A nursery owner is helping families get high-quality, affordable childcare on their doorstep by making use of a Notting Hill Genesis community centre.
Little Garden Nursery, which has a focus on using natural resources in the education of young children, opened earlier this year in Haymil Close, Perivale.
Last week they opened up their doors for a special community event, with games, activities, snacks and a workshop by their drama teacher.
Rassmieh Ketabpour, who owns and manages the nursery, said: “It was a really successful day. The parents enjoyed it, the children enjoyed it and our staff had a great time meeting everyone too.”
Speaking about her decision to launch the nursery, she added: “I’ve worked with children for many years but wherever I’ve been I’ve thought about how I would run things if I had my own place, what I would do differently.
“I’m really proud to now be able to do that and especially to be doing it for my own community. It is lovely here, it feels like a family.
“The staff are all really nice and people I have known and worked with for many years. I wanted people I knew had experience but also passion for the job. You need to want to make a difference and to teach children but also learn from them.
“The community centre wasn’t really being used and I really felt I could do something special here, so I spoke to Notting Hill Genesis and they said it would be possible. It wasn’t hard from that point on – it took time but it is all worth it.
“It has been amazing to have access to this space, one that is so perfect for our needs and so close to our community.”
Little Garden Nursery accepts up to 24 children per day, all of whom come from the local neighbourhood.
Omar Khan, who was the housing officer who helped Rassmieh secure the community centre, added: “It was really rewarding to be able to help get Little Garden Nursery find a base to help families in the neighbourhood.
Our social ethos is to be at the heart of communities, improving the lives of our residents, and work like this helps us fulfil that.
“Our housing and commercial properties teams worked together alongside Rassmieh to make this possible and we are sure it will benefit everyone involved. The community now has this excellent resource for young children, Rassmieh has been able to achieve her dream of owning her own nursery, while Notting Hill Genesis will have lower maintenance costs and receive some additional income to be invested into providing more homes for families who need it.
“We wish Rassmieh, her staff and all of the families who make use of the nursery, the best for the future.”
If you have an idea to make use of community spaces in your neighbourhood, please contact Grace Cleary at grace.cleary@nhg.org.uk.