Sudden nursery closure shocks parents and staff

Parents were handed a letter by Cedar Park Nursery on Tuesday

Parents have described the decision to close a children's nursery with immediate effect as "devastating, chaotic and stressful".

Cedar Park Nursery in Enfield, north London, closed its doors on Tuesday, claiming it was due to enter administration.

One member of staff, who did not want to be named, told the BBC she was "frazzled and not sleeping".

The BBC has not had a response from the nursery but, in a letter to parents, one of the directors apologised for "what will undoubtedly be a terrible inconvenience for everyone".

'No inkling'

The decision affects 117 children at the nursery which employed 37 staff, the BBC understands.

Zehra Nevzat-Unver, 37, whose 19-month-old daughter attended the nursery, said: "It was very abrupt and confusing. No one has given a full explanation."

She added: "I genuinely feel like my daughter is homeless now because we were long-term clients of the nursery

"We were very happy with the staff, the children were happy and there was no inkling of anything going wrong.

"Until Tuesday evening, we had no idea about the nursery struggling. We received this letter as were picking up our children."

Cedar Park Nursery has closed abruptly

Nursery staff have told the BBC they were unaware of the nursery's financial situation and were planning to take legal action.

In a statement, they said: "Words cannot express our shock and sadness at the abrupt closure of Cedar Park Nursery.

"It was the staff and wonderful children and families that made working there so special and enjoyable.

"We are still trying to process the suddenness of the closure that has unfortunately left many staff unemployed and hundreds of parents without childcare.

"There are members of staff that have dedicated their career to Cedar Park, with 15+ year tenures, that have now been left jobless."

In a message to parents explaining the closure, Cedar Park Nursery director Leslie Beech said: "It is with great sadness that we must announce the permanent closure of our nursery at Wolverton effective immediately.

"This decision has not been taken lightly and it comes after much deliberation and consideration of all possible options to keep our nursery going.

"We have been in talks for the last 12 months for the business to be sold however sadly the deal has fallen through at the last minute and the lease allowing Cedar Park Schools to operate from Wolverton is due to expire at the end of the week."

Enfield Council has been approached for comment.