Little Angels Nursery and Pre-school serving over 50 children is under threat if damage forces closure of New Milton Memorial Centre base

A NEW Milton nursery has joined calls to help save a community building base which has suffered extensive damage from torrential rainfall.

Natalie Sandom, owner and manager of Little Angels Nursery and Pre-School based at New Milton Memorial Centre, was concerned it could fold if the 40-year-old facility off Whitefield Road is forced to close.

As reported in the A&T, the memorial centre’s board of trustees, chaired by David Luker, is desperately trying to raise up to £100,000 to fix its roof and the main hall’s floor.

A recent emergency committee meeting unanimously voted to keep the centre open, but a temporary roof is needed to prevent further serious damage, at a cost of around £28,000.

Although trying to remain optimistic, Mrs Sandom told the A&T she had made unsuccessful attempts to secure an alternative venue for Little Angels if it had to leave the centre.

“At the moment there is no plan for the nursery to close unless there was heavy rain causing damage to the building,” she said.

“Every time there’s rain we cross our fingers and hope it doesn’t cause too much damage.

“We cover our property with tarpaulin if rain is forecast, just in case, so if we’ve got to relocate to new accommodation we’ve protected the contents to continue using.”

Little Angels occupies much of the centre’s first floor, including the Hampshire Room, which has so far not suffered any major damage, although a few damp ceiling tiles had to be removed.

Open from 8am-6pm Monday to Friday, it operates 50 weeks of the year, closing only for bank holidays and the two-week Christmas and New Year period.

It currently caters for 54 children, with new youngsters set to start in September and January.

If forced to vacate the centre with nowhere else to go, Mrs Sandom said this would affect about 50 families, including some who are disadvantaged.

“They don’t get the same experiences that other families do,” she continued.

“For those children coming here it’s actually something they look forward to. It’s concerning for us because we’ve seen a big increase in disadvantaged families because of Covid.

“The centre’s actually serving the whole community, from young children up to the elderly, which no other venue around here does.

"If the centre goes, a big chunk of the community will go with it.”

An online fundraising page at www.justgiving.com/campaign/improve has so far collected £1,915 towards its £100,000 target.

Mrs Sandom believed the pandemic’s financial toll had affected many people’s ability to donate.

Although the centre has been looking into holding fundraising events, such as a Zumbathon, continued uncertainty over Covid has limited what the nursery can do.