A one-stop shop is literally being provided for parents of nursery-age children in a venture by Sainsbury's which the supermarket chain claims is the first-ever drop-in supermarket nursery in the UK.
Tic Toc Childcare runs the 30-place nursery at the supermarket at Castle Point in Bournemouth. Director Ashley Cornwall, who also runs a 52-place day nursery in Twickenham, said that she initially approached Sainsbury's with the idea.
'I want to get quality childcare out there for parents on a walk-in basis,' she said.
The nursery, which opened last month, is currently attended by an average of 15 children a day. Ms Cornwall said that its appeal was flexibility, as parents are able either to register for a term in advance or just turn up on the day.
The nursery is registered with Ofsted and parents of three- to five-year-olds are able to use their entitlement to five free two-and-a-half-hour sessions of educare a week.
Parents must agree to leave their children in the nursery for a minimum of one-and-a-half hours. Sessions last a maximum of two-and-a-half hours.
Sessions cost 5 for one-and-a- half hours, 7 for two hours and 9 for two-and-a-half hours.
However, Purnima Tanuku, chief executive of the National Day Nurseries Association, said, 'This type of flexible nursery service is designed to meet shoppers' needs and is an extension of existing customer service offerings by retailers. However, we do not see a drop-in service as an alternative to full-day care, which provides children with considerable benefits from continuity in early years care and education.'
Mary Chant, a partner at law firm Blake Lapthorn Linnell, advisors to Tic Toc Childcare, said, 'I think it is likely that it is a trend that will continue. I can see that for parents who want part-time provision this could be extremely convenient.'
Jane Jenkinson, Sainsbury's new development manager, said, 'This is a great facility and we think Tic Toc will prove very popular with our customers, especially those parents who want to take advantage of nursery places on an ad-hoc basis.'
She added, 'Many parents have told us that this is something they would welcome. It helps towards making shopping a hassle-free experience for parents with young children.'
