Community rallies around charity-run Waterlooville nursery to raise funds for new toy shed

Children at charity-run Bushytails Pre-school, based at Springwood Infant School, are able to fully enjoy playtime again thanks to donations from the public to replace their ‘dangerous’ shed which was wet and rotten.

They were previously unable to enter and choose their own toys to play with as pre-school manager Jane Whiley deemed it to be unsafe, which led parent and treasurer Kirsty Creighton to set up a Go Fund Me page.

Kirsty and Jane were over the moon when they received a £2,000 donation from The Co-operative Funeralcare to top up the total and enable the charity to put in its new shed.

Mum-of-four Kirsty, who has sent all of her children to Bushytails, said: ‘I felt like I’d achieved something for a nice cause. I couldn’t believe it, when I got the phone call to say we would get £2,000 I did get upset on the phone.

‘It just goes to show that people do help and there’s that community spirit. I do love this playschool, I can’t be any happier.’

Ali Davison and Kelly Tice, funeral coordinators from the Waterlooville branch, visited the nursery to see the children enjoying the new shed.

Ali said: ‘It was perfect for us to be able to use our budget for something like this.’

Kelly added: ‘It was good for the community, the kids and it’s something different. It’s a vital part of this school.’

Donations flooded in from parents, who dropped change amounting to £309 into a collection pot, as well as more than £600 coming in through the fundraising page.

Jane, who has been manager at Bushytails for the 27 years since it opened, was pleased to receive a donation from South Africa Lodge where she used to work.

There were also kind gestures from Purbrook’s Happy Hearts Preschool and the residents’ association from nearby Heather and Mallow Close.

‘I didn’t like asking people for money, even though we are a charity, but it’s really brought the community together,’ Jane said.