Twerton creche faces closure

A Twerton nursery could close because of the withdrawal of council funding.

The creche at The Hut in Hinton Close has been running for the past 16 years, but now does not have enough money to stay open.

Bath and North East Somerset Council has decided to concentrate its funding on another nursery in the area which it believes offers better value for money.

The creche, which looks after around 10 children a day, has relied on money from B&NES Council since last Easter, but at the beginning of December, organisers were told that council contributions would stop in the new year.

Creche manager Val Rowlands, who has been running the community centre since 1992, said: "Parents love the creche because it is small and it is local.

"Because it is in a deprived area of Bath, which Twerton is classed as, it is important the care is there for the parents.

"The parents won't go anywhere else, it is more like a family centre for them. They know their children are safe and looked after and some of our children wouldn't cope anywhere else."

Although funding runs out tomorrow, the remaining staff are determined to stay positive.

A group of them even went into the centre over Christmas to redecorate and clean, to try to prove that the creche was worth saving.

Cllr Tim Ball (Lib Dem, Twerton) is appealing for B&NES Council to reverse its decision.

He said: "We have been fortunate in Twerton over the past decade to have three very popular nurseries that have helped the education of our children.

"It seems that Conservative administration on B&NES Council does not believe that parents should have a choice in which nursery to send their children."

If no new funding is found, workers believe the creche will be forced to close within a month when the bills need to be paid.

B&NES Council has decided to concentrate funding on the First Steps Twerton Children's Centre, which as well as running a nursery also offers parent support groups, a midwives clinic, Job Centre Plus interviews and Citizens Advice Bureau sessions.

A council spokesman said: "The council must prioritise its resources, while continuing to provide local residents with services that meet their needs and offer the best value for money.

"On these grounds, it was decided that the best use of these resources would be to fund First Steps Twerton Children's Centre which offers a wide range of facilities for local families in addition to its child care service."