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Director of Hampstead Wells and Campden Trust Sheila Taylor, Zippo’s ringmaster Norman Barrett and Catherine Boyd |
Time to save 10 O’Clock Club!
Parents and MP Jackson celebrate rescue of popular pre-school drop-in centre
IT was the slogan that clinched the American presidential election nearly 12 months ago – and Hampstead and Highgate’s Labour MP Glenda Jackson borrowed it to announce the rescue of a popular drop-in children’s centre in Parliament Hill Fields.
Ms Jackson told parents at the 10 O’Clock Club on Thursday that this was a case of “Yes We Can” after centre users worked together to fight its closure following funding cuts in April.
After a summer-long campaign by the MP with the help of the Queen’s Crescent Community Association, who have taken over the running of the club and a grant from the Hampstead Wells and Campden Trust, along with a £3,000 donation from pupils at nearby Parliament Hill School, the centre has been saved.
Ms Jackson said: “I want to thank everyone who has worked so hard to ensure this marvellous facility stays open.
“To borrow a phrase, this is a case of yes we can!”
The drop-in centre told parents in April they had just three weeks left after the Pre-School Learning Alliance revealed it could no longer offer funding.
Parents rallied round and the Queen’s Crescent Community Association, after protracted negotiations, took on the club.
Also at Thursday morning’s event was Catherine Boyd, the chairwoman of the parents group at the centre. It was Mrs Boyd’s mother, the Hampstead Labour stalwart Peggy Jay, who first came up with the idea for the club in the 1960s. Catherine, whose grandson Tom is a regular, recalled her mother’s reasons for launching the 10 O’Clock Club – and said they were still valid today.
“She had seen there was a need for young mothers who lived in tower blocks to have somewhere to meet each other and have a break from crowded and isolated living conditions, and give their children some outside space to play in,” she said.
Catherine said that the centre offered a different resource to a nursery.
She added: “You can just drop in when you want, and the children have lots of space to play in. It is perfect.
“I would like to thank Glenda Jackson, the Queen’s Crescent Community Association and the Hampstead Wells and Campden Trust for their support.”
Queen’s Crescent Community Association chairman Mick Farrant said: “We now look forward to developing the club further.” |
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