Mar 16, 2023
One of the largest networks of nurseries in the UK, The Old Station Nursery Group, is delighted to welcome York’s award-winning nursery group, Little Green Rascals, to their growing family.
Little Green Rascals, founded in 2009 by mother-of-three and entrepreneur Vanessa Warn, were York’s first organic and eco-conscious children’s day nursery and have built up a portfolio of nursery sites and an after-school club in the city of York and surrounding areas.
Little Green Rascals caters for more than 1300 families across its seven locations, caring for 550 children per day. Locations include Tadcaster Road, Elvington Lane, Bishopthorpe, Flaxton, Haxby, Minster Yard and Poppleton, six of which have been rated ‘Outstanding’ by Ofsted.
The Old Station Nursery Group’s Chair, Sarah Steel said: “We are committed to building upon the amazing, unique ethos that Little Green Rascals has established in being eco-friendly, with an emphasis on gentle childcare and children’s development through being in touch with nature across its sites in York.”
Our aim is to ensure that every child in our care receives the highest quality of support and education possible, while fostering a love of learning and respect for the environment. We are delighted that parents, children and staff at Little Green Rascals are joining our family and we look forward to meeting everyone in the coming months.”
Former owner of Little Green Rascals, Vanessa Warn, commented: “My family and I have absolutely loved every minute of our Little Green Rascals journey but feel the time is right to integrate “LGR” into a larger group of nurseries as it enters the next chapter of its journey.
She continued with “I know in my heart that The Old Station Nurseries are the perfect fit and will nurture the team and our families. I am immensely proud of what we’ve created and how absolutely fantastic my staff team are. I’ll miss them, all our Rascals and their families very much but leave confident that the legacy will continue to be outstanding.”
“I am looking forward to supporting TOSN as they integrate LGR into their network. We share a lot of the same principles and values, by working together we can only further enhance an outstanding offering.”
The purchase means that The Old Station Nursery Group now cares for more than 5,000 children daily across 78 nurseries. The group has expanded rapidly since it became part of La Maison Bleue, the leading childcare provider in Switzerland and the third largest provider in both France and Luxembourg, since 2019.
Picture: (from left to right)
[Vanessa Warn – co-founder of Little Green Rascals, Kirsty Love – Head of Operations at The Old Station Nursery, Claire Sephton – Chief Operations Officer at The Old Station Nursery, Ben Warn – co-founder of Little Green Rascals.]