Edinburgh nursery running for more than 50 years faces closure unless it can raise £400,000 for new facilities

Leith St Andrew’s Playgroup’s future has been threatened by the planned closure of the Easter Road church with the same name.

The charity nursery, which offers affordable places for local parents and carers, has identified a new home at Loaning Crescent Bowling Club. However, it has to raise £400,000 to build a modular unit there to accommodate the children and meet the standards required for a nursery.

Leith St Andrew's Playgroup faces closure unless it can raise £400,000 for a new home at Loaning Crescent. | Submitted

Lucy Miller, an early years practitioner at Leith St Andrew’s Playgroup, which currently takes 25 kids and runs from 8.30am until 3.45pm Monday to Friday, is fearful for the nursery’s future.

She said: “The church is definitely closing and being sold off. We will probably be able to stay here until March, but then we would have to close.

“The council has given us a space at the bowling club at Loaning Crescent, but we can’t move there as it stands just now, we need to raise a lot of money to open as a nursery at that site.

“We have had a few different quotes for the modular unit we would need at the bowling club. The cheapest at the moment means we would have to raise £400,000.

“We have a small pot of money but we need to raise a lot more. We have also been applying for grants, so we hope to get the majority of the money through that, but the fundraising is very important.”

The kids and staff at Leith St Andrew's Playgroup have been doing all they can to raise funds, with events like this recent bake sale. | Submitted

Lucy highlighted the importance of Leith St Andrew’s Playgroup remaining open for local parents looking to get their children into a nursery during the cost of living crisis.

She said: “We have had a few fundraising ideas, Halloween and Christmas parties, and a race night. We are currently trying to get as many raffle prizes as possible. And we have held bake sales, as every little helps.

“We have put a few social media posts out and we hope to find some bigger prizes which we could auction off. We have not been successful with anything like that yet, just the likes of restaurant vouchers at the moment.

“The big thing for us is that we are not just a normal nursery shutting down. I think we are one of the only charity nurseries in the area, so it is cost effective for parents.

“We offer a vital service for parents during the cost of living crisis, allowing them to send their children to nursery without breaking the bank.”

If you can help Leith St Andrew’s Playgroup with their fundraising efforts by donating items for an auction or raffle, email [email protected] or call 07578772771.