Nursery World - Editor's View (94)

With the top ten nursery groups retaining their league-table positions, there is little movement among the largest players. But there are rumblings lower down the table, with Giraffe Childcare and Early Learning Centres, based in Dublin, moving up four places. The Irish market is the one to watch because the economy is booming, with high demand for childcare. Turn to 'Growing pains' on pages 7-8 to find out more. In the UK, Happy Days Nurseries could be the next chain to leap up the table. Owners Sarah and Robin Karkeek talk about their growth over 15 years and reveal expansion plans in 'Family fortunes' (pages 10-11). We also profile Active Learning, a relatively new chain that is seeking to liven up a 'stale' nursery market by offering education through performing arts, sport and music (see 'Up and running', page 18).

In the UK, Happy Days Nurseries could be the next chain to leap up the table. Owners Sarah and Robin Karkeek talk about their growth over 15 years and reveal expansion plans in 'Family fortunes' (pages 10-11). We also profile Active Learning, a relatively new chain that is seeking to liven up a 'stale' nursery market by offering education through performing arts, sport and music (see 'Up and running', page 18).

Chains are keen to raise quality and many are using the Transformation Fund to gain a more highly trained workforce (see 'Seize the moment', pages 4-5). What does this workforce look like? Very good, according to our Nursery Chains uniform survey - turn to pages 16-17.

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