Nursery forced to move

Parents in east Oxford could lose their childcare if a nursery cannot not find a new home. Oxford Nursery Limited, which is based on the site of Oxford Community School, must find new premises because the school needs more space for its pupils.
The privately-run nursery, which caters for 83 children has until May to find a new building or be forced to close.
Joy Vickers, co-director of the Barracks Lane nursery which employs 17 people, said: "The parents are very concerned about the situation.
"If we do not find a new place some of them may have to leave their jobs to look after their children.
"It is very difficult to find nursery childcare places in east Oxford. A lot of them do not take babies."

Nanny Agencies in Oxford

Planned renovation
Ian Johnson, headteacher of Oxford Community, said the school needs the extra space because the number of pupils has risen from 406 in 1998, when the nursery first opened, to 1,150.
He plans to renovate the building and turn it into a dance centre.
Mr Johnson said: "They have been given six-months-notice, we told them last September.
"We have nowhere to teach dance. At the moment, we are teaching dance in the music room - that building is the only option we have.
"We will lose £10,000 a year but we need somewhere to educate our pupils."
Property hunt
Mrs Vickers is now hoping a former warehouse on the County Trading Estate in Cowley, will be the answer to their problems.
She added: "Finding new premises in this area is very difficult, we are now waiting to see whether Oxford City Council grants us planning permission for the property."
But city council planners have already recommended refusing permission because of the authority's policy of restricting the use of industrial sites for other purposes.
They are also concerned about the lack of car parking facilities and transport near the building.
A final decision will be made in next month.

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