Historic Aldermaston school building to become community nursery

AN historic village school is to be renovated and turned into a community nursery.

The Cedars School in Aldermaston was an independent primary school from 1992 until its closure last year.

However, the well-known site will now get a new lease of life, having been bought by Berkshire-based Complete Childcare, which is planning to turn it into a nursery.

The new owners have said they are determined to give the nursery an "authentic and traditional feel - one that will match the quintessentially British rural village it is situated in".

Managing director of Complete Childcare, Alec Hodson, said: "After becoming aware of Cedars, its history, its role in the community and the special place it has in people’s hearts, we saw it as a place that was perfect for children and where so many have developed through their formative years.

"Our mission is to bring our high-quality standard of childcare to families living locally whilst continuing the legacy of this much-loved site."

He added: "We’re passionate about making a long-term investment for the future of children living across the region by making this site into our head office and a flagship nursery for Complete Childcare.

"It will become home-base for our administrative team and the training facility for new childcare practitioners.

"We’re looking forward to Cedars becoming the new template for our childcare practice.

"We know we can do something special with this nursery; its size will allow us to offer a personal feel for both children and parents, giving us that sense of community that made us fall in love with it in the first place."

Mr Hodson went on: "We will retain the historic look of the building and look forward to investing in high-quality resources for the children and nurturing each child through long-established and classical values of care and development.”

The former headteacher of The Cedars, Jane O’Halloran, who has remained a much-loved figure in the community, told us: “It’s important to me that the Cedars building, which was established for the education of children of the village, should continue to have children’s laughter ringing through it.

"I’m delighted that Alec and his team can carry Cedars on with the enthusiasm and affection our village deserves.”

Renovation is currently underway and it is expected that Complete Childcare will welcome local families to look around the new nursery within weeks.

The team is looking to recruit new teachers and staff and Mr Hodson said he is keen to attract local applicants.

Full training will be available for those looking to get into Early Years childcare, and career opportunities are available across the group.

For more information, visit www.completechildcare.co.uk