A new pre-school is set to open in the village of Peasedown St John near Bath next month thanks to a partnership between a local nursery and St John’s Church.
Revd Matthew Street with Jessica Baxter and Samantha Coakley
The Learning Tree Day Nursery have entered into a long-term agreement with St John’s Church to run the pre-school in the Church Hall.
The nursery and preschool specialists already run a nursery in Eckweek Road, Peasedown, and another in Chilcompton.
Jessica Baxter, Owner and Director of the Learning Tree Day Nursery, said: “We’re absolutely thrilled to be opening a third site in our network of nursery and pre-school hubs – and we couldn’t ask for a better place than in Peasedown St John.
“We’re hugely grateful to Revd Matthew Street and his team for providing the space for this new pre-school.
“There is growing demand for nursery and pre-school provision in our area, and the Learning Tree Day Nursery is pleased to be in a position to provide this.”
The new pre-school will be hosting an Open Day on Saturday 13th April, from 10am – 12 noon at St John’s Church Hall, Church Road, Peasedown St John, BA2 8AA.
Changes announced by the government last year mean that from April, working families will be able to receive more support with their childcare costs.
Eligible families will be entitled to 570 hours of free childcare each year, and these entitlements will then be expanded in phases.
By September 2025, most working families with children under the age of 5 will be entitled to 1,140 hours of funded childcare support each year.
Revd Matthew Street, the Vicar of St John’s Church, added: “We’re delighted to have been able to provide a site for the Learning Tree Day Nursery’s new pre-school.
“The Church Hall has, in the past, been a home for a previous early-years provider, so we have a long history here at St John’s of providing educational facilities for our children and young people.
“With St John’s already running our ‘Little Ones’ group during the week and ‘Bubble Church’ once a month, the church really has become a site of pre-school excellence locally and in the wider area.
“We’re looking forward to working with Jess and her team to ensure families and children receive the very best opportunities available to them.”
