and refurbished to cater for the children’s needs.
The Council has invested over £2m to refurbish and extend the building to accommodate the nursery. This work has included improved indoor and outdoor spaces and a roof terrace.
The nursery delivers full and part time early education through play for children aged between one and three years old. It is part of the Lancaster West Children’s Community Network, a community- based organisation which aims to support all of its users irrespective of their circumstances with childcare and family support.
Nursery Manager Shirley Sylvester said: “Myself and the Grenfell Early Years staff team are extremely excited to have a permanent home again on the Lancaster West Estate. It means so much to us all to be able to help a larger number of children and families as we have done previously, and we cannot wait to expand our services and start to develop new initiatives that will benefit our local community.”
Cllr Josh Rendall, Lead Member for Family and Children’s Services added: “I know it has been an unsettling time for the children, parents, carers and staff at the nursery while a permanent location for them has been secured. We are progressing refurbishment work on the new nursery as quickly as possible so they can continue to provide outstanding support and early education for local families. Their new permanent home will also mean more families will benefit from their excellent services.”