Excitement builds as new family centre takes shape Meeting hears £2m project is on track to boost community
Not the type of gathering normally associated with excitement, Cairndow Community Childcare’s annual general meeting (AGM) was different, because big things are happening at the head of Loch Fyne.
Chairwoman Alison Hutchins praised the quality and hard work of staff at the childcare service, currently housed in Cairndow Village Hall.
In her report, Alison noted that a recent Care Inspectorate assessment awarded the childcare centre grade four across all areas, its highest graded report over the last five years.
Cairndow Childcare continues to promote its services around neighbouring Lochgoilhead, Strachur and Inveraray as the only service in the district able to provide all-year-round hours.
There were plenty of positive developments for Alison to report – but the big news is the purpose-built family centre under construction near Clachan at the foot of Glen Fyne.
The people behind Cairndow Community Childcare are excited about this £2 million project, and so they should be. The project has been funded by the Big Lottery, the Scottish Government Regeneration Capital Fund, the Robertson Trust, Ardkinglas Estate, Loch Fyne Oysters Limited, Cairndow Childcare and the Cairndow community’s fundraising efforts.
The new family centre will house a community services room offering a space, for example, to visiting healthcare practitioners. There will be three separate rooms for different age groups of preschool children and an active play area, open to the public, earning revenue to help sustain the centre and keep childcare fees reasonable.
The main contractor is Emtec Property Services, working alongside MAST architects and other local partners including Cowal Design and Taynuilt-based Gregor Cameron Consultancy Limited.
Speaking at the AGM, business development officer Sheena Dowse said: ‘I joined quite recently and it’s very exciting.
‘We had a site visit earlier today and you can really see the family centre taking shape. It is coming along nicely. It really offers an attractive proposition to parents, staff and the wider community.’
The builders are confident they will be finished by October and it is all systems go for Sheena and Cairndow Childcare directors to market the centre, which will eventually form part of a Cairndow ‘hub’ with office space and affordable housing alongside.
Essential to the centre’s success will be to attract a regular income. With the help of Cairndow Community Council, discussions are under way with Argyll and Bute Health and Social Care Partnership over the use of the community space for health-related purposes to blend with the family centre’s activities – just the start of a process to bring this new building to Cairndow’s heart.