Nursery World Award draws praise from Gordon Brown

WCS staff celebrate at the Awards

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has congratulated a London childcare charity on its recent Nursery World Award.

Brown and Chancellor Alastair Darling visited the Westminster Children’s Society (WCS) Marsham Street Children’s Centre on November 24, just days after WCS won Nursery Chain of the Year at the first Nursery World Awards.

Brown said he was delighted to “see at first-hand the excellent facilities and to meet the dedicated staff and happy youngsters.

“I would also like to congratulate Westminster Children’s Society on winning the Nursery Chain of the Year Award on Friday. We want every child to get the best possible start in life which is why high-quality, affordable early learning like this is so important. Congratulations to all,” he said.

The visit was early in the day that Darling was due to announce his much anticipated pre-budget report. June O’Sullivan, chief executive of WCS, said it was “especially timely with so many of our own families feeling the pressure in the current economic climate; a fact we obviously felt obliged to bring to the attention of both the Prime Minister and Chancellor – along with a plea for further specific support for the sector at large.”

The Awards were created by Haymarket business title Nursery World to celebrate the sometimes overlooked work of early years professionals.

“The fantastic work going on in the sector is often not recognised and rewarded,” said Nursery World editor Liz Roberts, “and the Nursery World Awards aim to put this right.”