I just could not carry on
80 families hit by nursery closure Christmas woe as 14 jobs lost ‘Ridiculous’ rates rise to blame - owner
ANURSERY owner has spoken of her sadness that she was unable to keep a much-loved nursery open in the face of spiralling costs.
Rachel Budd had run Rainbow Childcare, in Haslingden, for eight years, but says ‘ridiculous’ business rates made it untenable to continue.
The closure led to 14 staff redundancies and left 80 families looking for alternative provision in the build-up to Christmas.
Rachel, 40, says she has struggled to make ends meet and had to borrow money from family after rates doubled from £4,000 to £8,000 per year in 2014 - a decision which she fought for three years.
But after losing her appeal, in November, she was informed rates would increase again, to £9,000 and the cost became too much to bear.
Rachel said: “It is ridiculous. We couldn’t afford it as it was. We have struggled over the last three years because we still had to pay them, during the appeal.
“It has affected everyone because I had to make all our members of staff redundant. It has left us as a family in financial debt to some extent but I know that if we could have done anything we would have.
“It is not just the financial side though, it has certainly had a mental effect.”
The hardest thing about the closure for Rachel, however, is not seeing the staff and the children. She added: “It is upset- ting not to be able to see all the children every day. I was at my son’s school recently and some of the children came running over and said that they missed me and things. It is hard not seeing them but it’s nice to know that we have had some impact on their lives.
“I will also miss the staff and the banter we had, because some of them have been there for eight years and you see them more or less every day. They have become part of the family.”
Nathan Halstead, 27, says his stepdaughter, Amina Javaid, four, had blossomed during her time at the nursery, on Bury Road.
Speaking on behalf of himself and Amina’s mum Gem Heyes, Nathan said: “Before she started and when she first started at Rainbow she was a very shy and not very confident girl. After the first year she changed dramatically and started to really enjoy nursery and started getting very involved and making friends.
“I was really upset when I found out. She’s due to start primary school in September and now I’m worried we may have to start all over again to get her ready for that in a new nursery with new surroundings.”
Care assistant Kayleigh Taylor, from Helmshore, had two children at Rainbow but has been unable to find morning and after school care for her eldest child, Melissa, seven. Juggling work, she has had to change her hours and now says it has affected the family.
The mum-of-two, 32, said: “Melissa had a great bond with Anthony, one of the staff. She has problems with anxiety and he helped her make friends and feel part of the group and they have been split from friends.
“It’s been a very hard run up to Christmas, but we have a fantastic support network and me and my other half have managed but hardly seen each other, as when he comes in from work I go back out.
“In order to be able to get the hours I need to get in, I’ve been working silly shifts. There is a nursery near me but not with the availability I need so I’ve had to reduce my hours and juggle what I can.”
A spokesperson for the Valuation Office Agency, which determines the level of business rates, said: “Rateable values are based on an open market rental value on a fixed date - for this revaluation it’s 1 April 2015.
“Rateable values in the rating lists are used by councils to calculate business rates bills. We use a wide range of property information, including rental and other evidence to compare values across similar types of properties in order to set the rateable value.”